Semper Fi, The Tale of the Fighting Marine

Semper Fidelis, always faithful, the motto of the United States Marine Corps, a motto that professional boxer, Jamel Herring would live by. The year is 2003; a 17-year-old Herring’s high school graduation is not far away but is without purpose and a plan. At this time boxing is only but a hobby for him. Enter Stephen Brown, a close friend of Jamel who enlisted in the Marines the year prior. Upon a visit home from Marine boot camp, Stephen met up with Jamel and encouraged him to do something with his life, to put it bluntly. What Stephen seemed to have had in mind was for Jamel to enlist in the Marine Corps, which, he did.

Jamel was excited that he found a purpose and passion in life and couldn’t wait to embark on this new adventure. The new adventure however, would include many bumps along the way. 2004, the month of December, Stephen Brown is not around anymore. The man who facilitated Herring’s enlistment in the Marines had passed away from lung cancer. Herring was distraught; because he was just a few weeks from deploying he was unable to see Stephen before he passed away. Nevertheless Herring must look forward.

In February 2005, Herring is on his way to Iraq, a place that felt like a different planet for him. He was assigned to be an electrician where he would occasionally make arrests of enemies that planted roadside IED bombs. With its mountains of sand and insurgent snipers lurking in the distance, Jamel didn’t know what was going to happen. There was a saving grace however; “I had great friends around me in the Marines that I served with that helped me get through that first tour. We had a great team.” said Jamel in his featured article on the Player’s Tribune. During his time in Iraq he still continued to box while he was in camp. He tried out and competed for the All-Marine Corps team in a slew of different tournaments, impressing his peers and trainers alike. They advised Jamel to really give this boxing thing a shot. But before then, duty to his country came calling again.

A second tour in Iraq followed in February 2007. There was something about this tour that was distinctly different, and it wasn’t the change of scenery in Iraq, no, this difference wasn’t in Iraq at all, it was back home. Jamel’s partner Jennifer was back home bearing his child. The stakes were much higher this time around now that Jamel has a family. To make matters graver, Jamel was assigned a much more dangerous job. This tour, Jamel was a security patrol that spent a large amount of his time driving around either traveling or surveying the area. Herring constantly had his family on his mind and worried if he would make it home. He met a sergeant who also had a family back home and shared the same qualms as Jamel. The two men bonded over that and were there for one another. Jamel ended up making it home, but the sergeant however, did not. Jamel mourned the death of his brother in arms and came to the realization that there are no certainties in life. Before Herring made it home, his baby was born. While he was initially disappointed he missed out on it, he excitedly awaited pictures and updates of his newborn son in one of the tents set up at his camp. Luckily, the wait for Jamel to meet his son wasn’t a long one. The two met three weeks later as Jamel came face to face with his son, Stephen, named out of respect for his late friend Stephen Brown. Jamel was back on base in North Carolina and was able to enjoy the company of his family and box again, peace at last.

Good times turned into great times as Jamel and Jennifer conceived another child, a girl, Ariyanah. Life is full of ups and downs as we traverse the bumpy road that it is. This great time quickly turned into an all time low for Jamel and his family. There are some sounds in life you will forever bear with you and this was one of them. It was a scream, a woman’s scream, Jennifer’s scream. Jamel rushed to see what had happened. He is shocked to see Jennifer standing over Ariyanah who was not breathing. They rushed her to the hospital but the doctor’s could not save her. Ariyanah passed away due to SIDS, Sudden Infantile Death Syndrome. The cause of the syndrome is rather unexplainable; it just happens, with a quick snap of fingers, Jamel was without his baby girl. A dark cloud loomed over Jamel Herring’s head.

Losing a child at any age is heartbreaking and Jamel’s reluctance to do anything after it occurred to him is understandable. Jamel’s circle of family and friends encouraged and pushed him to get back on his feet. While this event is something you don’t simply get over, life stops for no one and like the true soldier and fighter Jamel is, he trudged on. When tragedy occurs, an opportunity is always presented. That opportunity in this case, is to channel the tragedy into something you can fight for which Jamel did. Jamel continued his boxing career for the All-Marine Corps team and medaled in quite a few tournaments, fighting for Ariyanah. The Armed Forces Sports Program is “the culmination of each branch of Services' sports and fitness program. Service members participate and compete at unit level intramurals and advance to the All-Service level. The AFS continues to provide an avenue for military Service members to participate in national and international competitions.” The AFS runs a boxing tournament that Jamel competed in in 2012. If you win, you get a ticket to the Olympic Qualifiers. Jamel stunned his competition, most of which who had better resumes than him, and took home gold, booking a ticket to the Olympic qualifiers. Jamel put up a good showing and medaled in the qualifiers, earning a bronze medal, he would now be heading to Rio with the USA boxing team.

(US Olympic 2012 Boxing Team, Herring in the middle, purple shirt and grey vest)

A man who fought for his country is now fighting for his country again, albeit in different circumstances. The US coaches saw Jamel fit to lead the lead the team and appointed him as captain; Herring took tremendous pride in this honor and in being the first Marine to box for the Olympic team since 1992. He captained the US team that contained the likes of Errol Spence Jr., Dominic Breazeale, Joseph “Jojo” Diaz Jr., Jose Carlos Ramirez, Claressa Shields, Marcus Browne, and Terell Gausha. The opening ceremony occurred on July 27, 2012, three years after Ariyanah passed away. Against all odds, Jamel made it to Olympics, after so much hardship and putting his life on the line for the country he loves, he managed to do it. Jamel looked to the sky closed his eyes and said, “Baby girl, I made it. I did it, and I did it for you. It was all for you.”

Jamel did not medal at the 2012 Olympics but in a way, it’s fitting. Jamel is just your average guy who has experienced loss in his or her life. All human beings encounter adversity in unique and different ways. Some succumb to the fire of adversity and shell up, unable to see past the flames. The others rush through the fire, knowing that the pain will only be temporary and find that there are greener pastures on the other side. Jamel’s story has been an up and down one, for all the disappointments and losses suffered, there have been just as many great moments and triumphs to balance it. Regardless of what he has been faced with, Jamel rushed through the flames every time, fearless and always faithful.

After his Olympic campaign ended, Jamel pondered if he should continue to serve his country with the Marines or pursue his pro career. He came to the conclusion that he did not want to wonder “what if” later in his life. 6 months after his Olympic defeat, Jamel was back in the ring, this time as a professional. He was under the advisement of Al Haymon who also served as Floyd Mayweather’s advisor after the pound for pound star left Top Rank. He moved to Cincinnati to train with Olympic teammate Rau’sheen Williams, and also with Adrien Broner and Robert Easter Jr., under the guidance of his trainer, Michael Stafford. Jamel’s pro career started off with a bang, winning his first 16 fights with 8 knockouts to his name.

On July 2, 2016 Jamel faced off against Denis Shafikov, the tough Russian who lost to Rances Barthelemy in the twilight of 2015. Shafikov knocked down Jamel in the last few seconds of round 2 by a powerful right hook. Jamel fell against the ropes but never left his feet, it was ruled a knockdown however since the ropes kept him up. Herring’s corner saw enough and threw in the towel in round 10 after Jamel took a hard left hook from Shafikov followed by more powerful shots. Jamel took some time off and after 9 months he returned to the ring and fought tough competitor Art Hovhannisyan who he made quick work of inside of 3 rounds. Hovhannisyan was never stopped before. Jamel could have taken the easy route and fought a fighter who wasn’t up to par with his skills, but instead, he refused to be babied and got back on the right track the hard way. He got back in the ring in 6 months time, on August 22, a few days before Mayweather and McGregor’s bout. Jamel’s opponent on the night was Ladarius Miller, a southpaw just like him. Herring and Miller gave the fans a show that was both aggressive and technical. Miller’s slick boxing and ability to adapt when Herring was gaining steam in the sixth and seventh round earned him the win. In his last 3 fights, Jamel Herring is 1-2.

Jamel now has some rebuilding to do and is in a tough stage of his professional career. There is no doubting Herring’s resolve, which is as strong as ever. He recounts his two losses as learning experiences and has been working hard in the gym for his return. News of his return was quiet for a few months until January 16 2018 when Dan Rafael reported that Herring had parted ways with Al Haymon after agreeing a deal with Bob Arum’s Top Rank. 2018 has already brought about a lot of change for Herring as he has also changed his trainer. He left longtime trainer Mike Stafford for Brian McIntyre who also trains Terence Crawford.

Herring (left) pictured with pound for pound star Terence Crawford (right)

I contacted Jamel in order to ask a few questions about his move to Top Rank. Jamel very graciously accepted my phone call and the conversation itself was very informative. I asked Jamel “why Top Rank?” Herring responded by saying “Activity, as a fighter you want to stay busy and Top Rank are able to give me that.” In Top Rank’s deal with Jamel, he is guaranteed at minimum 3 fights a year. While Herring isn’t that old at 32, he recognizes that time cannot be wasted and wants to charge forward, full steam ahead. “Did the deal that Top Rank has with ESPN influence your decision?” I asked. Herring said “Of course! Who doesn’t want to be on ESPN? Everybody has ESPN at home and my fights will reach a much larger audience.” What Jamel said is very true, to be fighting on the biggest sporting network on TV will expose him and his story to the masses. I was very interested in what Herring’s experience was like when he was apart of Terence Crawford’s camp in preparation for Bud’s fight with Julius Indongo. Herring spoke highly of his experience “It was tremendous, I learned a lot, Terence and his camp treated me with the utmost respect.” It was at the Crawford camp where Jamel developed a relationship with Brian McIntyre and the time in Omaha definitely influenced his decision to switch trainers for the better of his career. I then questioned Herring on when we would next see him in the ring and mentioned the rumors of him being on the Crawford vs. Horn undercard. Herring responded, “Yes! That will most likely be my return. It will either be in Vegas on April 21st or in New York April 14th. Obviously I want it in New York so I can have my homecoming ” Jamel, being a New York native clearly wanted the event to be in his home more than anything. His wish was granted on January 18, just a few days after we spoke. An announcement was made that the event will be held at Madison Square Garden on April 14th. I asked Jamel what his plans were for 2018 and he responded with “Get back in there and get on track.” Jamel will also be fighting at 130 now in addition to still fighting at his natural 135. His height will make him one of the biggest fighters in the division and will likely have a significant reach advantage over many of the junior lightweights. I remarked how there are great fighters in both divisions and asked him if he wanted to fight anyone specific. Jamel answered “No one specific, just want to get back, move up the rankings and fight the best, because if you aren’t gonna fight the best, why fight at all?” That statement really says all you need to know about Jamel, he is not afraid of anyone or anything and is willing to put it on the line every time he steps into the squared circle. In the meantime, Jamel will be enjoying time with his family and has also been pursuing a college degree via online classes. Herring announced via twitter on January 24 that his training camp would begin in a few weeks. Jamel is very excited to show the public what he can do and we have no doubts that the Marine will have a successful 2018.

I’d like to give a special thanks to Jamel for taking the time out of his day to speak with me and wish him the best of luck in the rest of his career and future endeavors. The Under the Lights team is with him every step of the way.

Please go follow Jamel on all social media platforms and interact with him! He is all about his fans and tries his best to answer everybody!

Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat: JamelHerring

Facebook: SemperFiHerring

And please go subscribe to his YouTube Jamel Herring

The link is down below, he constantly puts out fantastic content where you can get to know him, his loving wife Jennifer, and energetic kids, Kamren, Stephen, Justice, Jamel Jr., and Jazmyn through vlogs and funny videos! Go subscribe now! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6Vvc3VtfcuqrIoQTF9adug/featured

Thank you,

Christian

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