Kenny Cox was a three-time Oregon state wrestling champion for Churchill High School in Eugene, Oregon.

He was a five-time Junior National champion, winning three Greco-Roman titles and two freestyle titles.

Cox was named the 1997 ASICS High School Wrestler of the Year, an award given each year to the best high school wrestler in the nation.

After high school he attended the University of Oregon on a wrestling scholarship, graduating in 2001.

He died unexpectedly at 31 years old in 2009 while living in a remote area on the island of Kauai in Hawaii.