All about Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua’s parents, his mom Penina and his late dad Lionel Nacua

NEED TO KNOW

• Penina and Lionel Nacua had six children throughout their marriage

• Puka’s father died from complications of diabetes when Puka was 11 years old.

• The Los Angeles Rams wide receiver has a close relationship with his mother and calls her after every game.

Puka Nacua has his parents, Penina and Lionel, to thank for his success on the soccer field.

After a historic rookie season in 2023 that saw him break NFL records for receiving yards and receptions by a first-year player, the Los Angeles Rams wide receiver quickly established himself as one of the league’s top talents.

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He is known for his physical style of play, which comes from his father coaching Puka and his four brothers (Puka’s older brothers, Kai and Samson, played in the NFL) while growing up.

“His passion for his kids playing soccer was above and beyond,” Penina said. Deseret News in January 2024. “He loved soccer and I remember being in love with his kids because they had this Samoan build, you know. Just looking at them, I was like, ‘My kids are going to be athletes.'”

Born on May 29, 2001, Puka is the second youngest of six siblings, including his four brothers Justin, Samson, Isaiah and Tei, and his sister Chanel. Lionel died from complications of diabetes when Puka was 11, but his mother stepped up to support her children, from which Puka draws strength.

“My mother is everything to me and my family. Being able to be the rock of our family and supporting us through that difficult time,” Puka said. USA today in July 2024. “The strength of being a single mother, being able to take all the kids and then move on, is something I often draw on.”

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Here’s everything you need to know about Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua’s parents, Penina and Lionel.

Lionel and Penina had six children together

Puka comes from a large, loving and athletic family with four brothers and one sister. Lionel wrestled when he was younger and was a big soccer fan, who trained his and Penina’s five children to be soccer players.

After Lionel died when Puka was 11, Penina stepped up to continue making sure kids could pursue their dreams on the playing field.

“But the strength to keep going and be there for all the important moments for me, and especially for my brothers, being the youngest, to see her find a way to go to practice here, go to practice there, be at this game, and be a team mom, and all those things,” Puka said. Rams revealed in November 2023. “The things she sacrificed and the strength that requires is something I hold in my heart.”

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Lionel influenced Puka’s passion for soccer by showing him movies and coaching him

Lionel’s training greatly influenced Puka to become the man and soccer player he is today. Puka is known for having a unique physical style of play for a wide receiver, which comes from Lionel making him watch film of NFL defensive legends like Troy Polamalu and Lawrence Taylor.

“There were times when I would pull up to the truck and I remember Puka sitting in the passenger seat and he had his iPad, and his dad would make him watch a movie,” Penina said. The New York Post in October 2023. “Puka had to sit there and watch a movie while my husband took him to a game. And they were my husband’s favorite players.”

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Lionel also influenced Puka’s interest in soccer by coaching him and his brothers.

“My husband loved defense,” Penina said. “He would make everyone dress up and put on the shoulder pads, and he would make them face each other, one by one.”

Puka video calls Penina daily and calls her from the locker room after each game

The Nacua family is very close-knit and Puka video calls his mother, along with various combinations of his siblings, at least once a day, according to USA today. Puka is so close to Penina that he calls her from the locker room after every game, even when he scored his first professional touchdown.

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“I was very emotional,” Puka told The Ringer in October 2023. “I was just trying to say how proud she was of me. How proud I could imagine my dad would be of us, just getting to this point.”

Puka credits his mother for his strength

Lionel’s death when Puka was so young was hard on the family and left Penina to raise Puka and her five siblings as a single mother. Puka said Rams revealed who draws his strength from his mother and the struggles she overcame to raise him and his siblings.

“The number one word that comes to mind when I think of my mom is strength,” Puka said. Rams revealed. “My father passed away when I was a little girl, and she raised five boys and one girl, and the struggles she always had to make sure we were recognized, but also the things she had also sacrificed for us… People see strength through me, but I also have a source of strength of my own.”

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Penina loves supporting Puka, whether at games or watching him at home

Penina loves supporting her son, whether she is caring for him in person or at home. At the start of the season, he watched Puka score his first NFL touchdown (a game-winning catch up the middle in overtime) at home and found himself jumping for joy.

“We literally jumped off the couch, screaming and just crying because we saw Puka on TV and we saw him in his element and we scored that last touchdown to win the game,” Penina said. The New York Post. “That was just the sweetest moment to see. And we all felt like it was coming. Like we were already calling for it. I swear, the angels were there helping, making sure I got to that end zone and did it.”

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At the end of the season, he was able to watch Puka break the all-time rookie yards and receptions records against the San Francisco 49ers in person. The Rams posted a video on YouTube of Puka sharing an emotional hug with Penina on the field after the game.

Puka helped Penina when her mother fell ill and returned to continue her football career.

When Puka’s grandmother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and Penina needed to care for her, Puka learned from Penina’s sacrifices that it would be valuable for him to be there to help his mother. While Puka’s brother Samson played football for the University of Utah and Puka played for the University of Washington, they decided to come home and play at BYU in 2021 and be close to Penina.

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“My mom called me and my grandmother was diagnosed,” Puka said. Rams revealed. “It was just an opportunity, especially (knowing that)… what it’s like to lose a parent and how we could go there and be a support for my mom and support our family because we had been through something very similar.”

Puka used this experience to help others when he visited a local high school football team whose coach had cancer in 2023.

“My grandmother passed away from ovarian cancer. I just know that as much as he’s going through it, the people around him and his family, just the support system that he has, it takes a group of people to fight that as well,” Puka told PEOPLE. “It’s a battle that requires everyone and affects the people around you.”

Read the original article on People