‘I’m A True Fighter’ – Regan Upshaw’s Unconventional Journey From The NCAA College Football Championship To MMA
Before Regan Upshaw steps into Lumpinee Stadium for his ONE Championship debut, most fans will see a highly touted heavyweight MMA fighter with explosive finishing ability and an easygoing smile.
What they may not realize is that the American’s journey to the world’s largest martial arts organization has followed a path few athletes have ever taken.
Upshaw will face Britain’s Paul “King of the North” Elliott in a heavyweight MMA showdown at ONE Fight Night 44: Jarvis vs Rungrawee II on Prime Video, which airs live in U.S. primetime from Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday, June 26.
While he arrives unbeaten across amateur MMA, Muay Thai, and kickboxing competition, combat sports were not the first arena where he found success.
Long before he was chasing knockouts, Upshaw was winning National Championships on the football field and building a reputation as a versatile athlete capable of thriving in multiple sports. Learn more about his extraordinary road to the ONE Championship ring.
From NFL Roots To Clemson Football
Born in Tampa, Florida, Upshaw was raised in the shadow of professional sport.
The family patriarch, Regan Upshaw Sr., spent nine seasons in the NFL and appeared in Super Bowl XXXVII with the Oakland Raiders. Yet despite his father’s football pedigree, the younger Upshaw’s path onto the field was anything but conventional.
He spent parts of his childhood in Virginia, California, and Florida, and unlike many future college football players, he wasn’t immersed in organized football from an early age. In fact, his mother and father were not particularly interested in pushing him toward the gridiron. But eventually, he found his way there.
Upshaw explained:
“Actually, I played football very late. I started when I was 15, and then we were doing like a homeschool scenario. They didn’t understand the rules and everything, so we ended up not playing any further.”
Instead, Upshaw spent his younger years competing in a variety of other sports, including hockey and rugby, where he developed the foundation that would later serve him well in both football and fighting.
Still, he never stopped believing opportunities would come his way.
Rather than worrying about recruiting rankings or resumes, he focused on preparing himself. He trained on his own, improved his athleticism, and trusted that the right opportunity would eventually arrive.
That faith paid off. In the summer following his junior year of high school, Upshaw attended a football camp at Clemson University in South Carolina. At the time, he wasn’t even playing organized football. But what happened next changed the trajectory of his life.
The 28-year-old recalled:
“One thing about me is I’ve always been very good about visualization, and opportunities will pop up. Even though I wasn’t on a team, I was going to the park. I was doing drills. I was looking at who’s the strongest in my class, and I would go to the gym and I’d get my numbers up.
“My parents happened to drive by a Clemson football camp and asked if I wanted to go. So, I ended up going to the camp. I did my thing, and I got an opportunity.”
That opportunity ultimately led him to Clemson following his graduation a year later, where Upshaw became part of one of the most successful programs in modern college football history.
Over six seasons with the Clemson Tigers, the defensive end helped the team win two NCAA College Football National Championships and experienced a level of sustained success that few athletes ever reach.
Looking back, he remains grateful for everything the program gave him:
“Clemson was awesome. Clemson has an amazing culture, and I’m very grateful for that experience with the Tigers. I had some of my best experiences there and also, growing up, some of my hardest experiences there. I’m very grateful for Clemson and that time.”
Why Football Wasn’t The Final Destination
For many athletes, winning NCAA College Football National Championships would represent the culmination of a sporting journey. As for others, it’s a pathway to major professional sports leagues like the NFL.
Upshaw, however, had another dream waiting in the background.
Combat sports had fascinated him for years. Even while football occupied most of his attention, the idea of eventually becoming a fighter never disappeared.
He said:
“Fighting is something that I’ve always wanted to do.
“I’ve seen PRIDE – the old PRIDE fights a long time ago. I’d seen big events when I was a kid. It’s always been in my realm, so to speak. So, it’s something I’ve always wanted to do.”
After graduating from Clemson, Upshaw could have continued pursuing football and enter the NFL Draft. Instead, he found himself increasingly drawn toward a sport where success depended entirely on individual performance.
Football had given him championships, lifelong friendships, and invaluable lessons, but he was ready for a different challenge.
He explained:
“The opportunity was on the table. I could have done my pro day, I could have gone and probably made a team doing special teams. I had a bunch of freak numbers. But the reality is football was no longer for me. It served its purpose.
“It was time for me to do something where I get what I earned. That’s why I wanted to do fighting.”
Betting On Himself Again In MMA
Upshaw’s first serious exposure to martial arts came in Ohio, where he initially began training simply because he enjoyed it.
At first, he wasn’t preparing for a professional career. He was just another student learning a new skill. But the deeper he got into training, the more convinced he became that he could build something special in combat sports, particularly MMA.
If he wanted to maximize his potential, however, Upshaw knew he needed to surround himself with elite talent. That realization led him to Denver, Colorado. Interestingly, the decision was influenced by a personal tradition that had guided him for years.
He explained:
“In college, we used to have a word for the year, right? Like, what are you going to give to the team, and what’s your word for the year? I brought this with me into my normal life when I left college. My word for the year was ‘elevate.’ I wanted to elevate my life.
“I was doing some research on YouTube and saw some top coaches training in Denver. One of the walls said Team Elevation. I always put things together. I’m always looking for clues like that. And I pulled the trigger.”
By 2023, he made the move to Denver. Once Upshaw arrived in the “Mile High City,” he began training with Elevation Fight Team members at High Altitude Martial Arts and followed the same formula that had worked throughout his life.
He showed up, put in the work, and believed the results would come. And they did.
The former defensive end said:
“High Altitude was my first gym, and I just went into the normal beginner class and trained like everybody else. I didn’t announce myself or what I wanted to do or anything of that nature. I just went to work and started getting noticed.”
That approach has fueled an unbeaten run through amateur MMA, Muay Thai, and kickboxing competition, and it ultimately led to him joining ONE Championship earlier this year.
Now, Upshaw is preparing for the biggest opportunity of his young combat sports career, as he’ll make his professional MMA debut at ONE Fight Night 44 in just a few short weeks.
Time and again throughout his life, Upshaw has trusted his instincts. Whether it was attending a camp without an organized football background, leaving the sport after winning National Championships, or relocating across the country to pursue fighting, he has consistently backed himself to succeed. And he expects nothing less on June 26.
He said:
“I’ve always been a gamer. I’ve always been confident. I find that I’m a true fighter.
“You can teach somebody techniques, but when you put yourself in an environment with some of the best coaches and best fighters in the world, and you keep showing up, you’re going to learn pretty quick. That’s what I bet on.”
