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By T.K. Stewart - Harry Joe Yorgey was a star running back at Upper Merion High School in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. He was so good in fact; that he had 34 scholarship offers to play college football.
He ultimately did go on to play college ball, but only for a short time.
"I used to weigh two-hundred pounds, believe it or not," says the likable Yorgey who will meet Alfredo "Perro" Angulo tonight in Hartford, Connecticut for the interim WBO 154-pound title.
"But when I was in college playing football, I was away and I called my Dad and told him I was coming home," he explains. "I wasn't doing what I wanted to do."
What Harry Joe Yorgey wanted to do, was fight.
And so far, the 31-year-old prizefighter has proven to be as good in the squared circle as he was on the gridiron. He's undefeated at 22-0-1, 10 KOs, is ranked in the top-10 by the various boxing sanctioning organizations and he's fresh off the biggest win of his career – a ninth-round knockout win in March over Ronald Hearns.
"We just went into that fight and grabbed the opportunity by the throat," said Yorgey of the Hearns fight. "Nobody gave me a chance, but I knew that I was going to win it."
The road hasn't been easy for Yorgey, as the seedy business side of boxing has sometimes forced him to go through long stretches of inactivity. Disputes with the managerial and promotional side of things have limited his progress. Scheduled fights have fallen apart at the last minute and the combination of those issues limited him to a solo appearance in 2008. Tonight’s fight against Angulo will be only his second of 2009. [details]
He ultimately did go on to play college ball, but only for a short time.
"I used to weigh two-hundred pounds, believe it or not," says the likable Yorgey who will meet Alfredo "Perro" Angulo tonight in Hartford, Connecticut for the interim WBO 154-pound title.
"But when I was in college playing football, I was away and I called my Dad and told him I was coming home," he explains. "I wasn't doing what I wanted to do."
What Harry Joe Yorgey wanted to do, was fight.
And so far, the 31-year-old prizefighter has proven to be as good in the squared circle as he was on the gridiron. He's undefeated at 22-0-1, 10 KOs, is ranked in the top-10 by the various boxing sanctioning organizations and he's fresh off the biggest win of his career – a ninth-round knockout win in March over Ronald Hearns.
"We just went into that fight and grabbed the opportunity by the throat," said Yorgey of the Hearns fight. "Nobody gave me a chance, but I knew that I was going to win it."
The road hasn't been easy for Yorgey, as the seedy business side of boxing has sometimes forced him to go through long stretches of inactivity. Disputes with the managerial and promotional side of things have limited his progress. Scheduled fights have fallen apart at the last minute and the combination of those issues limited him to a solo appearance in 2008. Tonight’s fight against Angulo will be only his second of 2009. [details]
exactly, knocked out before he even landed
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