Early life
Covington was born in Clovis, California on February 22, 1988. His parents are Noelle and Brad Covington, and he has two sisters named Candace and Callie. The family moved from California to Oregon when he was eight years old.[7] His father was a wrestler during his time at the Oregon Institute of Technology and Southern Oregon University.[8]

Wrestling career
As a wrestler at Thurston High School in Springfield, Oregon, Covington lettered all four years and won the 171 lb state championship as a senior. He committed to Arizona State University but his test scores were not up to par, so he went to Iowa Central Community College, where he won the 165 lb national junior college wrestling title as a true freshman with a 34–0 record.[9] His roommate, at the time, was future UFC champion Jon Jones.[10]

Following his championship season at Iowa Central, Covington transferred to the noted wrestling program at the University of Iowa. On August 10, 2007, he was arrested for eluding police and driving under the influence, having registered a BAC of 0.255, over three times the legal limit of 0.08.[11] He later said, "That was a real all-time low in my life, something I really wish I could take back." Due to his arrest, Covington was suspended from the Hawkeyes for a year, and saw limited time the next season.[9] He looked for a fresh start, and former Hawkeyes coach Jim Zalesky convinced Covington to transfer to Oregon State University.[9][7]

During his time at OSU, Covington qualified for the NCAA Tournament as a junior and as a senior, placing fifth as a senior and earning All-American honors. He also was a two-time Pac-10 Conference champion at 174-pounds. He was cited for fourth-degree assault stemming from an incident on May 23, 2010 wherein he was accused of punching two men after a verbal altercation.[11] The Benton County District Attorney's Office did not pursue charges against Covington over the incident.[12]

Covington graduated with a bachelor's degree in Sociology in 2011.

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