By Sean Radican, Torch columnist

Frankly, there hasn't been a whole lot to get excited about in wrestling during the past five years. Sure, there has been some really good storylines and matches, but there hasn't been a sustained storyline that could really capture the attention of the fans and drive ratings and PPV buys.

The NXT angle at the end of Raw last night could change of that. I was sitting at work and then at home thinking about the possibilities today. I sat back and thought about the entire season of NXT and searched for clues as to how this moment came about.

I can't remember the last time I did that. Maybe it was during the golden years of ROH when Gabe Sapolsky booked some really intricate angles that build from DVD to DVD and you had to pay attention to everything to truly understand the payoff.

This NXT angle reminds me of that, but it could be better than any of Sapolsky's angles because this stable of NXT rookies have the potential to launch their individual careers in a way I thought was impossible.

Let's rewind for a second back to Raw last night to truly appreciate this moment. How bad was that show before the final segment? It was about as wrestling gets. It was worse than Impact. I had readers writing me that it was worse than the glory days of WCW Thunder.

I can clearly remember the thoughts I had during Raw and they weren't good thoughts. I was thinking about people tuning out of WWE and not coming back for a long time due to the ridiculous matches, angles, and lame choices for the fan voting.

The thought ran through my mine that this was going to be a bad summer for wrestling. Is it a bad sign that so few WWE fans wanted to see a champion vs. champion match in the main event? Yes it is. Is it a bad sign that Evan Bourne received such a low percentage of votes after his moment of glory on Raw last week? Yes it was.

How many times can WWE push and then pull back on guys before fans totally reject them? The voting for Bourne was an illustration of WWE's problems. They've only built around a core group of wrestlers and the younger wrestlers that have been on television aren't seen as main event players because for every moment of glory on Raw or Smackdown, there's a loss to Santino around the corner.

As Santino and Koslov shimmied around the ring for their dance contest, I had no idea what was coming, but for the first time in many years, a wrestling angle totally shocked me and gave me great hope for the future.

I sit here today and think about possibilities. Just imagine what this angle could do for WWE's main event picture. I could see anywhere from 4 to 6 to at the best 8 wrestlers refreshing the mid-card and the main event picture.

We aren't there yet, but the possibility is there. When Bryan Danielson slapped around John Cena, I could only imagine the epic matches they could have if this unfolds into a WWE vs. NXT rookies feud. The best part of this angle is that nobody in WWE is safe. Announcers, heels, faces, and attendants were all attacked.

There are so many possibilities for this program to blow up huge with a large amount of matches and feuds on the table. These aren't your Triple H vs. Cena, Cena vs. Edge, Cena vs. Orton, or take your pick from the top names and mix them together matches, but instead, wrestling fans could be presented with numerous fresh matches.

Imagine a summer filled with PPV matches with something real at stake. Instead of the $44.95 price tag being a burden, I wonder if this angle could force fans to fork over their cash without hesitation. Each and every episode every month on Raw, NXT, and Smackdown could play a crucial part in the build towards every PPV. Instead of relying on gimmick PPVs, WWE could truly sell something to the people that are willing to pay to see at a level that hasn't been seen in recent years.

I'm filled with hope, but I'm also hesitant. There's always the possibility this could all be thrown away like when WWE gave away the Danielson-Miz match away for free on TV, but I think there's more than that on the line here. I think WWE creative has been setting up the NXT rookies angle for a long time and there's something invested here.

Of course, I could be wrong, but when I notice small details and look for clues in angles, there's usually a bigger picture that has yet to unfold. That's why wrestling fans should be excited. There's an opportunity for something great here that hasn't been presented in a long time from any wrestling company. I'm looking forward to seeing how this plays out in the coming months.

Contact Sean at PWTorchSean@gmail.com

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