Facebook/Jace Prescott Jace Prescott pictured on his Facebook page.
Jace Prescott, Dak Prescott’s older brother and former Northwestern State in Louisiana offensive lineman, has died at the age of 31. In September 2020, Dak Prescott revealed that his brother had taken his own life. Dak Prescott discussed his brother’s death in an interview with Graham Bensinger, according to TMZ. The Dallas Cowboys quarterback said that his brother had been struggling since their mother died following a battle with colon cancer in 2013.
Dak Prescott grew up in Louisiana with his two older brothers, Tad and Jace, as well as sister, Natalie. Jace Prescott was five years older than Dak Prescott. Their mother, Peggy, died after a battle with colon cancer in November 2013.
In a statement via the Associated Press, a Dallas Cowboys spokesperson confirmed Jace Prescott’s death saying, “The loss of Tad and Dak’s brother is devastating. At this incredibly difficult time, the Prescott family asks only for prayers and respect for their privacy.” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones told the media after wrapping up the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, “Whatever we can do to help him get through this horrible time. When you are young – Dak is young, and his brother was young – death is really, really hard to understand, or just think about, or live with.”
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Dak Prescott Said That Growing Up, He & His Brothers Made Everything a Competition
At the beginning of the 2019 NFL season, Dak Prescott appeared in a Campbell’s soup commercial with his two brothers. Campbell’s spokesperson Gary Mazur said upon the release of the ad that the theme was centered around famous sports stars who owe a debt of gratitude to “a parent, sibling, grandparent, spouse, stepparent or friend – and this campaign recognizes those individuals who support us every day.”
In a December 2019 USA Today feature, Dak Prescott said that growing up, he and his brothers would make everything a competition. The Cowboys quarterback said those competitions were not limited to seeing who could carry the most grocery bags from the store. Jace Prescott told the newspaper, “What didn’t we make a competition? It’s just how we were. If me or Tad could do ANYTHING that could be measured in any way, Dak wanted to see if he could do more.”
2. Jace Prescott, Who Went by the Nickname ‘Moose,’ Majored in Psychology in College
Instagram/Dak PrescottJace Prescot pictured in 2015.
Like his brother, Jace Prescott also attended Haughton High School in Haughton, Louisiana, 200 miles east of Dallas. According to Jace Prescott’s Northwestern State official profile, he enrolled at the school in 2007. In his sophomore year, Prescott played in 11 of the school’s games, playing in 739 snaps. During his junior year, Prescott suffered a season-ending injury after one game.
Prescott’s profile says that Jace majored in psychology with a minor in general studies. Prescott wanted to become a high school teacher and coach upon graduation. The profile notes that his grandfather had been a high school principal. Prescott’s nickname was Moose.
Tad Prescott, the oldest sibling in the family, never played college football. He told The Shreveport Times in 2014, “I wasn’t ready for that life. The mind-set I had when I was 17 and 18 wasn’t the mind-set you needed to be successful. I ruined my own chances. If (Dak) can take anything from the mistakes I made and continue to be the great person he’s becoming, that’s how I live through him.”
3. Jace Prescott’s Feet Were So Big, the New Orleans Saints Had to Design Special Cleats for Him
The Dallas Morning News reported in 2018 that Jace Prescott’s feet were so big during his high school and college football careers, the New Orleans Saints had to make special cleats for his size-24 feet. That feature remarked on Prescott’s size, describing him as being “6-5 and 400 pounds (but could still dunk).” Prescott’s official Northwestern profile lists him as being 6-feet-6-inches and weighing 343 pounds.
That piece noted that it was a regular joke inside the Haughton High School football locker room for players to hide Dak Prescott’s shoes. The shoes were usually hidden behind Jace Prescott’s size-24 shoes.
4. Jace Said He Became a Cowboys Fan the Second His Brother Joined the Team
Jace and Tad Prescott told ESPN in 2016 that they both instantly became Dallas Cowboys fans when their brother was drafted by the team. The network reported that Tad Prescott was a Houston Texans fan and Jace Prescott was a New Orleans Saints fan. Tad Prescott described the conversation he had with Jace on draft night, saying, “Before the draft, Jace and I looked at each other and said, ‘What if he gets taken by the Cowboys?’ We were like, ‘Man, I’m going to be the biggest Cowboys fan in the world.’ ‘Yeah, me too.’”
In that feature, ESPN reported that the three Prescott brothers all had tattoos of footballs on their bodies. Dak Prescott’s is on his back, Tad Prescott’s is on his right shoulder and Jace Prescott’s was on his right forearm.
5. Jace Prescott’s Mother Said That He Always Finished Whatever He Started
Awful news: Tragedy has again struck Cowboys QB Dak Prescott. Dak’s brother, Jace, died this morning at 31 years old.
“You can see each of us in him,” Jace told me last August of Dak. “But I think he’s his own man for sure.”
According to the book, Boys are Back: Dak, Zeke, and a New Cowboys Era in Big D, at Peggy Prescott’s funeral, the minister spoke of how she assigned words to her sons to reflect their personalities.
Tad’s word was “Fight,” because he “would always fight for his family.” Dak’s word was, “Faith,” because “his belief in achieving his dreams had always been unbreakable.” The word chosen for Jace Prescott was “Finish because that’s what he does once he commits to something.”
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