Early Years
Jones was born in Chester, Pennsylvania. He was a standout in football when he came to Cardinal O'Hara High School as a freshman. Coach Stratts had no choice but to put him in as a freshman. Jones broke many records at O'Hara and finished his career up with a Philadelphia Catholic League Championship. In that game he scored four touchdowns.
He was the No. 1 overall recruit in the nation, and could not decide between Penn State and Virginia Tech, eventually choosing to be a Hokie to the surprise of many. He said, "If you're a blue-chipper from Pennsylvania, you go to Penn State. But I've always been a little contrary. On the day of my press conference, I still hadn't decided between Virginia Tech and PSU. As I sat down in front of everybody, I had both jerseys with me. I pulled the Penn State jersey out of a bag and said, "I will ... not be attending Penn State." Then I ripped off my sweater and had a Mike Vick jersey on underneath. The entire room was flabbergasted. Afterward, I got plenty of hate mail, lots of it racial. People weren't afraid to use the N-word."
Read more about this topic: Kevin Jones (American Football)
Famous quotes related to early years:
“If there is a price to pay for the privilege of spending the early years of child rearing in the driver’s seat, it is our reluctance, our inability, to tolerate being demoted to the backseat. Spurred by our success in programming our children during the preschool years, we may find it difficult to forgo in later states the level of control that once afforded us so much satisfaction.”
—Melinda M. Marshall (20th century)