Jose Jones Research Paper

For Lindenwood alumnus and professional boxer Jose Jones, each and every day is a fight. It’s a fight to keep up with an energetic daughter who is wise beyond her years. It’s a fight to connect with 30 at-risk youths that he must keep in line. It’s a fight to be the best boxer he can be in a highly competitive field. Every day is like an exhausting 12-round bout, because in Jones’ life, there is never a dull moment. Jones, now 33 years old, was born in Panama City, Panama, to a family with a long history of boxing. His cousin, Guillermo Jones, is one of the most celebrated fighters in Panamanian history and his father hopped into the ring for three fights as an amateur earlier in his life. Despite this lineage, his mother did everything …show more content…
“There sure aren’t any 7-footers where I’m from. I just wasn’t good enough. Trying to do that wasn’t worth my time.” Walking around campus one day, Jones was approached by a football coach who saw his muscular build and asked him to try out for the team. The only problem: he had never stepped foot on the gridiron. Though his ability on the field was limited, he wanted to do as well as he could. “No matter what, I was going to make practice hell for everyone I was competing against,” Jones said. “I didn’t even know how to tackle, but I was going to do whatever it took to make things difficult for everyone else.” Though he says he never made much of a mark inside the shoulder pads and helmet, Jones believes that being on the team helped shape his future. After practice one day, teammate Ryan Coen invited him to come to the boxing gym with him to do some extra workouts. Coen was training to box competitively and wanted Jones to help him train. “As soon as I stepped in the ring for the first time that day, it became an addiction,” Jones said. “It became a way for me to channel my energy and stress from school, and was an entirely separate discipline from what I had been doing on the