Jerry Jones was born on October 13, 1942 in Los Angeles, California. Shortly thereafter, his family moved to North Little Rock, Arkansas. He was a star running back at North Little Rock High School and eventually received a scholarship to play guard at the University of Arkansas.

After several unsuccessful business ventures (including passing up the opportunity to purchase the AFL's San Diego Chargers in 1967 for the asking price of $5.8 million), he began an oil and gas exploration business in Oklahoma, which became phenomenally successful.

In 1989, he purchased the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, the move that he is most famous for, and has been their owner ever since.