NEXUS or CORRE: Michael Tarver

[Father Uncle Oscar]

This is the first edition of a new series I'm going to start. Pretty simple concept: Nexus, Corre, or neither? First up is Michael Tarver.

Last week on Smackdown and tonight on Raw, Michael Tarver has been seen backstage, seemingly stalking the backstage area. It seems as though, IMO, turning into a Gregory Helms backstage reporter-type gimmick, which I believe would be a pretty nice rehash for the PG era and could push Tarver pretty well. It seems as though Tarver isn't permanently placed on a brand yet since he's only been shown twice, once on each show, since his return from injury. So what do you think? Is he Nexus? Is he Corre? Or is he getting a singles push?

 

[Disturbed]

I could see him going with Corre. They don't have that mid card guy. They have Barrett which is the main eventer, Big Zeke which is the body guard type, Slater and Gabriel are the tag team, so Tarver could be there 5th man and go after the IC title. The New Nexus has Punk as the main eventer, Ryan as the body guard type, Mcguillicuty and Harris as the tag team, and Otunga as the mid card superstar. Tarver would be the David Otunga of the Corre and I think he will join them this Sunday at the Royal Rumble. At least thats what I want but it is turning out to be quite unpredictable.

 

[Montague]

I dont see him joining either group. He really doesn't fit in with either. I think Skip should come back and join Corre.

Nexus Corre
Punk Barrett
Otunga Slater
McGuillincutty Gabrial
Harris Sheffield
Ryan Jackson

Punk and Barrett are defacto leaders (even if Corre doesnt have one)
McGullincutty and Gabrial are the actual wrestlers (a technical and a flyer)
Ryan and Jackson are the Enforcers
Harris and Sheffield are the secondary muscle
and Otunga and Slater are the left overs who everyone knows but still doesn't give a crap about

 

[UltimateHitman]

I went with neither. I don't think he should be a part of either one as of yet. And I don't know if it has anything to do w/it, but he's been in a couple of situations separate from the Corre and Nexus, kind of doing his own thing, and got that new look w/the suit and "clean cut" appearance.

He was shown being soft spoken on Smackdown, just saying he walked in and saw Teddy Long unconscious in a concerned, sincere manner. Then, on Raw, he was watching the Bellas bicker and chuckling about it and shook his head and walked off. He's not being shown in a "stable driven" direction in these two instances, but more of doing his own thing.

My point? I think he'll go face.

 

[JGlass]

I voted neither. I don't blame anyone who voted Corre, it does make sense after all. It would seem that a Corre-Nexus showdown is bound to happen, and the 5 to 4 advantage Nexus holds doesn't give Corre a fair chance. Tarver would fit in very well with the Corre as he would be the only other guy besides Barrett who can talk, and he could be the group's pure striker while Zeke is their bruiser, Gabriel is their high flier, Barrett is their wrestler, and Slater is their useless friend.

However, I think Tarver is going to go his own way here. It's more likely he winds up on RAW than Smackdown as they announced him on RAW tonight instead of Smackdown. I expect him to be put into a lengthy feud with a midcard face, with the face going over. He's new, he'll lose more than he wins in the beginning, but I could see him working his way into the upper midcard within a year. He's good on the mic, has a powerful look and could be quite believable in the ring. He still has a lot to prove, but I believe that he'll be able to do it.

 

[Showtime]

For the grain of salt that it's worth, if you look up Nexus on Wikipedia it still lists Skip Sheffield as an official member, albeit injured, and not a former member where they have Darren Young, Daniel Bryan, John Cena, and the members of Corre. So Skip could go to either Fraction or he could end up going off on his own, who knows.

As for the subject at hand, the Michael Tarver, with The Corre being a man down compared to Nexus, it would only make sense that he would join The Corre. It may also be better for his career as The Corre I see actually giving the individual members more of a push as opposed to just being a nameless face in the crowd, or David Otunga as the kids will be calling it. Tarver has adequate enough mic skills that will get mic time with Wade Barretts group whereas he'll be lucky to say more than Michael McGilligutty does in a month with the CM Punk led Nexus. Otherwise, I'm not really interested in where or what Tarver does. Because he isn't Wade Barrett or Justin Gabriel, I see him just like all the other Nexus nobodies... middle card fodder...

 

[Rckstrtmmy]

I think he'll join the Corre. If you look all the remaining original member of Nexus went to the Corre with Barrett except for Otunga. Makes sense since Otunga and Barrett had some beef towards the end there. I see Tarver joining back up with Barrett and then when Sheffield is ready to return the two groups (being even) will both lobby for him to join their respective factions.

 

[The Black Death]

I voted neither because I can't see him joining either faction. He won't join the Corre because Barrett was the one that kick him out of the Nexus after he lost to John Cena on RAW a couple of months ago, and I don't see him joining Nexus because the Nexus is a totally differant group then the one he was in. I see him starting a singles career on either brand in the near future as a heel I just can't see him as a face, the look, the attitude, and the in ring move set screams heel imo.

 

[kidmetal24]

I agree with Montauge on this also. Rckstrtmmy I have to respectfully disagree. Barrett was the one who said when Cena beat down Tarver that he did him a favor and he was looking to get rid of him. You could be right though but thats my perspective. I live in Michigan and was at Raw tonight. The Corre is a stupid name but the stable really has only 2 good members, Barrett and Gabriel. The New Nexus has 2 young studs in Harris and McGuillincutty, a beast of a man in Mason Ryan. The only Nexus dead weight is David Otunga. Punk is an excellent leader and I would pick him the best leader of a group the WWE has. R-Truth is a hack. Shoulda stayed at TNA. He has no place anymore and WWE has pushed him relentlessly with no go as a main eventer. A waste to push him when other up and comers could have used it.

 

[Claşşics]

Personally, I never bought Tarver as a heel. During Nexus' first Raw promo (a week after they made their debut), he apologised for what he had done....and he apologised many times after.

I haven't seen enough of him in the ring to know where he should be in terms of position on either roster (main event, midcard, Superstars)....but I wouldn't mind seeing him on SmackDown as a face. Give him a gimmick similar to MVP. If nothing else, SmackDown's midcard is vastly superior to Raw's, so he'd most likely be able to get TV time, and he's got more to work with in terms of talent (Swagger, Kingston, Ziggler, Rhodes, etc).

 

[The Eighties]

Neither, I think that he will go it alone with a boxing type gimmick, give him an agent and try to do a Mike Tyson type deal with him, he is imposing looking so if booked with protection he can grow into a better performer with any luck.

 

[TCBT]

Ya know, when I saw Tarver on Smackdown, my initial thought was "WTF?" I mean, he was just there, hanging out when Teddy Long got attacked. Why? What logical reason did he have to be there?

Now on Monday, again, just 'there'. Watching over things, doing much of nothing.

So I start thinking.... Can Michael Tarver be the anonymous GM of RAW, or at least have some connection to him/her/it??

Think about it - Teddy Long insults the RAW GM, calling him a coward, then gets beat up. Tarver's in the room.

He's also on RAW, and a little bit after the GM sends an e-mail, we see him hanging out in the back.

WrestleMania is around the corner, so I would assume the anonymous GM bit will come to a head then. The storyline needs to advance somehow, and soon.

Again, I'm not necessarily saying he's the GM... there's a lot of plot holes and inconsistencies regarding the anonymous GM if it is him, considering he was in the ring sometimes while the GM sent e-mails during his run as a member of Nexus. But can't he be somehow involved???

Hmmm... any thoughts?

 

[Decarow]

I voted neither. I honestly think Tarver is going to be in WWE's annual list of spring future endeavors. They aren't doing anything with him. He was a weak link in the first Nexus. He can't stop smiling during promos.

Truthfully, he would be more successful in the X-Division in TNA. He can't join the title races in the E. They're pretty packed and he doesn't really have the "it" factor that the E is willing to show. He reminds me of Elijah Burke. Or Orlando Jordan before he became part of the Cabinet. In which case, another small faction would have to form, one that's nowhere near related to Nexus or the Corre.

 

[beefthelegend]

I think he is in line for a singles push. Have you noticed over the past two weeks when we've seen Tarver, something bad happens? Last week on Smackdown Long goes down, and this week right after the Bellas walk past him, they catch Daniel Bryan making out with Gail kim, which leads to a donnybrook. I think this could be some kind of angle...

Or it's just a random series of events that are not interconnected.

 

[Stephen11]

I voted neither, even though Corre desperately needs a 5th guy so they line up with New Nexus, Tarver isn't it. He just doesn't match up to it and honestly, he doesn't fit to the caliber of either group. Tarver is probably the worst of the NXT group, he can't talk and he can't wrestle. Going to Smackdown would be his best bet since he'll have an occasional midcard match there and will more than likely be on Superstars every week.

 

[Jacob]

I voted neither because I can't see him joining either faction. He won't join the Corre because Barrett was the one that kick him out of the Nexus after he lost to John Cena on RAW a couple of months ago, and I don't see him joining Nexus because the Nexus is a totally differant group then the one he was in. I see him starting a singles career on either brand in the near future as a heel I just can't see him as a face, the look, the attitude, and the in ring move set screams heel imo.

Actually, it was John Cena who did the AA causing him to be injuried. Barrett said thanks he was worthless but Idon't believe he was released or kicked out.

Back on topic, I voted neither as well. As he was shown he looked in a different manner when he was concerned for Teddy Long. I believe this is a start of a new era for Tarver.

 

[Avrusha92]

I voted for Neither.
Simply because when he was on RAW, he was shown watching John Morrison and Mark Henry vs. Sheamus & Alberto Del Rio, then he was shown next to Daniel Bryans locker room area, and he was shown on SmackDown randomly where Teddy Long was hurt.

I think hes having this stalker gimmick, trying to get a contract.
Hes been shown on the phone texting.

Maybe he will have an agent try to get him a contract or something, and have him be one of the top rookies in WWE (gimmick) similar to MVP.

Tarver is shown around every hectic scene:
Teddy Long bein attacked, Bellas fighting over Bryan, etc.

The Corre will end up getting Skip Sheffield, even though I believe Skip could be a star on his own. The guy does look like a threat, but Skip will end up on The Corre.
But we are not talking about Skip, were talking about Tarver.

The guy has some skills, and he was one of my favs in the Original Nexus.
Hes decent on the mic, looks like he can rip you apart, badass, has a good build.
I honestly like the guy, I am sure some of you too like him....

Why would they keep showing Tarver, and not have him be involved with this whole Nexus-Corre situation?
Simply because he's not going to be involved.

If he was then theyd have him chose sides: Nexus or Corre.
He would run in during their match, and hed be the monkey in the middle so to say.
He would obviously pick The Corre.

 

[brochester8]

I want to say Corre but I really see Shefield joining them since he wasn't actually "kicked out" just hurt. Barrett said that Tarver was dead weight when Cena joined.

With that I don't see him with Barrett and I see him own his own. However, I don't know what he could do outside of that.

So Maybe he will and maybe he won't, he is an interesting character. I do wonder what he's up to?

 

[Matisyahu]

I think he will not join either faction and they will do just like they always do and probably never mention that he was part of Nexus much like Darren Young and Bryan.

He'll probably be no where near either faction in storylines or otherwise so they'll try to ignore that fact that he was in Nexus to begin with which wouldn't be so bad really because he doesn't really need to be in either.

Hopefully Sheffield will come back as part of the Corre instead of them adding Tarver because I think Sheffield would be a better fit and seem like a better asset

 

[thefutureisnow]

I think Tarver should turn face on the raw brand, become a united states championship contender, He should not be a part of any stable or tag team, show why he doesn't need any faction in order to be successful.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

No idea, but I'm really intrigued. Sometimes the simplest angles are the most enjoyable. All he did on Raw was show up in a few camera shots and got people talking. It's still way too early to tell about Tarver, as we haven't seen a lot of him without the Nexus cloud surrounded him, but I think he could do really well as a singles competitor. Hopefully he won't go with either because there are members of both that attacked him way back when. I hope he shows up to turn the tide and screw over both teams in some way, whether it be at the Rumble or in the future. I'm also hoping for a quick Skip Sheffield return as well. The two of them teaming together would be a POWERHOUSE.

 

[Theo Mays]

If you notice it seems as if something goes wrong when Tarver is around. Look at SD last week when Teddy was attacked. Who was there? Michael Tarver. The Bellas find out that Gail Kim and Daniel Bryan are an item, who did the Bellas walk past? Michael Tarver. He could be like a bearer of bad news or something along those lines. Whoever is seen around him will have something bad occur to them. It is probably a stretch, but you never know and it is most certainly unique.

As for the question, it makes the most sense for him to join the Corre. However I see him branching out on his own and we will see him appear backstage most likely again at SD and I would reckon we find out his brand allegiance at the Royal Rumble. Tarver could enter and throw out someone, immediately igniting a feud with said individual. Hell he could even just appear backstage at the Rumble and continue on that trend until they figure out where to place him. I'm most certainly interested in where it is going.

 

[brochester8]

What was with his twitter message the other night it said "Oh yeah Im baaaaaaack and im about to go H.A.M. stay tuned".

My question is what is H.A.M.?

Anyone know if this has something to do with his future in WWE.

 

[.]

Michael Tarver does not need to join either Nexus or the Corre. Michael Tarver should be the first person to break out of the NXT shadow and become a star on his own.

Now in my own opinion, in the original Nexus, Michael Tarver was one of the driving forces that made that group look so damn dominant. His constant intimidating looks and vicious stiff looking punches while on the mic he claimed he had children. In NXT, he was the joke rookie of Carlito but in WWE, he was made look like the beast he was supposed to be on NXT.

Tarver could join Nexus and be one of the flagship whipping boys somewhere between Husky Harris and Mike McGillicutty helping CM Punk to somehow annoy John Cena even further. Tarver could easily join Corre for the sole reason to match the amount of people in Nexus for possibly some sort of elimination match at Wrestlemania with two heel groups that nobody will give a flying crap about.

Tarver doesn't need either of these groups or the NXT shadow to have a good career. He has all the neccessary credentials to be a star right now: good mic skills, decent in-ring ability that will get better and one of the most unique scariest looks in the WWE right now. He could easily feud with someone like Kofi Kingston or Daniel Bryan for their respective mid-card titles. The only problem i see with Tarver right now is that he is 33 years old and doesn't have much time to prove how much of a star he is. Regardless of that Tarver can go on his own as he has the skills to back it up. He isn't Darren Young and could be the first person to break out from NXT and become a success.
My questions to you are:

Do you think Michael Tarver would be a good asset to Nexus or the Corre if he joins?

Do you think Tarver can ever become a star on his own?

In reference to question 2: If so, could he ever become a main event star?

 

[JGlass]

Do you think Michael Tarver would be a good asset to Nexus or the Corre if he joins?

I think he would be a decent asset for Corre, but not Nexus. Nexus has already solidified their group with the addition of Mason Ryan and they really don't need another attack dog with Harris and McGillicutty filling that role. Furthermore, why would anyone join a group where the leader has made it clear that it's all about him?

The Corre, on the other hand, could use an attack dog like Tarver. Zeke is kind of filling the role right now, but I like him more as the big bruiser type guy who comes in late to wreak havoc on all that stands in his path. The attack dog is the guy who hits the ring first and lets loose on one opponent, while Zeke is the type of guy that you let clean house.

All that said, I don't think either group needs him, and I don't think he needs either group.

Do you think Tarver can ever become a star on his own?

Yes. Just by sticking him in random backstage segments the WWE has roused our interest in why he's back stage at every show, and what is he doing back there? Furthermore, he has a great look, has shown quality mic skills, and while he's not exactly the most proficient wrestler, he can make what wrestling moves he knows look legitimate and scary.

In reference to question 2: If so, could he ever become a main event star?

No, I don't think so. Like you said, he's already coming into the WWE at a fairly old age. 33 puts him at about the top of the youth movement, but he's at the disadvantage of not having much of a wrestling resume. Additionally, he doesn't have the skills necessary to carry him into the main event. He actually probably is good enough on the mic to main event, but I just doubt he has what it takes to put on a 15-20 minute match for a world title.