Years after a controversial NCAA ban, YouTuber Deestroying made his professional football debut by suiting up for the UFL’s San Antonio Brahmas.
The United Football League is garnering rave reviews for its opening weekend asNFLfans tune in to bridge the gap of the lengthy off-season. The league is also receiving another boost in the form of YouTuber Deestroying.
The YouTube sensation earned a roster spot for the San Antonio Brahmas by beating out former Houston Texans kicker Matt Ammendola earlier in March.
Deestroying couldn’t contain his excitement on theESPN broadcast. He said with a smile, “I’m a real football player now.”
Donald De Le Haye, better known by his YouTube name of “Deestroying,” was once a kickoff specialist and part-time receiver for the UCF Knights.
Deestroying gave up his scholarship and a place on the team to continue profiting off his name, image, and likeness.
Only a few years later, collegiate athletes can safely profit from their own likeness with new NIL deals in place.
While the switch came too late for Deestroying, he still found success. He is one of the most popular sports YouTubers in the world, evidenced by his5.82 million subscribers.
His one-on-one tournaments between wide receivers and cornerbacks helped build up the channel over the years. These battles sometimes even featurecurrent and former NFL players.
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And now Deestroying is living out his dream of playing professional football, even if it’s not in the league he always imagined it would be.
His Brahmas comfortably won their season opener by double-digits vs. the Defenders, with Deestroying not attempting a single field goal.
Hunter Haas was a Senior Sports Writer at Dexerto. Over the last two years he has worked as a writer and editor for FanSided at NFLMocks. He also served as an editor at The Raider Ramble and The Blue Stable. Hunter is an expert in all things MMA, WWE, and NFL.
You can email him here: hunter.haas@dexerto.com
