It was more or less a “fluke” that Mathews resident Will Worley wound up as a contestant on CMT’s hit-show “Redneck Island.”

“I had recently trimmed down and lost 50 pounds to go from a power lifter’s look to a bodybuilder’s look,” Worley said. “I was searching for something on Google and saw a casting call for Redneck Island (Season Two). I thought ‘What the heck, I grew up in Gloucester, my mom is from the Guinea circle and my dad from the hills of Tennessee,’ so I decided to apply and just see what happens.”

He said he kept telling everyone that he was going to be on that show and have a beer with its host, Stone Cold Steve Austin, a former wrestler.

The show selects 14 red, white and blue-collared Americans out of the South, far away from cold beer, and drops them in a tropical paradise where they compete for $100,000. Austin guides the contestants through a number of mental and physical challenges designed to highlight the group’s strengths and limitations. At the end of each episode, teammates send one competitor packing.

He said the theme of the show is special to him for several reasons. As a teenager, Worley said he worked on a crab boat in the summers for Carl Reese Owens. His grandfather, Cap’n Coley Haywood, was considered the Deacon of Guinea. His mom was born in the Guinea marsh and his dad was a Tennessee hillbilly who used to live in Missouri.

“Add all that up and I am double-downed in Redneck DNA,” Worley said. He figured he would make a great competitor on Redneck Island. Also, with the unique lifestyle in Guinea that is disappearing since the seafood industry is drying up, he thought it was a chance to highlight an awesome place.

“Even though I now live in Mathews and love it there, my heart will always be in Guinea,” Worley added.

To become a contestant on the show, Worley said he first submitted an online application and picture. He later received a call and had an interview with a casting agent.

“The agent liked what I had to say and recommended me for the next round of selections,” Worley said. Then another casting agent called him to do a face-to-face interview over Skype. “He also liked my story and what I had to say and pushed me for the next round,” he said.

After this, Worley had to submit a package of pictures to the network for consideration. He next learned he had made it to the video round. For that, he had to submit a 10-minute entertaining home video showing why he would be better than other people to be on Redneck Island.

That video got him to the final 40 out of 10,000 entrants. Finally, he said he was picked as one of 14 to be on the show—seven men and seven women.

Worley quickly found out being a contestant on a hit show is not all fun and games. “There is a lot that people do not see,” he said.

He was flown out to Hollywood where he had to pass a rigorous medical exam and also to interview with a psychologist prior to being cleared to participate. “You have to pass both the medical and psychological exams to be on the show,” he said.

Also, until filming started, Worley said he was kept away from any other contestants, so he had no idea who the others were until filming began. “They wanted to catch that initial reaction on film,” he said. “Since this was not a live show, confidentiality paperwork had to be signed.” He is not allowed to discuss episodes, winners, or other issues.

At one point in the process, Worley learned he was not even selected. “Initially, I was told I didn’t get selected, but two days later, they called and said they needed me.” He soon learned those first selected could not get through the medical or psychological exams, which opened the door for him.

He said he also billed himself as “the most dangerous redneck in America.” “I had the redneck upbringing and a college education to go with the muscles,” Worley said. “Brains and brawn; and my nickname is ‘Flexxxzilla,’”

Filming took place on an island somewhere in Mexico, Worley said. “We are held to confidentiality about the exact location, but it was beautiful there, but scorching hot,” he said.

Worley works out five days a week and says he is in great shape. “I regularly bench press 300-plus pounds for reps and do treadmill work as well,” he said. “My conditioning allowed me to go into the show without any additional preparation.” He said having three gym memberships actually paid off for this adventure.

Filming on the show was 24/7. “So two episodes on TV may be only one day for me during filming,” Worley said. “Nothing prepared me for the off-grid living I had to do while on Redneck Island—that was tougher than I expected.”

Worley and his wife, Stacie, have three children and reside in the Dutton area of the county. A software engineer by trade, Worley enjoys working out, riding Harley-Davidson motorcycles with his wife, ice-cold beer and karaoke.

He said there are currently two commercials on CMT with him in them leading up to the premiere of “Redneck Island” at 9 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 10.

Worley doesn’t plan to stop there though. “I hope to run with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain within three years,” he said. “That will be such an adrenaline rush!”

He said he has also made it to round two in the selection process of another reality TV show, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s “The Hero” on TNT.