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Tony Pollard was born on April 30, 1997, and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, along with his two siblings, Tenesia and Terrion. The NFL star’s parents, Torria and Tarrance Pollard, were supportive parents when their kids were growing up and now host watch parties at their popular Memphis BBQ restaurant for every Dallas Cowboys game.
Here’s what you need to know about Tony Pollard’s family:
1. Tony Pollard Was Raised in Memphis, Tennessee, & His Parents Worked Hard to Support His Passion for Football
Pollard grew up in Memphis, Tennessee, and he shared that the city he grew up in taught him to have perseverance and strength. Growing up in Memphis “taught me tough life lessons and just to keep going,” he shared with Commercial Appeal. “That’s all you can do in life is keep going. Things may not always go your way, but you can just keep going, look up and see where you’re at once you keep going to where it gets you.”
While his parents are supportive of the NFL star, his mother did confess that she was skeptical about his childhood dream of playing in the league. “Sometimes I sit at home and say, ‘I can’t believe this,’ Torria Pollard told ABC24. “My son is on TV playing for the Cowboys? Sometimes we have to pinch ourselves and say, ‘Is this real?'”
Pollard began playing football when he was very young and when he first stepped on a field at four years old, Torria Pollard said people thought he was a mascot due to his small size. “When he was six years old, he said ‘Mom, I’m going to the NFL,'” she continued. “I said ‘No you’re not, sit down.’ He proved me wrong.” She told the outlet that she learned her lesson and wouldn’t be telling any child to sit down. “When they tell you something that they want to do, listen,” she shared.
Both Pollard and his older brother Terrion played football and their parents made sacrifices to ensure they’d be able to attend training camps and tournaments. “At certain times, we were struggling ourselves as parents, just trying to do for the kids and the family,” the Cowboys star’s mother shared.
Pollard’s father praised one of his son’s coaches, Tim Thompson, saying, “Times got hard, he let me skip a payment here, skip a payment there and train them anyway.” Torria Pollard agreed, “Sometimes they would just pick him up, take him to camp and wouldn’t ask for a dime. So that played a big part too.”
While Pollard’s mother had been skeptical about her son making it to the NFL, his father never doubted it. “I knew all along Tony was going to the NFL,” he told the Tri-State Defender. “There was never a doubt in my mind. Tony is motivated, always has been. I would offer him a treat for every touchdown, anything he wanted. Of course, that wasn’t McDonald’s. He always wanted a steak from Houston’s. After a while, I had to figure out something else. He was running so many touchdowns.”
2. Tony Pollard’s Parents, Tarrance & Torria Pollard, Run a Famous BBQ Restaurant in Memphis Called Pollard’s Bar-B-Q
Pollard’s parents run Pollard’s Bar-B-Q, a famous Memphis restaurant on Elvis Presley Boulevard that’s been open since 1995. “My parents own a restaurant. I’m a professional cook and a professional football player,” he joked with the Tri-State Defender. Pollard started helping out in the restaurant when he was 14 years old, flipping burgers, he told the Athletic.
His parents decided to open the restaurant as it was Tarrance Pollard’s dream to start a family business, Torria Pollard shared. “My husband always wanted to open a family business where everyone worked together, you know, all the children, and so this is it,” she told the publication. “My granddaddy barbequed at home,” Tarrance Pollard shared with ABC24. “He’s the one that taught everybody how to barbeque.”
The restaurant had a “humble beginning” in 1995 as a mobile catering business, its website states. “As the demand for our unique southern style of Memphis BBQ grew, Pollard’s reopened on October 7th, 1996 as a small carry-out catering business,” it added. The restaurant moved to its current location in 2011 when it also became a dine-in restaurant due to “overwhelming demands.”
Pollard’s Bar-B-Q is listed in several Memphis-area blogs in lists of the top restaurants in the city. When the Cowboys are playing, the family hosts viewing parties and Torria Pollard joked that “the only way you can come in” is wearing Cowboys gear, she told ABC24.
“We invite everyone to come out during football season and enjoy the games, especially if Dallas is playing,” she told the Tri-State Defender. “And if you can’t stay and cheer for your favorite team, get your game day spread from us. We have so much more than barbeque — wings, pork, beef – and the best homemade sides you’ve ever tasted.”
3. Tony Pollard Shared That He Learned Discipline & His Work Ethic From His Father
Pollard has spoken about his parents’ influence on him and said he learned his work ethic and discipline from his father when he was growing up.
“I got my discipline from my dad,” he said in a piece for Q30 about the Q-Collar. “I was blessed to have two parents in the household. Him having a barbecue restaurant and seeing him work. Once you work for yourself, you have to work harder than everybody because if you don’t do it, they’re not going to do it. Just seeing him get up early for work every day. I just picked it up from him and carried it on.”
Tarrance Pollard still works hard in the restaurant, whether the place is open or closed, working on the inventory, accounting, and also cooking. Torria Pollard also helps out as often as she can but also works for FedEx scheduling pilots, the Athletic reported.
His parents have also given their son advice with his career over the years, including in 2017 when they suggested that he wait for graduation before entering the NFL draft. “Both his dad and I discouraged the idea [of entering the draft in 2017],” his mother told the Tri-State Defender.
She said her husband told their son he wasn’t ready yet and should stay in school. “I told Tony, ‘Please just do one thing for me. Stay in school and graduate. Get your degree. Please just do that for your mother,'” she shared. “And he did just that. Tony is really a good boy. He’s always been a sweet child.”
4. Tony Pollard Has 2 Siblings, a Brother Named Terrion & a Sister Named Tenesia
Pollard has two siblings, an older brother named Terrion and a sister named Tenesia. His older brother played football growing up but now works at Pollard’s with his father, continuing the barbecuing family tradition. “I kind of love it,” Terrion Pollard told ABC24 of working at the BBQ joint. “It’s kind of weird to say, but I love it. I don’t need to get hit every Sunday. I’d rather watch him do it.”
His LinkedIn shows that he’s been working at Pollard’s since January 2009, and graduated from Lane College in 2017 with a bachelor of science in business administration, management and operations.
Not much is known about Pollard’s sister, however, who has stayed out of the limelight. Her LinkedIn states that she also works at the family restaurant as a manager and graduated from Southwest Tennessee Community College in 2015 with a business management degree.
5. Tony Pollard & His Girlfriend Have a Daughter Together & the Couple Is Expecting a Second Child in 2023
Pollard is the proud father of a daughter, Taraji Ray Pollard, who was born to the Cowboys star and his girlfriend Kerra Mackey in September 2021. The couple is also expecting a second child, due in August 2023, the Athletic reported.
The NFL star opened up about fatherhood in an interview with Q30, sharing that, “I’ve always had a mindset towards longevity but being a dad definitely boosted it because now I have to provide for somebody else and be there for them. Being able to be out there with your kids, go to their games, being out there to play catch with them, the little things in life.”
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Tony Pollard’s Family: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know