Jeffrey James Leiding was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri.

[1] He was a standout player at Hickman Mills High School in Kansas City as a sophomore and junior.

When his father accepted a job at a bank in Tulsa, Oklahoma prior to his senior year, Leiding finished his prep career at Union High School.

[5] He was also a territorial selection of the San Antonio Gunslingers of the United States Football League (USFL) in 1984.

[6] Overall, he appeared in nine games, starting three, and totaled one safety and one sack that season before being placed on injured reserve on December 1, 1987.