Former Bama linebacker Eryk Anders knocks out opponent in 1st round of UFC debut

Anders KO’d veteran fighter Rafael Natal in the first round.

Eryk Anders played linebacker for the Alabama Crimson Tide from 2006-09. In his senior season, he had 14.5 tackles for loss and six sacks for an undefeated BCS champion.

More than seven years later, Anders, 30, is trying his hand at mixed martial arts, and it appears he’s pretty good at his new sport. The visual proof:

Anders was making his UFC debut on Saturday against Rafael Natal, a 34-year-old veteran who entered with 21 wins in 30 career MMA fights. He knocked him out not even three minutes into the first round of his undercard fight in UFC on FOX.

Here’s MMA Mania’s assessment:

Fresh off a five-round, championship winning performance four weeks ago under the Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA), Anders made a splash in his Octagon debut, knocking out longtime veteran Rafael Natal in the very first round of their Middleweight bout at UFC on FOX 25 in Uniondale, New York.

From the jump, Anders came out aggressive, walking down Natal in an attempt to set his own pace to the fight. Natal unloaded some strikes, but Eryk just ate them like nothing, while finding a sweet spot for his left hand and a high knee to the dome.

A rattled Natal held on though, only to get clipped with two consecutive clean left hands that put him out on the canvas. Anders followed it up with one more left on his fallen foe to earn his seventh win in a row with no defeats. What an impressive debut, indeed.

It will surprise nobody that an ex-Alabama linebacker is still in great shape and capable of leveling another human with his left fist. To do it in a UFC fight — in a UFC debut, even, and in the first round — is a stunning accomplishment.

Here’s Anderson sacking Texas quarterback Garrett Gilbert in the 2010 BCS Championship. This doesn’t look a lot more fun than what he did to Natal: