Growing up, Ja’Lynn Polk dreamed of racing dirt bikes and later settled to play football. Polk and his family had to witness hard times and as he matured, he realized that getting drafted in the NFL would solve all his problems. So, he started taking steps to reach that goal and his Red Raiders career was just a start.

But things might not have worked out in Texas as he moved to Washington and eventually won the CFP Championship, all the while having a dream to secure a better future for his mother, Jennifer Fredieu. This prompted us to take a look at his personal life and, more importantly, know more about his parents.

Who are Ja’Lynn Polk’s parents?

On April 11, 2002, Polk’s parents, Leonard Polk, and Jennifer Fredieu welcomed him into the world. While there’s not much known about his father, his mother had a huge influence in shaping his life. Since childhood, the wideout saw his mother grinding day in and day out and wanted to make a future where his mother wouldn’t have to stress out.

“For me growing up, with the things we had to go through, to see how strong of a woman she is and how hard of a worker she is, it motivates me a lot,” Polk said of his mom, Jennifer Fredieu. He also has a sister and his mother looked out for both of them and it took 3 jobs to make ends meet. Sadly, she hardly had time to chitchat with her kids.

“I’ve seen her work so hard, have three jobs, coming home and then going back to work, just doing everything she can in order for me and my little sister to have what we have today and what we needed,” said the Patriots WR and emphasized how he wants to retire his mother someday. That day might be neer as Polk received a 4-year $9.69 million deal when he joined the Pats.

There’s a childhood photo on his pinned Instagram Stories which shows his mother holding him and his sister. However, Jennifer Fredieu’s face is cropped out. The picture shows Ja’Lynn closely holding on to his toddler sister. Also, there’s another picture on the same IG story that shows the WR, his sister and his mother in one frame. The photo is captioned, “My heart.” 

When he transferred to U of W, things didn’t really go his way as he suffered a major setback in his first year at Washington. Fortunately, his mother was there for him.

Ja’Lynn Polk’s mother was with him in his dark times

The year when Polk arrived to play with U of W was difficult on him. He played just 3 games and here’s the reason behind it: He got injured in the season opener against Montana and chose to ignore it until it became a problem. He later found out that he had a broken collarbone and headed to surgery with his mother at the UW Medical Center.

Polk is as tough as they come and even though he suffered a major injury, he continued to play in the game because he “was trying to get another ball.” The pursuit of perfection and being the best at his position has finally given him a shot at the NFL. Polk’s 7-on-7 Coach at Fast Houston knows what the receiver was like since his childhood.

In an interview with Seattle times, he said, “Since he was in high school he said, ‘I’m going to go to the NFL. I’m going to take care of my momma.’ He wants to buy his mom a house.” That’s the level of commitment that Polk had since childhood that got him a much-deserved shot at the NFL.

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