The Caterpillar Isn't The Only Way WWE Star Otis Popped With Fans

Alpha Academy's Otis has been a comedic stable in WWE since July 2016, when he made his debut at a "WWE NXT" house show in a tag team loss. Initially scouted by Gerald Brisco, Otis has been entertaining fans with his antics for years, including with his beloved dance move, his signature caterpillar, which was based off of Scotty 2 Hotty's worm.

Otis previously revealed in an interview with Digital Spy that he first pulled out the now near-iconic move when he was just a kid at a party in elementary school. He explained that no girl wanted to dance with him, so he broke out the move to get himself some attention, and it followed him throughout his life, when he'd even pull it out on the dance floor at weddings. In WWE, and after speaking to Scotty 2 Hotty, who he called "the king of The Worm" in the interview, to get permission to use a variation of the move, Otis renamed it the caterpillar and began using it in the ring, popping fans all over the world.

It's not just Otis' caterpillar that excites fans, however. Otis is a loveable goofball who has had plenty of silly storylines that fans have absolutely loved, with a few serious moments mixed in, as well. From his unlikely romance with former NXT Women's Champion Mandy Rose, to an even more unlikely win that saw him holding the Money in the Bank briefcase, to a feud fans were begging to see, but didn't quite get, there have been plenty of times Otis has popped crowds without pulling out the caterpillar in the ring.

Otis was paired up with blonde beauty Mandy Rose for a "Beauty and the Beast" storyline around Christmastime in 2019. At the time, Otis was still tagging with former partner Tucker in their team known as Heavy Machinery. The pair were drafted to "WWE SmackDown" and Otis' unusual romance with Rose began when the blue brand's stars were taking part in a Secret Santa gift exchange. 

Rose drew Otis' name and gifted him a Christmas ham alongside a smooch. The ham wasn't long for the world, however, as The Revival messed it during a match, which cost them dearly when Otis beat them down. Rose tried to console Otis, but he got sweat all over her dress. The loveable star then tried to make it up to Rose by gifting her a fruit cake, but Dolph Ziggler, who was also trying to date Rose in storyline, destroyed the cake.

The storyline continued with Ziggler through Valentine's Day, when Ziggler ruined Rose and Otis' planned date. Tucker tried to help his friend throughout the saga, including taking on Ziggler himself, but Otis wasn't ringside for the match, as he had received a mysterious text message, like he had on Valentine's Day. It was Sonya Deville, Rose's Fire & Desire tag team partner, who was revealed to be messing with Otis and Rose's relationship alongside Ziggler.

It all culminated at WrestleMania 36, where Otis defeated Ziggler, and received a kiss from Rose in the middle of the ring. Their romance continued until they were split up in the 2020 WWE Draft. Fans loved the unlikely romance and were rooting for good guy Otis throughout the angle.

While he was still basking in the glow of his romance with Rose, and while fans were still very high on him, Otis became the Money in the Bank holder in 2020, the pandemic year where the match was competed entirely within Titan Towers, WWE headquarters. Otis defeated Ziggler in a qualifying match to get to the event.

Both the men's and women's briefcases were found on the roof of the building, and AJ Styles and Baron Corbin were the first on the men's side to climb the ladder and unhook the briefcase. Both men had hold of it, but Elias appeared and attacked Corbin, bashing him with a guitar, causing both Styles and Corbin to fumble the case, dropping it to Otis, who was waiting below. He was declared the winner of the match and would go on to hold the briefcase for five and a half months. Fans were ecstatic for the tag team star, and the angle was entertaining as fans were stuck at home.

Fans would be incensed not even half a year following Otis' win, however, as his tag team partner, Tucker, turned on him during a match where Otis was defending the briefcase against The Miz. According to Dave Meltzer at the time, WWE was stuck in a "booking problem" with Otis holding the briefcase and the company didn't want him defeating then-Universal Champion Roman Reigns for the gold.

With Heavy Machinery no more, Otis would join up with Chad Gable to become part of Alpha Academy in November 2020. The pair would hold the tag titles for 56 days in 2022, the first gold of Otis' career. Alpha Academy even appeared at WrestleMania 38, though they were unsuccessful at regaining the titles from RK-Bros in a triple threat with the Street Profits.

In March, Gable caught Otis participating in a photoshoot alongside Maximum Male Models, managed by Maxxine Dupri. Dupri and Gable would fight for Otis' partnership for their teams, until Maxxine finally sided with Alpha Academy and jumped ship from the models. The team, who picked up Akira Tozawa along the way, as well, suffered a massive blow when Gable turned heel in April 2024 after he failed to capture the Intercontinental Championship multiple times. Gable blamed wasting time on training the "losers" he was teaming with. In the weeks that followed, WWE aired uncomfortable segments and other moments where Gable would berate Otis, Tozawa, and Dupri, until one day, Otis snapped and sided with Dupri, walking out on Gable during yet another match for the IC title.

Fans were clamoring for weeks to see a proper feud between Otis and Gable, with the larger man hopefully giving the Olympian what he deserved after weeks of abuse. Gable defeated Otis on a December 2024 episode of "WWE Raw," and Alpha Academy would go on to have a few matches with Gable's new stable, American Made, but there was never any redemption moment for Otis against his former friend and teammate, as much as fans desperately wanted one.

Otis and the new Alpha Academy may not be getting much time on "WWE Raw" these days, but most recently, Otis popped the crowd big when he competed at AAA TripleMania XXIII in the Copa Bardahl, the popular battle royal match similar to WWE's Royal Rumble where the winner receives a trophy. It was WWE's first time with stars competing in the match, after it was announced WWE had purchased AAA over WrestleMania 41 weekend.

The match was eventually won by another big man in WWE, Omos, but Otis had an impressive and very fun showing in the match. He worked with MLW and AAA star Microman, and was eventually eliminated by the luchador. Otis entered the match and cleared house, wrecking everyone already in the ring and scoring an elimination by himself before hitting the caterpillar to the delight of the raucous crowd. Microman would enter the match later.

The pair initially worked together to eliminate Cibernetico, with Otis using Microman as a weapon to knock their competition off the apron. After their brief partnership, Microman sent the former WWE tag team champion over the top rope.