Young Colby Covington in Pictures: from Clean-Cut College Wrestler to Ufc Bad Boy
By Alexander Ross
Following a brief detour at the University of Iowa that ended abruptly due to off-mat disciplinary issues, Covington landed in Corvallis to compete for the Oregon State Beavers. Under the guidance of head coach Jim Zalesky, Covington refined the suffocating top control and pace that would later define his mixed martial arts style. He shaved his head, wore standard-issue orange-and-black singlets, and kept his public comments limited to perfunctory expressions of team pride.
His athletic output at Oregon State was formidable. Covington captured the 2010 Pac-10 Championship at 174 pounds, finishing fifth at the NCAA Division I National Championships to secure All-American honors. The following season, he went undefeated in conference bouts, repeated as the 2011 Pac-10 Champion, and posted a 39-3 record on the year. He finished his collegiate run with an overall record of 68-14 at Oregon State, recognized across collegiate wrestling as a relentless pace-pusher who overwhelmed opponents through sheer lung capacity rather than flashy technique.
Colby Covington college photos from this window present a stark contrast to his present aesthetic. In team roster portraits, he sits upright with an earnest, unstyled expression, sporting athletic gear free from corporate sponsors. There were no designer sunglasses indoors, no staged entourages, and no aggressive trash talk directed at rivals. Teammates from that Corvallis locker room described him as intensely disciplined, occasionally stubborn, but entirely uninterested in self-promotion.
Alexander Ross has covered the video game industry for a decade, writing deep dives on game design, esports tournaments, VR developments, and gaming culture.
