Hemophilia gave Jacob Marrocco a byline, a dream job, and a life full of possibility. As a kid with a bleeding disorder, playing sports was too risky—so he picked up a pen and wrote about what he loved.

Now at the tender age of 21, Jake is the assistant sports editor at The Warwick Beacon, his hometown paper, and the news editor (and former managing editor) of The Good 5 Cent Cigar—URI’s student newspaper. And he’s carrying a full load of classes, ready to graduate in May with a double major in journalism and history.

His last year at URI has been a whirlwind—classes, reporting, writing, editing, and taking photos. He works about 10 hours a week at the Cigar and 25 hours a week at the Beacon. That’s in between his classes: “History of Modern Day Latin America’’ and “Ethics of Journalism,’’ among others. “It’s fun,’’ he says.

Some day, he’d like to work as a sports writer at The Boston Globe or, better yet, The New York Times. For now though, he is thrilled to be writing for his hometown paper, which will become a full-time job after graduation.

“I wouldn’t be doing sports writing if I didn’t have a bleeding disorder,’’ he says. “I decided early that if I can’t hit that home run I might as well write about it. I thought it was the best way to cope. It worked out. As odd as it sounds, hemophilia made me who I am today.’’