by Tanessa Dillard
Sports Editor
Before he was a Leopard, he was a Bulldog. For three years, senior running back Anthony Jones attended the University of Redlands and stood out on the football field. But Jones did not want to be a Bulldog anymore.
“I just got tired of it,” he said. “I had been there for three years. Things built up and finally I had to get away.”
Jones’ reasons for transferring to ULV stretch beyond football. He said there were problems with his social life as well. Academically, though, the school was fine.
“If I would have stayed at Redlands, I would not have played football. I wasn’t happy there anymore.”
Jones is not just the average college player. He has received national recognition in football and is good enough to play on a Division I team.
Before choosing ULV, he talked with several Division I schools. According to him, they were interested but did not want to take a player with just one year of eligibility left.
Head Football Coach Don Morel said Jones contacted ULV last December about his interest in transferring.
“I was very excited,” he said of the call. “He is a quality person and certainly a good player.”
“La Verne was the only place I could come and play football and not have to sit out,” Jones said. “When I came here, I knew I would enjoy playing football and have fun.”
“He fit in immediately,” said Morel. “It was a good fit for both La Verne and Anthony.”
Jones said that the goal of the football team for the season is to go to the playoffs. The long term goal is to win a national championship.
“If we accomplish our team goals, I will accomplish my personal goals and maybe surpass them,” he said.
Currently in SCIAC, Jones is ranked no. 1 in rushing, averaging 158 yards per game. He is no. 1 in all-purpose running with an average of 172.5 yards per game. Jones also leads in scoring with a total of 64 points this season. He is ranked no. 5 in total offense with an average of 158 yards per game.
In NCAA Division III rankings, Jones is no. 13 as an all-purpose runner.
“It’s not really affecting me,” Jones said of the national attention. “I kind of expected it. I expect to be doing better than I am now. It’s still early in the season. It makes me smile when I see my name in national rankings, but it’s no big deal.”
Despite all the recognition Jones receives as an athlete, he does not think his greatest accomplishment has been football. It is going to college.
“No one in my family made it this far in school. My family is proud,” Jones said. “If it’s that important to them, it is a big accomplishment for myself.”
That focus on education came from Jones’ father. He encouraged his son to do well in school and told him how important it was to have an education.
“It will always be instilled in my mind. I will pass it on to my children,” he said.
Athletics were always a part of his family structure. Both of his parents played sports, as did his four siblings. His two younger brothers play football now and look to Jones as a role model, something he said he never had or really wanted.
He did, however, admire who he called “the great athletes,” such as Magic Johnson, Walter Payton and Muhammad Ali. “I feel like I’m an athlete like they are,” Jones said. “They are not my role models, but I admire them.”
Jones graduated from Chaffey High School in Ontario in 1992. There, he played football as well as baseball. His senior year, he decided to go out for the track team to see if he could do it. He did, but his heart was not in it.
His heart can be found in football.
“Football is not my life, but it’s close,” Jones said.
He hopes football will be in his future after college. “I want to play as long as I can,” he said. After my career here, hopefully I’ll get the chance to go to some [professional] tryouts. I am going to take any chance I get. That’s all I can ask for is a chance. The rest is up to me.”
If a professional football career is not an option for Jones, he plans to go into some aspect of business, his academic major.
One option is business management. Another is to obtain his teaching credentials. He would like to go back to his old high school to teach and coach. Eventually, he would like to move up to an athletic administrator position. Jones also wants to work in the business office of a professional sports team.
His ultimate goal is to be knowledgeable. When people ask him questions, he wants to know the answers.
Football has affected Jones’ life in many ways. It has given him perseverance, mental toughness and the ability to endure pain. He also said that the sport has given him confidence and friends.
“It seems that everyone wants to know players on the football team, especially if you’re winning,” Jones said.
Even winners have their bad days. Most of Jones’ time is occupied by football, so he has little time for other activities.
“I go through times when I feel the pressure of it all—the pressure to perform in the classroom as well as on the field,” Jones said. “Sometimes it hits me all at once. If it does, I just have to get away. I do nothing, stare at the sky, sit with my hands in my face and don’t think about anything.”
Tanessa Dillard
