Body Slams, Bright Lights, and the Steak and the Sizzle: Inside South Jersey's Own Pro Wrestling Promotion

Most people picture pro wrestling as something that happens inside a massive arena — pyrotechnics, fifty-thousand-seat crowds, pay-per-view. Jaden Sherman has spent the last decade and a half doing something different: bringing the action and excitement of professional wrestling straight into South Jersey communities. College campuses. School gymnasiums. Fairs, festivals, and town celebrations. All ages, all welcome.

That's the promise of Dangerous Adrenaline Wrestling Gladiators — DAWG Pro Wrestling — a family-friendly promotion rooted in Glassboro that has quietly become one of the most active independent entertainment operations in the region.

A Lifetime in the Business

Sherman didn't stumble into wrestling. He grew up in it — starting as a kid setting up chairs and selling programs, then training at seventeen and stepping into the ring for his first match at eighteen. Over the years he did just about every job the business has: he wrestled, refereed, managed, did commentary, and worked as a ring announcer — whatever it took to make the event a success.

"I wanted to learn everything about the business," he says. And he did.

All of that experience came together when he launched Dangerous Adrenaline Wrestling Gladiators, holding the company's very first event in Ocean, New Jersey, on April 24, 2010. Sixteen years later, DAWG is still going — and still growing.

What pushed him to start his own promotion? He's honest about it: "Spite." He'd grown tired of pouring himself into events for promoters who didn't appreciate the work — and he wanted to bring a style of pro wrestling that, in his view, New Jersey was missing.

What DAWG Is — and What It Isn't

A lot of promotions chase the "ironic" wrestling style, the deathmatch style, or other approaches built for a narrow audience. Sherman saw a gap: traditional, old-school professional wrestling with a little modern sizzle added — and very few people serving it.

"DAWG provides the steak and the sizzle," he says. The product mixes old-school pro wrestling with modern athletics, and it's built from the ground up to be family-friendly and appropriate for all ages — no edge cases, no "mature content" warnings, no moment where a parent has to figure out how to explain something to their kid.

That intentional design is a big part of why DAWG has been able to build trust with churches, schools, and community organizations — the kinds of venues that need to believe in you before they hand you a gymnasium for the afternoon.

What Sets DAWG Apart

The NACA distinction matters more than it might sound. It means colleges and universities booking through NACA can bring DAWG to campus with confidence, knowing the event fits the environment. Sherman is proud of that credential — and it's taken years of building the right reputation to earn it.

DAWG Pro Wrestling — events across South Jersey

Where You'll See Them

DAWG serves all of New Jersey plus parts of Delaware and Pennsylvania, with a clear home base: South Jersey. The crown jewel of the schedule is Rowan University, where DAWG has been running events since 2017 through the Rowan After Hours program.

"The Rowan After Hours program is amazing," Sherman says. "And the look on the students' faces when we entertain them is magical."

And the kinds of events DAWG produces go well beyond what most people expect. Yes — fundraisers for schools, sporting clubs, civic organizations, and charities. Yes — colleges and universities, fairs and festivals, conventions and community events. But Sherman also books weddings, bar mitzvahs, quinceañeras, and birthday parties — and, to the surprise of a lot of customers, grand openings, corporate events, business retreats, and meet-and-greets.

"Inquire if you have any ideas or suggestions," he says. The point is flexibility: DAWG shows up where the community is already gathering and adds something the crowd didn't expect to love as much as they do.

Built for Community

Giving back is woven into how Sherman runs the company. If a school, sporting club, civic organization, or charity is looking to fundraise, he loves doing fundraiser events. He wants to give back to his hometown of Glassboro. Down the road, as DAWG grows, he'd like to help sponsor amateur wrestling in New Jersey. And any event DAWG runs in December, he makes a Toys for Tots event.

He's also quick to push back on the biggest misconception about his industry — that pro wrestling is a lowbrow attraction. DAWG draws kids and adults alike, he says: "We have fans that are doctors, lawyers, bankers, teachers, celebrities, and politicians. We also have fans that are retail workers, dock workers, personal trainers, factory workers, farmers — the salt-of-the-earth individuals who make our great country run."

The Road Ahead

Sherman is candid about the work it takes. "For ninety-nine percent of promoters, the best way to make a million dollars in pro wrestling is to start with two million," he jokes. "This business is unforgiving, and very few people have what it takes to be successful." Most people who try to run an event, he says, quit after their first one — the effort required for the money made is, in his words, insane, and whatever you do make has to be reinvested if you want to keep the lights on.

But the goals are big and he's chasing them every day. He's currently in negotiations with a professional sports organization in New Jersey that he believes will open a lot of doors. His bucket list: run an event in a baseball stadium, bring DAWG to every college and university in New Jersey, and do more conventions, festivals, and community events. The ultimate goals — a building of DAWG's own, and television.

"I'm working on both of them every day," he says.

"Their Money's Worth"

Ask Sherman what value matters most, and it always comes back to the same place: going above and beyond so every fan and every customer gets their money's worth.

The most rewarding part of the job, he adds, is hearing fans say how much they enjoyed the event — and getting that call from a new business that found him because a past client recommended him. To the residents of South Jersey, he keeps it simple: he hopes to see everyone at a DAWG event, so they can experience the action and excitement for themselves.