Rorke Denver Was A Star Before 'American Grit'

There's nothing like watching people hurl themselves through grueling obstacle courses, pushing themselves to their physical limits, while you're sitting on the couch eating pizza. At least that's what I'm planning to do for American Grit, a military-themed reality show premiering on FOX on April 14. The 10-episode show is hosted by WWE fave John Cena and will put four teams of four people through military-grade and survival-themed challenges. But Cena is a nice guy, and he won't just throw these unsuspecting contestants to the wolves. He has four mentors lined up, called "The Cadre," each representing a different part of the U.S. military. So, who is American Grit Cadre member Rorke Denver?

Denver is a former U.S. Navy SEAL. He's the only member of the Cadre from the Navy: The others are Noah Galloway, who served in the 1st Battalion of the 502nd Infantry with the Army’s 101st Airborne Division; Nick “The Reaper” Irving, who served in the U.S. Army’s 3rd Ranger Battalion; and Tawanda “Tee” Hanible, who served 19 years in the Marine Corps. Here's what you need to know about Denver before he starts representing the Navy on American Grit.

He's Already Starred On The Big Screen

He was one of the stars of the movie Act of Valor , which used real, active-duty soldiers as its cast. Perhaps it was there that Denver got the reality acting bug?

He's Also A Published Author

Denver has written not one, but two books about the SEALS: 2013's Damn Few: Making the Modern SEAL Warrior , and this year's Worth Dying For: A Navy Seal's Call to a Nation . The latter was just published on April 5, and as of this writing, it's already achieved the No. 1 spot in Amazon's ranking for books about intelligence and espionage history.

His Team Is Blue, But He's A Fan Of Orange

According to his speaker bio on the Creative Arts Agency website, Denver went to Syracuse University in New York. There, he was an All-American lacrosse player and captain of the lacrosse team. Seems like he always set out to be a leader.

He Has Some Concerns About Our Country

Being a SEAL has given Denver a unique perspective on what he believes constitutes the biggest threats facing our country. “We’re a nation now that’s a decade in a half into sustained combat, longer than we ever have been in any previous engagement,” he told The Blaze. "I think the thing I fear the most is internal, and the decisions we’re going to make about how we position ourselves and behave in the world."

He's a Professional Motivator

Rorke goes to businesses and does leadership training and motivational speaking. But if my company ever decides to hire Denver and wants me to go through any of the American Grit obstacle courses, I'm taking the day off and heading back to the couch to finish that pizza.

Image: Michael Lavine/FOX