ISIAH PACHECO’s path to the Super Bowl has been driven by family tragedy after his brother and sister were both murdered when he was a teen.
The rookie will lead the Kansas City Chiefs’ running game in the trenches against the Philadelphia Eagles in Arizona.
Pacheco, 23, has been through tougher battles than the one facing him in the NFL’s showpiece season finale.
He was just 16 years old when his older brother Travoise was stabbed to death at the age of 29 back in 2016.
And the following year his sister Celeste, a mother of three, was found dead in her home from a gunshot wound to the head aged 23.
Her killer was a man with whom she shared a child, and he was sentenced to 65 years in jail.
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The man accused of killing his brother claimed self-defence, pleaded guilty to third-degree hindering/hiding evidence and sentenced to three years’ probation.
Pacheco, the youngest of five children, has tattoos of both his brother and sister on his arms.
The running back said: "My sister was like a best friend. My brother, if he was to see me here, he’d be shocked.
“He encouraged me to play football as a kid and he never got the opportunity to see me play here.
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“Having an opportunity to play ball, it helps me a lot not worrying about the tragedies that happened. It makes me want to go harder.’
“Since I was a youngster, my brother was always out there, watching out for me.
“I had an electric four-wheeler, and my brother first taught me how to ride.
“That was always something I liked to do as a hobby, riding four-wheelers and dirt bikes. He was my mom’s first baby."
Pacheco added: “When my brother first passed and then my sister passed a year later, it really hurt my mum deep inside.
“I’m the youngest one out of all my brothers and sisters and I kind of bring that smile to my mum’s face when I’m out here on this field just grinding away.
“I still think about my sister to this day - I miss her a lot.
“My nephew, we’re trying to introduce him to football, and he was out here in the stands and that brought a light to me.
“But it’s sad thinking that my sister could be holding him right now."
Pacheco was a seventh-round draft pick last summer and expected to play a supporting role in the running game.
But the 23-year-old has completely blown away his backfield competitors to become the team’s star rusher.
He racked up 1146 yards in his rookie season and scored five touchdowns.
His Rutgers University head coach Greg Schiano said: “I don’t think anybody could have predicted that he’d be this successful this quickly.
“I told everybody who came to Rutgers to see him ‘he’s the hardest practice player I’ve ever coached.
“I’m just so happy for him and his family. He’s worked for every bit of it. He’s overcome a lot. He had a rough upbringing. Lot of love, but a lot of trauma there, too.
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“He saw some tragic things but he’s overcome.
“He’s got people that love him and care about him, but there’s a lot of history there, too. I’m really excited for him. He deserves this.”
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