It is common knowledge that the Mayweather family has produced some of the best boxers in the world. Moreover, with Floyd Mayweather Jr having an unprecedented impact on the sport, it is safe to say that boxing might be in his family’s DNA. His uncles Jeff Mayweather and Roger Mayweather also pursued boxing like him and trained him to become the best of his generation.

However, Jeff’s first choice was not to fight inside a ring but rather become someone else entirely. In addition, he even detailed how he made a promise to Mayweather Jr’s grandmother that he would finish college unlike any of his family members.

Jeff Mayweather details his journey through college

In the book Money: The Life and Fast Times of Floyd Mayweather, Jeff reveals how he promised his mother to finish college at just 8 years old. However, his mother didn’t think much of it as no one in their family went to college. Despite all the odds stacked against him, Jeff revealed that college was a walk in the park for him and that he completed his courses with ease.

“She never thought nothing of it as nobody else went in the family,’ said Jeff. ‘Well, one of my sisters went but she never finished. I was in third grade, a long way from college, but that promise stuck with me. I suppose in the beginning it was more me fulfilling that promise to her than me going for myself. But when I got to college I guess I was just one of those people who was gifted. College was very easy. Once I got there I thought it was going to be something really big. But it was a breeze, a walk in the park — no different from high school or anything like that,” he said.

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The author of the book Tris Dixon then reveals that Jeff had earned a degree in graphic design. However, the takeaway from this journey was that he was now mature and it “gave him a very un-Mayweather grounding.” Jeff then details how college molded his personality and made him grow into a more mature person.

Jeff Mayweather’s first choice was never to box

In the next paragraph, Jeff claims that college helped him a lot in maturing. This was because he was now dealing with a lot of different people who all had motivations to be successful in life. Moreover, he also added that his mindset was different than that of his nephew and brother or else he would have been a world champion as well. However, for him finishing college was the most important thing to do.

“I think college molded me in a different way because they interacted with people through boxing and that’s a different type of circle. They were not dealing with people who maybe one day would be presidents or own Fortune 500 companies. Those were the kind of people I was dealing with. If my mindset was like that of my nephew or my two brothers I probably would have won a major world title and been champion for a long time, but I was totally different. I walked into boxing just by following them. Boxing was never my first choice. I loved basketball and the most important thing was finishing college,” he added.

It seems that for Jeff finishing college and fulfilling his promise to his mother was more important than being a boxer. However, he went against every norm in his family by becoming the first one to finish a proper college education, which Mayweather Jr was also not able to do.

What did you think about Jeff wanting to finish college rather than boxing? Let us know in the comments.

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