Isiah Pacheco didn’t spike the ball or break into a pre-rehearsed celebration dance after eluding two Michigan defenders and barreling into the end zone for an 80-yard touchdown. Instead, Pacheco ran to the end zone’s corner and looked through the Rutgers home crowd for his mother’s face.
Isiah Pacheco was born into a middle-class family. To provide for him and his brothers, Pacheco’s parents had to work incredibly hard. As Isiah grew up, his mother handled domestic duties while his father operated a small business to provide for the family’s needs. The 23-year-old Chiefs rookie running back is motivated by a family tragedy. He traveled from rural Vineland, New Jersey, and Rutgers to Kansas City for the AFC championship game against the Bengals at Arrowhead Stadium.
Isiah Pacheco: Potential @nflfantasy sleeper in 2022?@isiah_pachecoRB | @Chiefs pic.twitter.com/wbUzL2sPLv
— NFL (@NFL) August 13, 2022
The tragic story behind Isiah Pacheco’s siblings’ deaths
When Pacheco was a high school student in South Jersey, he lost his brother and sister to murder over the course of less than two years, leaving him with lifelong scars. These tragic occurrences motivated Pacheco to pursue greatness with unrelenting zeal. The youngest of Felicia Cannon’s five children, Pacheco experienced tragedy for the first time on Jan. 10, 2016, when his brother Travoise was fatally stabbed in his Bridgeton apartment building. He was 29.
The alleged attacker professed self-defence, admitted to third-degree hindering/hiding evidence and was given a three-year probationary period.
“Ever since I was a child, [my brother] has been keeping an eye out for me,” Pacheco said. I learned how to ride an electric four-wheeler from my brother. Riding four-wheelers and dirt motorcycles were something I’ve always enjoyed doing as a hobby. It was my mother’s first child.”
This photo is a 10 out of 10 😁 pic.twitter.com/LFcEv9R9Kz
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) January 29, 2023
Pacheco said that when his brother died, he and his sister, Celeste, became closer. He can still picture her dancing to rap music while she prepares brownies. Despite his fame as a football recruit, she kept him modest. Celeste was discovered dead at her Millville home on Sept. 20, 2017, with a gunshot wound to the head. A week later, authorities detained Donald Scurry Jr., who was given a 65-year prison term in June after being found guilty of murder.
“I still think about my sister today,” Pacheco said. “I really miss her. It’s incredibly difficult.”
