It's so easy to dunk on football players these days. Many of them give us reason to, but I fully believe there's more good in the sport than bad — the good just don't always make the headlines.
That's why, when I see a college or pro-level athlete who seems like he has a good head on his shoulders, I like to spotlight that.
University of Georgia running back Cash Jones is a perfect example of this.
While many college stars spend their name, image, and likeness (NIL) money on expensive cars, flashy jewelry, and other trivial things, rumors swirled on X yesterday that Cash used his NIL money for something a bit different: repainting the trucks for his family's concrete business.
Cash Jones using that NIL money to repaint his familys company’s concrete trucks to the silver britches lmao pic.twitter.com/VNZDdsDF0B
— Coach Grant Taylor (@Huntaaahhh) October 13, 2025
Unfortunately, those rumors turned out to be inaccurate — Cash cleared them up during a press conference just before I sat down to write this article — but I actually learned something about the fifth-year UGA senior that gave me a newfound respect for him.
Stephenville, Texas, is a town of around 21,000 people that sits about 70 miles southwest of Fort Worth. It's also home to Cash Jones Ready Mix, a concrete business that's been a part of the Jones family for decades. Cash's father, Wayne, is the current president, and when you visit the company's "about" page, you'll see Cash himself, wearing a cowboy hat, and listed as vice president.
However, the VP is a little busy at the moment.
Cash was a star athlete at Brock High School — not only in football, he lettered in four sports — but making a college team was a big tougher. He didn't give up, and in 2021, he was a walk-on at UGA, eventually earning a scholarship. He's not a superstar with a big name, like Brock Bowers or Stetson Bennett. Heck, he's not even a starter — he's more of a depth and rotation guy, but whenever he's on that field in Athens or elsewhere, he plays hard and makes the most of his touches. He's been with the team for five years, which means that he's celebrated two national championships. He's earned every bit of the old-fashioned way: through hard work.
But more importantly, the team sees him as a leader. While fans love him for grit, his fellow players look up to him as a role model on and off the field. Earlier this year, wide receiver London Humphreys said of Cash, "He's a nice guy, he's an out-there guy — he comes and greets you when you're new. He comes and talks to you and tries to get to know you," adding, "He's a leader on this team now, this year, so people look up to him. I respect what he has to say when it comes to football. He's done this plenty of years, and he knows what he's talking about."
Related: I Hope College Football Survives the NCAA
Unlike a lot of guys in his position, Cash's plans for his future are a bit more down-to-earth and realistic. There's no talk of cashing in on his college success or playing the NFL or another professional league. He just wants to return home to Texas and get back to concrete. Mr. Vice President said that even though his dad's the boss, he's not planning to waltz in and fill the role, sitting around in an office. He wants to earn that title through hard work rather than birthright, just as he earned his position on the team at UGA.
It sounds like the move shocked even Cash's own father. In an interview earlier this year with GeorgiaDogs.com, he said that Wayne once asked him what he planned to do with the rest of his life. "I was like, 'Shoot, you did concrete. What better way to earn a living than concrete?" Cash replied. "Everybody needs concrete. Everybody's building something here; Texas is blowing up right now."
So, that's what he'll do when he leaves Georgia after this year: head home and learn the family business from the ground up. He says he wants to start at the bottom so that one day, when he does fill that VP slot, his employees will have some respect for him. "It's a lot of manual labor, and that's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna start at the very bottom and over X amount of years, after I gain respect and I know how everything's supposed to go, then eventually I can start [to lead]."
As a fan and former UGA student myself, I hate to see Cash go back to Texas, but I have no doubt that all of his teammates are better for having him around for the last few years.
