If Cody Gibson hadn’t received a call to fight at UFC 170 this weekend, there’s a good chance his future would be in the classroom, not the octagon.

Even though he’s only 26, Gibson had recently started to put serious thought into alternative ways of supporting his family outside of fighting.

Gibson’s passion outside of MMA is to educate students in a classroom, and he said if that UFC call didn’t come sometime in the next few months, his time as an active competitor would likely have come to its end.

“I was kind of coming to the point in my life where I had just finished a teaching credential,” Gibson told MMAjunkie Radio. “I was looking to start a full-time teaching position in August, and I kind of told my family, ‘Give me a few more months before we make that decision.’ I said if I could get to the UFC, maybe we could hold off on the full-time teaching position.

“I knew even though I’m only 26, that clock and that window is starting to close, I felt it closing. So once that call came, it was nice – and that motivated me.”

While others would try their best to juggle an MMA career and a full-time job, Gibson said he is not one to partially commit to something. Whatever path he chooses to dedicate himself to is the one that will take all his effort, and fortunately the timing allowed him to follow the path he enjoys most.

“I come from a very traditional background where you provide for your family,” Gibson said. “If I can provide for my family fighting, then great. But if I can’t, then I’m not going to not provide for my family because I’m chasing a pipe dream. For me, it just came down to that. I told my wife previously that if I didn’t make it by August, I would have to make a decision.

“I don’t want to do anything 50 percent. I don’t want to be half as good a teacher as I can be and half as good of a fighter and always have these, ‘What ifs.’ So for when I’m a teacher, I want to be the best I can be. When I’m a fighter, I want to be the best I can be.”

Gibson’s UFC debut may not be coming under the exact circumstance he would have liked, but nevertheless he has still arrived on the sport’s biggest stage.

With just 10 days to prepare, Gibson (11-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will face highly regarded prospect Aljamain Sterling (8-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) on the FOX Sports 1 portion of the UFC 170 preliminary card this Saturday night inside Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay Events Center.

Gibson is not one to complain about the conditions surrounding a fight, especially one in the UFC. At this point, he’s just happy with how the situation has panned out and says he’ll be ready to step up again at any time if needed.

“I was considering just calling it a career if I hadn’t made it,” Gibson said. “I’ll jump back in there whenever they need me to.”

For the latest on UFC 170, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

MMAjunkie Radio broadcasts Monday-Friday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) live from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino’s Race & Sports Book. The show is hosted by “Gorgeous” George Garcia, MMAjunkie lead staff reporter John Morgan and producer Brian “Goze” Garcia. For more information or to download past episodes, go to www.mmajunkie.com/radio.