If it weren't for Godwin Ezenwa, Alonzo Menifield wouldn't be a college graduate. He might not even be literate, to be honest. And he certainly wouldn't be a professional fighter who's less than one week away from his debut on MMA's biggest stage.
Menifield wouldn't be any of those things if it weren't for the man who adopted the then-14-year-old and his older brother. After Menifield lost both of his parents in traumatic fashion, the odds were stacked against him. Then Ezenwa provided a true lifeline.
"I probably would be in a gang, or I would have definitely done something terrible. I'd probably be in jail, or worse, I'd be dead," Menifield, now 31, said without a hint of embellishment.