RIVERVIEW, Fla. — “Petit” is not a word to associate with anyone who stands 6”6’ and weighs 315 pounds.
“He was just in pre-school. He was a chunky baby,” Loris Petit-Frere said. “He didn’t come out little when he was born. He was a nine-pound baby.”
Nicholas Petit-Frère was raised by a single mom. Loris was a senior in high school when he was born, and his father passed away when he was seven.
“It’s the biggest impact I can describe. I’ll describe it. But whatever I say is not going to be enough for me to describe the impact on my life,” Nicholas said.
“She’s been with me for 22 years, just me and her. She’s my rock,” Nicholas said. “Single-child, single-mother, just me and her for 22 years. No one else has been in this household. She’s taught me everything. She’s taught me how to be respectful to people, how to be kind, courteous, how to have empathy, but also how to compete.”
After Nicholas was born, he spent the first five years with his grandparents while Loris got her finance degree from the University of South Florida. She was the first person in her family to go to college.
“There was a period of time where I had to work two jobs to make ends meet,” Loris said. “He’s a growing boy, he’s involved in sports, all that costs.”
“But here is what I’ll say, there was never a time in my life where I didn’t have what I needed,” Nicholas added.
The family is of Haitian descent, a family that loves soccer and basketball.
“When I said I was going to try out for football (at ten years old), they thought I meant for soccer,” Nicholas said. "Actually, American football. My grandparents were a little hesitant, my mom was a little bit, too.”
But he grew into one of the best offensive tackles in the country while at Berkeley Prep while also learning valuable life lessons under head coach Dom Ciao.
“Each year from my freshman year to my junior year, the entire senior class was always the best people at the school. That’s what coach Ciao always talks about, you win with a great player. We win with great people.”
Nicholas took that same mentality to Ohio State, and now, waiting for his name to be called in the 2022 NFL Draft.
“The dream wasn’t necessarily playing in the NFL,” he said. “The dream was to be successful. The dream was to somehow find a way to help my mom out. The one thing I care about is making sure I support my mom where she doesn’t have to work again.”
“I never would’ve thought the young boy that I had would have this opportunity,” Loris said. “The sport of football has been a great blessing to him, for me, because I am seeing him live his dream.”
Petit-Frere was selected in the third round by the Tennessee Titans.
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