Glacier (wrestler) - Early Life

Early Life

Lloyd was born into a law-enforcement family in Brunswick, Georgia. His father, Harold, served as a commander with the Georgia State Patrol for 28 years, while his mother, Lois, worked with the Georgia Driver's License Division prior to her retirement in 1999, and his fraternal twin brother, Ron, is a state trooper. Lloyd graduated from Brunswick High School in 1982, and played offensive tackle for the football team all four years. In his senior year, he became the school's first All-State player. He also competed for the track and field team, in the shot put and discus.

A skilled martial artist, Lloyd took up Hung Gar at fourteen, later adding other disciplines such as Judo and Kempo. His school was owned and taught by a former government agent and a U.S. Marshal, before it closed to the public in 1982. In 1983, he began competing for the World Karate Association in full-contact tournaments, eventually winning the United States Southeastern Super Heavyweight title. During his WKA stint, he was never knocked out or even knocked down; his only loss came on a disqualification for stalling, which he attributed to nervousness.

However, when the WKA changed its rules in 1985 to allow kicks from the knee up (they were previously only from the waist up), Lloyd opted to retire from competition in order not to jeopardize his football scholarship by risking injury. He played center for Valdosta State University (the same alma mater as former WCW announcer Scott Hudson), under coach Mike Cavan, and was a teammate of former Atlanta Falcons linebacker Jessie Tuggle during his collegiate career.

Lloyd graduated in 1987 with a master's degree in education, before which he commented in jest to a local newspaper reporter that he and another teammate, R.D. Swain, planned to become world tag team champions. He had a chance to enter the NFL that year, but declined due to the players' strike and because he had just gotten his first teaching job.