Even though he missed out on hearing his name called at the 2025 NFL Draft, Jared Ivey is still headed to the big leagues after signing a UDFA contract with the Seattle Seahawks. An impressive senior season at Oxford saw him record a career-high seven sacks alongside 42 tackles, which has now proven to be enough to extend his football dreams.
Advertisement
While the pass rusher is likely to be remembered as an Ole Miss Rebel more so than anything else, his playing career first began at North Gwinnett High School in Suwanee, Georgia — his hometown. Unfortunately, the early days of Ivey’s youth were anything but stellar.
His mother, Tracey, first began her professional career in 1996, working as the manager of merchandise and operations for the clothing brand Old Navy. She graduated from Clark Atlanta University with a Bachelor of Science degree with a concentration in merchandising and design.
Tracey’s career has seen her venture into different avenues, however, she currently works for Delta Dental Insurance Company as a contact setup analyst. She did everything in her power to support Jared’s football career despite being a single mother.
Jared’s father, Gary, tragically passed away from a heart attack when the Ole Miss product was only seven years old. Gary was an offensive coach for the local team of Tracey’s oldest son.
According to Tracey, his passing was the spark that ignited Jared’s gridiron aspirations. In a previous interview with The Rebel Walk, she noted that
“After my husband passed away, that’s when Jared actually decided he wanted to start playing football.”
During an interview for Ole Miss’ documentary series, The Season, various members of the family credited Tracey’s efforts in doing everything that she could to ensure that Jared’s needs were met. For all of the dedication that Tracey gave to raising Jared, he made sure to return the favor.
“Her fortitude, just everything that she had to do just to wake up every day and be there for the boys, it’s been absolutely amazing. He would be looking at her and saying “I’m so proud of you and I knew you could do it.”
While the family may not have received the phone call that they were hoping for throughout the draft process, both Jared and Tracey can now take a moment to rest, knowing that their efforts have finally been rewarded. Ivey’s father is still missed to this day, but his name and memory will now live on thanks to his son.
The Seahawks will be getting a former four-star recruit in Ivey, one who has shown a propensity for disrupting the opponent’s backfield. Moving forward, he’ll likely see countless reps against the team’s first-round draft pick, Grey Zabel, throughout training camp.
Seeing as family and community are of the utmost priority to Ivey, fans should expect to see him involved in numerous off-field activities and programs throughout the Seattle area as he is likely already preparing to give back to the community that helped to extend his football career.
