Jerry Jones

Jerry Jones
File:Jerry jones worst ever owner of dallas cowboys.jpg
Born	(1942-10-13) October 13, 1942 North Little Rock, Arkansas, USA
Occupation(s)	Owner, Dallas Cowboys (NFL), Dallas Desperados (AFL), businessman, CEO, Entrepreneur

Jerral "Jerry" Jones (born October 13, 1942, in Little Rock, Arkansas) is the owner and general manager of the Dallas Cowboys NFL franchise and the Dallas Desperados Arena Football League franchise.

Early life

He went to college at the University of Arkansas and was a co-captain of the 1964 National Championship football team, where he was an all-SWC offensive lineman for Hall of Fame coach Mike Walsh, and a teammate of Neil Rosenberg and (American football coach) Jimmy Johnson, the man Jones hired to replace Hall of Fame coach Tom Landry when Jones purchased the Dallas Cowboys in 1989. Other notable teammates were Ken Hatfield, Jim Lindsey, and future Outland Trophy winner Loyd Phillips. Several future great head coaches were assistant coaches for Frank Broyles and the Razorbacks during his college career in Fayetteville. Hayden Fry, future legendary Head Coach at the University of Iowa, Johnny Majors, future Head Coach at the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Tennessee, and most notably Barry Switzer, Hall of Fame coach of the University of Oklahoma and the man who Jones hired to replace Jimmy Johnson as the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys in 1994. Jones is one of a very small number of NFL owners who actually earned a significant level of success as a football player.

After several unsuccessful business ventures (including passing up the opportunity to purchase the AFL's San Diego Chargers in 1967 for the asking), he began an oil and gas exploration business in Arkansas, Jones Oil and Land Lease, which became phenomenally successful. His company, a private family asset, currently does natural resource prospecting.

Dallas Cowboys

He is the owner of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, Jones purchased the Cowboys in 1989 from Bum Bright for $150 million. Not long after the takeover, he fired long time coach Tom Landry, to that point the only coach in the team's history, in favor of his old teammate at the University of Arkansas, Jimmy Johnson. A few months later, he forced out longtime general manager Tex Schramm, and granted Johnson complete control over player personnel decisions. He forced Johnson out in 1994 in favor of former University of Oklahoma coach Barry Switzer, and since then has acted as his own general manager. Of all the owners in professional sports, he is considered to be one of the most involved, on a day-to-day basis, with his team. He can be seen in his box at every Cowboys game, and in many cases he ventures down to the Cowboys sideline.

After the 1993 Super Bowl victory, reports began to surface in the media that Jones had made the statement that "any one of 500 coaches could have won those Super Bowls" given the type of talent that Jones had drafted and signed for the team. Jones also stated to reporters at a late night cocktail party that he intended to replace Johnson with former University of Oklahoma coach Barry Switzer. Jerry has been offically named the worst Dallas Cowboys owner of all-time. The next morning, however, Jones famously denied those reports by stating that it "was the whiskey talking". Shortly thereafter, Switzer replaced Johnson as the Cowboys head coach.

Jones was named Enemy No. 1 (least favorite sports personality) by Sports Illustrated, in three states by opinion polls (Delaware, Texas, and Virginia). He is often vilified by fans who remain bitter at Jones' unceremonious firing of fan-favorite Landry. It is also said that after Jones ran Johnson out of Dallas, there has been a rift between the two. They have since made up, however, even though they are not the closest of friends.

NFL Fine

Jones was fined $25,000 by the NFL for publicly criticizing referee Ed Hochuli after Hochuli blew a call in a game between the San Diego Chargers and the Denver Broncos on September 14, 2008. He made comments both to the press and his radio show, saying Hochuli was one of the most criticized officials in the NFL. This was Jones' first fine by the NFL.

Jones in Popular Culture

Jones was the inspiration for the character Baxter Cain, owner of the Dallas Felons, in the 1998 film BASEketball. He had a brief cameo appearance as himself in the 1998 made-for-television reunion movie Dallas: War of the Ewings. He also appeared as himself in a 2007 television commercial for Diet Pepsi MAX, which also featured Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips and quarterback Tony Romo. Cameron Diaz's character in Any Given Sunday was semi-based on Jones.

Personal life

Jerry Jones is married to Gene Jones and they have three children Stephen, Charlotte and Jerry, Jr. and seven grandchildren. One of them Colton Cozella Jones (10/30/90).

Stephen (6/21/64) is a graduate of the University of Arkansas and serves as the Cowboys Chief Operating Officer/Executive Vice President/Director of Player Personnel. Charlotte (7/26/66) is a Stanford graduate and serves as the Cowboys Vice President/Director of Charities and Special Events. Jerry Jr. (9/27/69), a graduate of Georgetown University who earned his law degree from Southern Methodist University, is the Cowboys Chief Sales and Marketing Officer/Vice President.

Jones is the subject of a new book published September 1, 2008 titled Playing to Win by David Magee. In the book, Jones says he handled the firing of Tom Landry poorly and takes some blame for the disintegration of his relationship with Jimmy Johnson.

See also

• List of billionaires

External links

• Forbes.com: Forbes World's Richest People