Jaida Parker Details Her Road To WWE NXT

The road to wrestling doesn't look the same for everyone, but thanks to the WWE Performance Center and now the new WWE ID program, the path to get there is slightly more streamlined. Today, countless athletes worldwide endeavor to grab the attention of WWE talent scouts. But in the case of "NXT"'s Jaida Parker, WWE made the first move– a rarity in the wrestling business. 

Speaking to WWE Deutschland, Parker revealed she was playing soccer at Louisiana State University when WWE slid into her DMs. 

"[WWE] reached out to me on Instagram, and at the time I didn't know if it was real or not," Parker said. "But when I realized that it was legit– It was so different from soccer. From the years I put into it, I was like, why not?"

Parker said her biggest adjustment was the training. Preparing for the squared circle isn't quite the same as preparing for the soccer field, she noted.  

"I had to get used to taking those bumps all the time. My body wasn't used to it," she continued. "I had to change up my whole workout regimen because what I used to do for soccer, I really can't do for wrestling, because I need to build my body a certain way to protect myself. ... so I was having a mental fight with that."

Parker has drawn early comparisons to Bianca Belair, another athlete who was recruited by WWE, which Parker called that the ultimate compliment. Parker recently picked up a win against Lola Vice on the November 5 edition of "WWE NXT" from the 2300 Arena, with ECW Original Dawn Marie serving as guest referee.