Dak inherited his mom's kindness as they grew up to return it. When he was ten, Peggy gave him $100 as a Christmas present, but instead of buying whatever he wanted, he spoiled her with a hairdryer and a makeup kit.
The pair had an unbreakable bond. "We were best friends and still are. She was everything: my coach, my mom, my teacher, and anything you could think of; it was deeper than just mom and son," Dak once expressed. In 2012, however, things took a heartbreaking turn.
During the summer of 2012, a year before Dak enrolled at Mississippi State University, Peggy told him she was diagnosed with colon cancer. She underwent chemotherapy, and as she began losing hair, all her sons shaved their heads to show their support.
She supported her sons right back. She even attended Dak's games despite needing a wheelchair for mobility. Unfortunately, Peggy lost her battle with the disease in 2013. Her son, Jace, followed in 2020, dying by suicide.
Dak honored Peggy and Jace's memory on what would've been Peggy's 60th birthday, sharing photos and clips from their times together. The 30-year-old also started a foundation, Faith Fight Finish 4 (an ode to the words Peggy lived by), to help raise funds for cancer research.
Before Dak joined the team, Nathaniel had long been a Dallas Cowboys fan. Hence, watching his son as the team's quarterback was a full-circle moment. "I am blushing now, and you just can't tell. I walk around in a glow; I've been a Cowboys fan my entire life," he gushed in 2017.
That year, he had moved from Austin, where he worked as a city bus driver, to Frisco, Texas, a few miles away from Dak. Although fans knew more of Peggy than they did of him, Nathaniel didn't feel the need to convince the world he was a present father.
"That's not my job. My child knew, and that was the main concern for me. First chance you have, ask him. There's never been anything estranged about our relationship at all. I am Pops," he proudly declared.
As for his relationship with Peggy, Nathaniel shared that they still had a date night every Wednesday despite being divorced.
The former lovebirds were scrutinized when their relationship began in the late 1970s. They were high school sweethearts who started dating in their senior year. Because they were an interracial couple, many looked down upon them.
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