Before he was a star at Alabama and a first-round draft pick in the NFL, Oakland Raiders rookie running back Josh Jacobs was homeless for stretches as a child. He bounced around with his father and siblings between hotels and, for one brief stint, slept in a car.
“I understood what was going on, but I didn’t think it was as bad as it really was,” Jacobs told The Washington Post last year. “I guess I kind of normalized everything.”
Now, Jacobs’ rise and the issue of youth homelessness and are at the center of a Super Bowl ad unveiled by Kia on Wednesday, in which the running back counsels his younger self. The 60-second spot is part of the company’s “Yards Against Homelessness” campaign, in which Kia has pledged to donate $1,000 for every yard gained in Super Bowl LIV to three charity partners.
“We at Kia both admire and identify with Josh’s tenacity and determination,” Kia Motors America’s director of marketing operations Russell Wager said in a news release.
Watch Kia’s full spot, which is titled “Tough Never Quits,” below.