YouTuber Deestroying makes pro football debut for UFL’s San Antonio Brahmas
YouTube: Official Deestroying 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 as NFL fans 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 the ESPN 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.
However, in 2017, the NCAA hit Deestroying with an ultimatum: Either delete or demonetize his YouTube channel, or never play college football again.
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 his 5.82 million subscribers.
His one-on-one tournaments between wide receivers and cornerbacks helped build up the channel over the years. These battles sometimes even feature current and former NFL players.
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.