COLLEGIATE ATHLETCIS AND PRE-WORLD WRESTLING ENTERTAINMENT CAREER
Michelle McCool was a softball player at Pasco-Hernando Community College in New Port Richey, FL. She earned Academic All-American honors in 1999. McCool competed in National Physique Committee contests, taught gymnastics and kick boxing, and worked as a personal trainer prior to entering the 2004 Raw Diva Search competition. She also earned a masters degree in educational leadership from Florida State University.
WORLD WRESTLING ENTERTAINMENT
2004-2005:
Michelle McCool first came to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as a competitor in the 2004 WWE Diva Search, from which she was the 4th woman eliminated.[5] Despite not winning the contest, she was still signed to a 3-year contract in November 2004. She debuted on SmackDown! as a face with a personal trainer gimmick, a reference to her actual past employment. Unlike most of the other "Rookie Divas" who participated in the Diva Search, McCool aimed to become an actual professional wrestler.
After participating in a number of "Best body" contests, she made her in-ring on her first SmackDown! match, teaming with The Big Show to defeat Dawn Marie and René Duprée on March 3, 2005. McCool and Dawn Marie feuded for the next few weeks, with Dawn Marie coming out on top.
A few months later, McCool became a part of the feud between MNM and Heidenreich when she defended Heidenreich against MNM's manager Melina's verbal attacks. Melina and McCool then began a feud, including Melina's SmackDown! debut match, which Melina won. After the match, MNM gave McCool their finisher, the Snapshot. This would be the last time she appeared on WWE Television for almost a year.
McCool was then sent to WWE's developmental facility, Deep South Wrestling (DSW), where she wrestled, performed interviews, hosted segments, and provided color commentary with Nigel Sherrod. Her first feud in DSW was against Angel Williams. While in DSW, she was hospitalized after taking prescribed medication, and she was sidelined for several weeks to recover. Eventually she was moved to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). While in OVW, she began managing the duo of Amish Roadkill and K.C. James.
2006-2007:
She returned to SmackDown! on June 2, 2006, this time working as a heel with a "hot teacher" gimmick, again pulling on her real life experiences. Upon her arrival, she aligned with Kristal to feud with then-faces Jillian Hall and Ashley. This led to a Fatal Four Way Bra and Panties match at The Great American Bash, which Ashley won. She won her first singles match on the July 28, 2006 edition of SmackDown!, defeating Hall by illegally using the ropes as leverage.
Soon after, she began acting as valet for the team of K.C. James and Idol Stevens, who, because of her association with them, were nicknamed The Teacher's Pets. The trio began feuding with Paul London and Brian Kendrick, and their valet Ashley, for the WWE Tag Team Championship, but never won the title. The feud ended when London and Kendrick won a blow off match at No Mercy 2006 in October.
On November 28, 2006, McCool was hospitalized with an enlarged kidney, a broken sternum, and an electrolyte imbalance. During her absence, both James and Stevens were sent back to OVW. She was released from the hospital on December 2, 2006.
McCool returned on the March 30, 2007 edition of SmackDown!, where she participated in a 10-Diva Tag Team Match. On the April 13 edition of SmackDown!, McCool turned face once again when she came to the aid of Ashley after she was attacked by Jillian Hall backstage, leading to a short feud between herself and Hall, where McCool came out on top. On the May 28, 2007 edition of RAW, Michelle won the Memorial Day Bikini Beach Splash Battle Royal by eliminating Melina.
After Victoria had her "blow off" match with Torrie Wilson, during which Michelle rescued Torrie from an after-match beating, she immediately began a feud with Victoria, which led to series of matches including a Mixed Tag Team match with Chuck Palumbo as her partner and Kenny Dykstra as Victoria's partner.