"He was pretty young. He didn't get to see me perform," said Sophia of Patrick, who was born two years after her biggest hit. "He was quite young when all of that was going on. I think he looks at me as his mom, not this reggae singer. There are times in the house that sometimes the kids play my songs. They have it on the computer. He has some of it on his iPod."
Chung's mother said her son can't sing a bit. But he can deliver hits on the football field with his 5-foot-11-inch, 212-pound frame.
The 21-year-old Chung is a pigskin percussionist. The sound of shoulder pads crashing together is the music of choice for Chung, whose greatest hits can also be found on the Internet. Just go to YouTube and watch Chung wallop wide receivers or level offensive linemen on interception returns and you see why the Patriots made the former University of Oregon safety their top pick in the draft, using the first of their four second-round selections to take him 34th overall.
Born in Jamaica, Chung moved to the United States with his family when he was 10 years old. His family settled in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., located about 40 miles east of Los Angeles.
Chung, who started school in Jamaica when he was 4, didn't play organized football until he was a high school freshman at the age of 13.
"One day he came and said, 'Dad, I'm going to try out for football,' " remembered Ronald, who is half Jamaican and half Chinese. "I said, go ahead. Then he came to me and said, 'Daddy, I'm going to make the team.' I said, yeah, right. I went up there to watch him, and he was killing everybody."
By the end of his sophomore year, Chung was on the Rancho Cucamonga High varsity team as a 14-year-old. He played wide receiver and defensive back on teams with two future NFL players, Giants cornerback Terrell Thomas and Lions safety Gerald Alexander.
Former Rancho Cucamonga coach Chris Van Duin said that often the coaches had to remind themselves during Chung's senior year that they were still dealing with a 16-year-old.
Chung has always approached the game with a youthful exuberance.
