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Jones: Former All-American At NWC
Trapper wrestlers Jeffrey Oakes and Lisiate Anau worked out with Northwest College assistant wrestling coach Mak Jones every day during the past season.
“And that’s not a coincidence that they’re the two guys on the podium,” said NWC head coach Jim Zeigler, referring to Anua’s and Oakes' top six showings at the NJCAA National Championships.
“The individual attention that he (Jones) has given them, the individual workouts that he does with them makes a tremendous difference,” Zeigler said. “And I think that we can be very proud of the work that he did.”
Jones also worked with the NWC wrestling team in 2014, when one of the Trappers he worked out with, John Wixom, placed second in the nation.
“I think we’ve discovered one real talent in this process in that he’s been able to create some pretty good wrestlers,” said Zeigler of Jones.
For his part, Jones offered that, “I just try to go in there and wrestle with them.”
“That’s what helped me the best when I was wrestling — wrestling coaches and people that were a lot better than me,” he said. “That way you just get a feel for positions and everything and if you have any questions, you can stop and ask questions.”
“It’s just hands-on,” chimed in Zeigler.
“Hands-on learning, wrestling — for me, that’s always been the best way to learn,” said Jones.
Jones wrestled for NWC during the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons after graduating from Powell High School in 2008. During his tenure at NWC, Jones placed third at nationals, earning All-American honors and graduating with a degree in recreation and outdoor education in 2010.