Jayvan is the youngest of two boys from Cocoa Florida. His older brother, Dorian played running back for both Ohio State and Baylor. Jayvan grew up always being a big kid, he was always the strongest, best athlete in school. He always wanted to play running back like his brother, but his weight simply made that impossible. He tried tight end, but his lack of ability to catch a football locked him in on defense, specifically defensive end. Eager to excel in his position, he religiously studied the tapes of Aaron Donald, Micah Parsons, TJ Watt and Khalil Mack. Once he got moving on the field, he fell love with it. His senior year he helped lead a top defense in Florida and helped Cocoa win a state title.