Heading into Super Bowl 2025, Saquon Barkley has the unconditional support of his parents, Alibay Barkley and Tonya Johnson.
The Philadelphia Eagles running back was born and raised in New York City alongside his two brothers and two sisters. In 2001, his family relocated from New York to Pennsylvania, where they’ve lived ever since.
Alibay and Tonya have cheered on their son through different phases of his athletic career, including during his college career at Penn State and when he was drafted by the New York Giants — despite his father being a diehard New York Jets fan.
Saquon played for the Giants from 2018 to 2023 before signing a three-year contract with the Eagles leading into the 2024 NFL season. Now, he’s making his first Super Bowl appearance, with the Eagles facing the Kansas City Chiefs on Feb. 9 in New Orleans.
His mom, Tonya, spoke to NJ.com in January 2025, expressing how “excited” she was for the big game. “It has been a long time coming. It has been a dream of his since he has been a kid,” she said.
“I think the first time I saw him this happy was when he first got introduced to football when he was a young kid,” Alibay added. “You try to get a goal and you never get it and then you get it, it’s so good. Now, it’s gonna be Kansas City.”
From raising a family of five to giving back to the local community, here’s everything to know about Saquon Barkley’s parents, Alibay Barkley and Tonya Johnson.
They are native New Yorkers who moved to Pennsylvania
Alibay and Tonya are born and bred New Yorkers. Similarly, Saquon and his siblings were raised in the Bronx until the Barkley family decided to relocate to Pennsylvania.
According to The Morning Call, the family moved to Bethlehem in June 2001 before spending time in Allentown and eventually settled in Coplay four years after their initial move.
In a November 2018 essay written for The Players’ Tribune, Saquon reflected on his childhood, writing in part, “We lived in the South Bronx when I was little. New York was all my parents had ever known. It was where they grew up. Where their friends were. Where their life was.”
Saquon shared that they have extended family in Pennsylvania, and despite his love for New York, he said that the Bronx “was a tough place for a kid to grow up.” He added that “parents saw a better opportunity for their kids” elsewhere.
Alibay once trained as a boxer
Athleticism runs in the family.
Saquon wrote in his essay for The Players’ Tribune that his dad “was a pretty good boxer back in the day” and that his great uncle, Iran Barkley, was a three-time world champion. While he said boxing wasn’t “forced” on him, his father “definitely wanted” him to follow in his footsteps.
Alibay opened up about his experience with the sport to PennLive.com in December 2017, explaining, “I dedicated my life to becoming a boxer. But in the semifinals of the 1992 [New York State] Golden Gloves, I threw a hook off a jab and my shoulder popped. And I never had the money to get it fixed.”
While Alibay tried to train again in his 30s, he couldn’t move forward due to shoulder pain. He told The Morning Call in December 2016, “I know what I did; I gave up when I was 21.”
“That’s why I tell my kids, don’t quit,” Alibay added. “If you quit this, it will be easy to quit jobs, quit relationships, quit on your kids. That’s probably why Saquon is so adamant when he gets hurt about still being in there.”
They have five children
Alibay and Tonya are parents to five children: Rashard, Shaquona, Saquon, and twins Ali and Aliyah.
Though Rashard appears to live a more private life, Shaquona works in event and branding strategies, per her Instagram.
As for Saquon’s younger siblings, his brother Ali is also an athlete. After playing running back at Whitehall High School, he played football for two seasons from 2021-2022 at Temple University.
Meanwhile, Aliyah is currently a student at West Virginia University.
They didn’t think football would be Saquon’s passion
Despite guiding his son toward boxing, Alibay fully supported Saquon on his football journey.
When he was 7, Saquon saw a group of kids practicing football and asked his dad to sign him up, PennLive.com reported in December 2017. Although they missed the deadline for that season, he joined the team the next year.
Speaking to the outlet, Saquon’s mom, Tonya, admitted that she was “never a football fan, ever” before her son played the sport. “I’m still learning football. But, for the most part, I’m the fan who’s screaming at the TV,” she said.
Tonya continued, “When [Saquon] does the jumps, I’m like, Oh my God. Because it’s easy to jump; it’s hard to land … Or when they’re grabbing his helmet or doing little dirty moves, I’m going through changes. I’m the angry one.”
Similarly, Alibay watches out for their son on the field. “For me, it’s nervousness. I worry that he’ll get hurt,” he added.
They gave Saquon and his siblings space to grow
Alibay and Tonya had one specific parenting philosophy while raising their children — give them room to experience life for themselves and learn from it.
“A lot of people try to live their lives through their children. You can’t do that,” Tonya told PennLive.com. “We let our children live their lives. So they can prosper, so they can become adults and be able to raise their children as well, from their experiences.”
In his essay for The Players’ Tribune, Saquon opened up about his father wanting him to be a boxer but never forcing it.
“He made me try [boxing] and he made me give it a real shot. But when it came time for me to decide what I really wanted to pursue, he let me make my own decision,” the NFL star wrote.
Saquon continued, “I was fortunate to have a dad who let me try different things and allowed me to follow my true passion.”
They are grandparents
In addition to their five children, Alibay and Tonya are proud grandparents.
Saquon shares two children with his fiancée, Anna Congdon: daughter Jada, born in 2018, and son Saquon Jr., born in 2022. Shaquona is also a mom to two children, sharing a snap with them at Disney World in January 2024.
During an April 2018 interview with WFMZ after Saquon was drafted by the Giants, Tonya expressed her excitement for her son and shared some insights on their family values.
“Any team he would’ve went to, Saquon would’ve made a good impression,” she explained. “But because he had the baby and we are so family-oriented and I am close with all my other grandkids, this will be able for me to be close with this grandkid.”
They’re involved with the community
As a family, the Barkleys get involved with their local communities.
During his time with the Giants, Saquon had a tradition of hosting home games for three young adults from the Covenant House, a nonprofit that provides housing to youth in need, per The Athletic.
Looking back at how the hosting tradition started, Saquon shared that he began working with the Covenant House when he first joined the NFL. “It just started off with me and my mom,” he told PEOPLE in December 2023.
“My family was trying to find someone we work with to get tickets to an organization and bring kids and young adults to games,” Saquon explained. “We started working with Covenant House and then it just grew to something so much more.”
He also has his own charity, the Michael Ann & Saquon Barkley Hope Foundation, which hosts an annual Thanksgiving turkey drive in the Bronx River projects, where his mom was raised. Alongside his parents, Saquon has handed out turkeys and other Thanksgiving goods to patrons.
“I don’t think you should just write a check,” Tonya told The Athletic. “I think you should participate in everything. You experience everybody else’s experiences.”
Saquon bought his parents a home
Saquon has received support from his family his entire life, and he has shown how he can give it back.
In June 2018, the athlete spoke to ESPN about how he planned to handle his football salary and endorsement money. He explained, “I want to invest it, put it in the right people’s hands and learn as I continue to make investments. And just live off the endorsement deals.”
Saquon’s first big purchase was for his family: a four-bedroom, three-bathroom home near where he spent most of his childhood. By doing so, he fulfilled his childhood promise to his mom.
“My family has been through so much and made so many sacrifices for my brothers and sisters,” he told the outlet. “And that’s not it. That’s not the last thing I’m going to be able to do for my family. That’s a great thing.”
Saquon shared that he “left it up” to his mother to pick a house where their family would “feel comfortable enough.”
“To be able to buy a house is truly probably the best accomplishment I have so far,” he added.
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