GLENDALE, Ariz. — Rylan Griffen paraded around the locker room.

He wasn’t celebrating with the trophy that Alabama basketball just claimed after it defeated Clemson 89-82 and advanced to its first Final Four in school history. Instead, he enjoyed the Crimson Tide's historic victory dawning a custom UA-themed WWE title belt, which he was given after he shared his love for the professional wrestling company.

The belt wasn’t leaving his side anytime soon.

“This is a childhood dream of mine,” Griffen said. “Both of these, the Final Four and the belt.”

Griffen continued to gallop joyfully around the locker room with the belt slung over his shoulder. He eventually allowed Nick Pringle to pose for photos with the belt along the West region trophy and the hard hat that Pringle won thanks to his blue-collar efforts in Alabama’s victory over Clemson. Alabama coach Nate Oats was also seen with the belt slung around his shoulder along with the rest of the net Alabama cut down after the win.

With the belt part of the celebrations, The Crimson Tide got an extra piece of hardware for its historic victory. While every player enjoyed it, it was particularly special to Griffen, who spent his childhood watching WWE every Monday and Friday. His love for pro wrestling turned into nostalgia when he got older.

“I go back on YouTube and watch the matchups that I [watched] as a kid growing up, just to have fun,” he said.

Reliving memories is one thing. But Griffen doesn’t just remember a few moments here and there. It’s all stored in his memory. His teammate Grant Nelson chuckled at the podium as Griffen compared Alabama’s Final Four clash against UConn (7:49 p.m. CT Saturday) to Ultimate Warrior’s monster upset over Hulk Hogan at Wrestlemania VI in 1990. After the Clemson game, Griffen was asked who his favorite wrestlers were. He name-dropped seven pros from memory, including Randy Orton, Daniel Bryan and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

“I'm surprised he still has the recall for those days when he was watching those wrestlers wrestle back then,” Rylan’s father Ron Griffen told Tide Illustrated. “That's amazing.”

Despite not sharing the same fascination for the sport that his son did, Ron made sure Rylan could fully enjoy his passion. Every Christmas, Rylan received a new WWE action figure. He got a wrestling ring where he could recreate the moments he saw on TV with those figures. He also received Target versions of the belt he was given at the Elite Eight.

Wrestling was a reprieve for Rylan. Something to enjoy outside the routine of school and basketball. It was also a chance to bond and compete with his younger brother, Rustan, who shared a love for pro wrestling. The brothers got CM Punk shirts at a WWE event. They would recreate matches with action figures and stuffed animals, or against each other. That led to warnings from Ron about jumping off their bunk bed and utilizing household furniture as props.

When they didn’t battle inside, the Griffen’s backyard became the stage to spar. Naturally, the battles between brothers sometimes reached a fever pitch.

“There was one time he beat me in the backyard and I came in upset,” Rustan said. “I was mad and I was crying because he had beat me… Sometimes it got a little bit more rough than anticipated because that's what happens sometimes when you're younger.”

The brothers never suffered any injuries — at least according to the Ron Griffen Injury Report — in attempting to recreate what they saw on TV. But as Rustan grew up, he learned that whether it was in a WWE scenario or one-on-one on the court, Rylan never gave less than 100%

“One thing about Rylan is that dude right there his mentality — man, he’s gonna just go,” Rustan said. “If he sees something he wants it, he’s just gonna go get it, and he's gonna keep coming after you as well. So on the court, he has that killer mentality.”

Rylan’s mentality helped him lead his brother and their teammates when the pair played together at Richardson High School in Texas. During Rylan’s senior year when Rustan was a sophomore, the Eagles finished with a 30-1 record and the No. 2 spot on ESPN's national high school basketball rankings in 2022. Rylan pushed his teammates hard but pushed his brother even harder to be the best version of himself.

“He was always killing us at practice,” Rustan said. “So it was good. He was always getting on to me mainly, just simply because I'm his brother. He’d do a little bit of yelling but it would always be worse with me because I'm his brother and he expects more and the best out of me.”

Rustan pushed right back. He was Rylan’s best one-on-one opponent when the duo was growing up The motivation to avoid losing to your little brother caused Rylan to incorporate the blue-collar plays he now makes regularly at Alabama.

Then there’s the 3-point shooting, Rylan’s most well-known attribute on the floor. Just as he relied on his dad to get him the latest WWE action figure, Rylan also depended on his father to help him become a lethal shooter in college. The Alabama sophomore first approached his dad about playing basketball at the age of four. Ron, a skilled shooter himself who spent four years at North Texas, averaging 10.5 points per game in his senior season, was happy to take his son under his wing.

It isn’t strictly smooth sailing when your dad is your shooting coach. As Rylan got older, he wanted Ron to prove he was the right person to teach Rylan the ways of shot-making. So Rylan got a second opinion from Ron’s former UNT teammates and coaches, who validated his dad’s shooting capabilities. With his credibility reestablished Ron continued to be an invaluable resource helping Rylan develop his shot.

“When you grow up watching your son play since he was four years old you get to know the nuances of his game pretty well,” Ron said. “I know when he’s shooting the ball the way he’s comfortable shooting it and frankly, I know when he’s not.”

Knowing the nuances of his game meant Ron knew to advise Rylan not to change his mechanics when he hit a minor shooting slump in the middle of the season. Instead, Ron suggested a few drills for Rylan to get back in rhythm. Rylan committed to those drills and hasn’t had to ask his dad for much feedback in the NCAA Tournament. He’s shot 50% (11-for-22) from 3 in the Big Dance and is shooting 39.1% from deep for the season.

Rylan’s hard work earned him that UA-themed belt and the opportunity to relive his childhood passion in front of a national audience while playing an integral role in Alabama’s Final Four run. Neither Ron nor Rustan are surprised. Rylan has the same championship DNA as John Cena or Triple H had on the WWE circuit. He's continued to play with a relentlessness that has helped his side win, grown as a player in an expanded role and leaned on a key trait as one of the Tide's few returners from a season ago to help Alabama jell.

“He's really selfless,” Rustan said. “He's not selfish at all. Because he's always trying to make others happy [and] make others around him feel good about themselves. Rylan’s always been a good person to be around, especially when you get close with him. When you get real close with him, he's gonna be with you to the end no matter what.”

Rylan’s celebrations with the title belt brought out the kid in him. Fittingly, he’s playing in the Final Four on the same night as the 40th edition of WrestleMania gets underway. As WWE superstars battle it out to make pro wrestling history, Griffen will be doing the same on the hardwood for Alabama, aiming to help the Tide reach the National Championship and create another scene of childhood joy with a title belt in the locker room.