Early career (1999–2005) Mueller started his career training in Central States Wrestling Alliance, On August 22, 2005, a promo was shown showcasing Mueller's debut along with the returning
Lance Cade. He was repackaged as Trevor Murdoch (the surname coming from his likeness to wrestling legend
Dick Murdoch, though the two are not related), and the team was simply known as
Cade and Murdoch. Cade, playing a smooth-talking
cowboy, while Murdoch appeared to be an angry "
white trash"
southern trucker. in 2005 Cade and Murdoch won their debut match on the September 5, 2005, episode of
Raw. They defeated
World Tag Team Champions
Hurricane and Rosey in a non-title match, earning themselves a title match at
Unforgiven. During the match, Murdoch delivered an
elevated DDT on
The Hurricane to the outside, causing The Hurricane to suffer a
stinger. This allowed Cade and Murdoch to win the World Tag Team Championship. They would eventually lose their title at
Taboo Tuesday to
Big Show and Kane. On November 28 during his match against
Shelton Benjamin, commentator
Joey Styles acknowledged that Murdoch and Lance Cade were no longer a tag team. It was revealed on
WWE Unlimited, that Trevor Murdoch set his sights on
Ric Flair and the
WWE Intercontinental Championship. On
Unlimited, Murdoch had been reviewing movies that were, at the time, playing in theaters, such as
Brokeback Mountain,
King Kong, and
Hostel. The first two movie reviews displayed various sexual habits, while the third showed cruelty in his past. The underlying point of all the reviews that Murdoch was trying to convey is that he believes "city folk" have quite an easy life, as opposed to his. After breaking up with Cade, he wrestled in singles competition on
Heat, normally winning most of his matches while still making small appearances on
Raw. He would also have a short feud with
The Heart Throbs on
Heat which involved him defeating both of them in singles action and gaining a spot in the
2006 Royal Rumble, though he did not win. He then moved on to a short
feud with
Goldust but was unsuccessful in beating him. He would then feud with both Goldust and his tag partner
Snitsky. This led to him helping former partner Cade win his matches and hinted at the two of them reforming their team. Cade and Murdoch later reformed their tag team, with Cade having a new look with long jet black hair. On the September 4 edition of
Raw, Murdoch and Cade lost a number one contender's
Triple Threat Match for the World Tag Team Title at
Unforgiven. Murdoch and Cade then starred in a WWE.com skit, parodying a
KFC commercial, where Murdoch mistakenly told Cade he ate the bones, despite eating the boneless original recipe bites.
The Highlanders won the match when they pinned
Charlie Haas who was teamed with
Viscera. Murdoch and Cade then joined forces with
Edge to oppose
D-Generation X (
Triple H and
Shawn Michaels). Cade and Murdoch began a feud in April with World Tag Team Champions
The Hardys, leading to their title match at
Backlash, which The Hardys won. Cade and Murdoch suddenly gained a great deal of respect for The Hardys and began to praise their abilities. The Hardys then began an alliance with Cade and Murdoch. Despite the alliance, Cade and Murdoch faced The Hardys in a rematch at
Judgment Day which The Hardys won. On the June 4 edition of
Raw, Cade and Murdoch were given another shot at the World Tag Team Championship against The Hardys. Cade and Murdoch were finally successful, becoming two time World Tag Team Champions. When Cade made the pin on
Jeff Hardy, Hardy's foot was on the ropes but was pushed off by Murdoch. After the match, when
Matt Hardy argued with Cade and Murdoch, they attacked Matt and Jeff with the tag belts, becoming heels once again. They successfully defended their titles against The Hardys at
Vengeance: Night of Champions after Cade pinned Jeff and claimed they retained their belts "all by the rules". After that Cade and Murdoch appeared on
Raw and
Heat in matches against
London and Kendrick,
The Highlanders, and
Cryme Tyme. On July 23 on
Raw, Cade and Murdoch teamed up with
Umaga to face
John Cena and
Candice in a Champions-only handicap tag team match. During the match, Cade and Murdoch trapped Candice in order to set her up for Umaga to attack, until
Jeff Hardy came out and attacked Umaga with a
steel chair. After Candice left scared, and Umaga was chased to the back by Jeff, Cade & Murdoch were left to square off against John Cena. Cena defeated them when he threw Cade out of the ring and gave Murdoch an
FU. Murdoch, along with Cade lost the titles at a
house show on September 5 to Paul London and Brian Kendrick, but beat them to take the titles back on the last day of the tour. Murdoch and Cade remained champions until the Raw XV Anniversary show, losing the World Tag Team Championships to the team of
Hardcore Holly and
Cody Rhodes. Late in April 2008, Murdoch began to develop a
country singing gimmick. On the May 12 edition of
Raw, Cade turned on Murdoch following a "victory song," punching Murdoch in the face twice, ending the partnership. The two faced off on the June 2 edition of
Raw, with Cade getting the victory. As part of the
2008 WWE Supplemental Draft, Murdoch was drafted to the SmackDown brand but was released from his WWE contract on July 3, 2008, before his debut.
Independent circuit (2008–2011) and Trevor Murdoch at NWA Showcase On July 9, 2008,
IWA Mid-South announced that Mueller would be wrestling against Insane Lane as Trevor Murdock at their
Gory Days 4 show on July 26 in Sellersburg, Indiana, followed by a match against
Nick Gage at
Put Up or Shut Up 2008 on August 16 in
Portage, Indiana. On August 24, Trevor Murdock lost in an attempt to capture the
NWA World Heavyweight Championship from
Brent Albright. Lance Cade was released from his WWE contract on October 14, 2008, and less than a week later Cade and Murdoch began accepting bookings together as a team on the
independent circuit, including IWA-Mid South. On October 18, Murdoch returned to World League Wrestling facing
Chris Masters and
Go Shiozaki in a match for the WLW Heavyweight Championship. Murdoch participated in Revolution Strong Style Tournament and Candido Cup and lost both. Murdoch made several appearances for
Championship Wrestling from Hollywood before joining
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and continued to make independent appearances while signed to TNA. In 2010, after leaving TNA, Murdoch defeated Trent Stone in a leather strap match for the WLW Heavyweight Championship and won the MPW Heavyweight Championship in October. He lost the MPW Heavyweight Championship to Derek Stone in the beginning to 2011 and would eventually vacate the WLW Heavyweight Championship. In March, Murdoch toured
Pro Wrestling Noah and had a shot at the GHC Heavyweight Championship. Prior to the live broadcast of
Raw on May 9, 2011, Mueller wrestled as 'Trevor Murdoch' in a dark match, which he lost to
Evan Bourne. He wrestled a dark match the following night prior to the
SmackDown tapings, losing to
Jey Uso. On June 17, Mueller announced that he was going to be signing a contract to return to WWE; however, on June 29 he revealed that the deal had fallen through due to budget cuts. As a result, Mueller reportedly considered retiring from professional wrestling. In November, Murdoch participated in Noah's
Global League 2011 in block B. He earned eight points but that was not enough to progress to the next stage. In December 2011, Murdoch took part in TNA's
India project,
Ring Ka King under the name Roscoe Jackson.
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2009) Mueller debuted in
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) on the April 23, 2009, edition of
TNA Impact!, under the name "The Outlaw" Jethro Holliday, teaming with
Eric Young to defeat the team of
No Limit (
Naito and
Yujiro), advancing to the second round of
Team 3D's open invitational tag team tournament. On the May 7 episode of
Impact! Holliday and Young lost to
Beer Money, Inc. getting eliminated from the tournament. The following week he lost in an "I Quit Match" against
Booker T. On June 18, Holliday lost a
Clockwork Orange House of Fun match against
Raven. On August 13, he turned heel by attacking
Abyss with a steel chair, in response to the "bounty" set by
Dr. Stevie. At
Hard Justice he lost to Abyss and after the match turned face once again by attacking Dr. Stevie. During this time, he was used as a jobber putting over the likes of
Bobby Lashley and
Daniels. Holliday competed in four Webmatches, On June 5, Holliday and Young defeated No Limit. On June 26, Holliday defeated
Jesse Neal. On August 13, Holliday lost to
Rhino. On October 9, Holliday lost to Daniels. On November 11, 2009, Mueller was released from his TNA contract.
Return to WWE (2011) On May 9, 2011, Murdoch returned to WWE, wrestling in two dark matches, on Raw and on the Smackdown taping the following night. He lost both matches to
Evan Bourne and
Jey Uso.
Ring Ka King (2012) Mueller debuted for
Ring Ka King under the name Roscoe Jackson and on February 4, 2012, Jackson, Jimmy Rave and Zema Ion defeated Broadway, Hollywood and Isaiah Cash in a six-man tag team match. on February 12 tapings Jackson lost to "The Outlaw" Isaiah Cash. on February 25 tapings Jackson faced American Adonis in a losing effort. on February 26, Jackson was in the #1 contenders gauntlet for the gold match won by Sir Brutus Magnus. on March 17 tapings Jackson defeated Isaiah Cash. on March 31 tapings Jackson lost a remmatch against Isaiah Cash. on April 8 tapings Jackson was in the #1 contenders battle royal for the heavyweight title won by Mahabali Vera. on April 23 at the final tapings for the promotion Jackson, Chavo Guerrero Jr, Mahabali Veera, Matt Morgan and Pagal Parinda defeated RDX (Abyss, Deadly Danda, Scott Steiner, Sir Brutus Magnus and Sonjay Dutt) in a ten-man tag team match. Ring Ka King shut down on April 22, 2012, and did not return for a second season.
Independent circuit and retirement (2013–2016) On May 4, 2013, back under the ring name Trevor Murdoch, he faced Mitch Paradise in a losing effort. On May 5, 2013, Murdoch and Heather Patera defeated Dan Jesser and Shelly Martinez in a mix tag team match. On August 23, 2014, Murdoch competed for the Heavy on Wrestling title but lost to Lance Hoyt in a 3-way match. On September 7, Murdoch faced Nate Redwing in a losing effort. On January 17, 2015, Murdoch faced Derek McQuinn in a losing effort. On February 15, Murdoch lost a 3-way match against Blake Edward Belakis. On April 5, Murdoch faced
Jonathan Gresham in a losing effort. On April 18, Murdoch and Leland Race faced Derek McQuinn and Steve Fender in the semi-finals tag team tournament that ended in a no contest. Mueller announced his retirement from wrestling in 2018.
National Wrestling Alliance (2018–2026) NWA National Heavyweight Champion (2019–2021) Murdoch came out of retirement in 2019 and appeared at the first taping for
NWA Power. In his first match, he lost to
Ricky Starks. He interrupted Starks' post-match interview and congratulated him, establishing himself as a face. Later, he cut his own promo, stating that he wished to earn an NWA contract. He would then be victorious in matches against Jocephus and
Caleb Konley, and lose in a competitive outing against reigning
NWA World's Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis in a non-title match. Murdoch entered in the tournament for the vacant
NWA World Television Championship after defeating
Thom Latimer in a qualifying match. On January 24, 2020, at
Hard Times, Murdoch defeated The Question Mark in the first round,
Dan Maff in the semifinals, before losing to Ricky Starks in the finals. On January 25 episode of
Powerrr, Murdoch and
Aron Stevens fought to a 10-minute time limit draw for the
NWA National Heavyweight Championship. On September 29, 2020, Murdoch defeated
Aron Stevens to win the
NWA National Heavyweight Championship.
NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion (2021–2022) Following the end of his National championship reign, Murdoch won a No. 1 Contender's battle royal to face NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis at
When Our Shadows Fall, but was unsuccessful at the event. Murdoch would defeat Aldis at
NWA 73rd Anniversary Show on August 29 to win the title in a match where he would have to retire if he lost. On November 9 in the second part of
NWA Power: By Any Means Necessary, Murdoch was attacked by debuting
Mike Knox. On November 16 episode of
Powerrr, it was announced that Murdoch would face Knox for the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship at
Hard Times 2. On December 4 at Hard Times 2, Murdoch successfully defended his title in his first title defense against Knox. On February 12, 2022, Murdoch lost the NWA World's Heavyweight Championship to
Matt Cardona in
Oak Grove, Kentucky, at
NWA PowerrrTrip, bringing Murdoch's championship reign to an end after 167 days. On June 11 at
Alwayz Ready, Murdoch regained the title, which Cardona vacated due to injury, in a fatal four-way match against Aldis,
Thom Latimer, and
Sam Shaw. On August 28 at
NWA 74th Anniversary Show, Murdoch successfully defended his title in his first title defense against
Tyrus. Murdoch lost the title to Tyrus at
Hard Times 3 in a three-way match on November 12, which also featured Matt Cardona, ending his second reign at 154 days.
Alliance with Mike Knox (2023–2026) On the March 21 episode of NWA Powerrr, Murdoch took on Daisy Kill and Talos in a Handicap match, Kill and Talos gang up on Murdoch. Mike Knox makes the save, and the referee calls for the bell. On April 7 at
NWA 312 Pre-Show, Murdoch and Knox defeated Daisy Kill and Talos. On the April 25 episode of NWA Powerrr, Murdoch and Knox defeated The Fixers (
Jay Bradley & Wrecking Ball Legursky) in a
Crockett Cup 2023 qualifying match. Murdoch and Knox defeated Magnum Muscle (Dak Draper and Mims) in the second round, The Mortons (
Ricky Morton and
Kerry Morton) in the quarterfinal, The Midnight Riders (Tyrus and Chris Adonis) in the semifinal and Blunt Force Trauma (
Carnage and
Damage) in the tournament final, winning the
Crockett Cup. On September 3, 2024, at
NWA Back to the Territories, Murdoch and Knox defeated Blunt Force Trauma (Carnage and Damage) to win the
NWA World Tag Team Championship for the first time. They held the titles until the
NWA 77th Anniversary Show, which aired on November 18, 2025, during which they lost to The Immortals (
Kratos and
Odinson).
Second retirement (2026) On April 5, 2026, following a singles match against
Pretty Boy Smooth at the 2026 Crockett Cup, Murdoch announced that he would be retiring from in-ring competition. He plans to stay active behind the scenes with
World League Wrestling and Harley Race's Wrestling Academy. ==Other media==