More fisticuffs for Pacman Jones

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This was entertaining. I stopped by L.A. Southwest College this week to spend some time on the set of ‘Pros vs. Joes,’ the Spike TV show airing in April that pits retired NFL and NBA players against so-called everyday Joes in various football and basketball skills challenges. Actually, the Joes are pretty athletic this season, many of them former college athletes.

I watched former NFL players Rich Gannon, Priest Holmes and Adam ‘Pacman’ Jones play in a three-on-three football game -- with helmets and shoulder pads -- against three no-name competitors. Although some of it was hokey (when’s the last time you saw Gannon rush the passer, or drop back into coverage?), there were a couple of big hits.

One of the better collisions was one at the goal line between Jones and a ‘Joe’ named Dan Adams, a 5-foot-10 sales rep from Boston who played linebacker at Holy Cross. He set an NCAA single-game record with a staggering 21 solo tackles against Colgate.

Anyway, Adams stuck Jones at the goal line, jarring loose the football. It was pretty funny, because Jones had been talking trash to that point, referring to Adams as ‘Waterboy.’ A few minutes after the hit, the two exchanged punches and had to be separated.

‘He hit me 10 yards out of bounds, kind of a cheap shot,’ Adams said. ‘I couldn’t sit there and not retaliate. You’ve got to have some pride and dignity.’

As for the oft-suspended Jones, released by the Dallas Cowboys after the season, he didn’t seem too concerned about how he came off on camera.

‘I guess that’s the person he wants to be,’ Adams said. ‘But I guess in his defense, people kind of get caught up in the heat of the moment.’

-- Sam Farmer