Jake Jagielski (2024)

Jake Jagielski was a recurring character during the first three seasons of One Tree Hill, portrayed by Bryan Greenberg. Introduced in the first season, he was a member of the Tree Hill Ravens varsity basketball team and was one of the few teammates who welcomed Lucas Scott onto the team. He was frequently absent from class and many of the team's practices, however, due to being a single father to his daughter, Jenny Jagielski. While his teachers, as well as Coach Whitey Durham, were aware of his situation, Jake decided to keep Jenny's existence a secret from his fellow classmates.

After a heart-to-heart between Jake and Lucas, however, wherein he revealed the reason behind his constant absences, Jake introduced his daughter to his friends and peers during an open mic night at Karen's Café. With those close to him now knowing he was a single father, his friends, particularly Peyton Sawyer, took it upon themselves to help him in any way they could. He even managed to secure a job under Lucas's mother, Karen Roe, who was especially understanding as she was also a single parent. However, things became complicated when his ex-girlfriend, Nicki, returned to Tree Hill in an effort to reunite with her daughter, Jenny. Concerned over the repercussions of Jenny's mother reentering her life and faced with a costly legal custody battle, Jake quietly left town with Peyton's help and moved to Savannah, Georgia, at the end of the season.

During season two, Jake and Jenny continued to reside with relatives in Savannah, though he did not re-enroll in school and worked a series of odd jobs to support them. While Peyton would often send him e-mails, Jake never responded due to fearing Nicki might track them down. When Peyton began to experience a series of personal crises that led to her suspension from school, however, Lucas managed to get in contact with Jake through his cousins. Returning to Tree Hill, Jake reconnected with Peyton and expressed his desire to stop running away; with Peyton in tow, he traveled back to Savannah in order to bring Jenny home. Upon moving back, he re-enrolled at his former high school and rejoined the Ravens basketball team with the help of Coach Durham. For the first few weeks, Jake and Jenny resided with Peyton, though they later moved back in with his parents after he and Peyton confessed their feelings for each other and decided to explore a relationship.

When Jake's life was finally returning to normal, everything was upended when Nicki returned to Tree Hill. Due to his actions in keeping Nicki away from their daughter, he was faced with possible jail time if he did not surrender custody of Jenny. Worried over Jenny's wellbeing if she were to placed in Nicki's care, however, Jake arranged for Coach Durham to take Jenny away while he surrendered himself to the police.

By the third season, Jake had been released from jail and had moved back to Savannah. There, he and Nicki shared custody of Jenny while the court decided on a more permanent custody arrangement. During this time, Peyton came to visit him in the hopes of rekindling their relationship. After Jenny called her "mama," she promptly proposed to Jake, though he later ended their relationship before it had a chance after Peyton confessed to being in love with Lucas during her sleep. Encouraging her to return home so that she might sort out her true feelings, Jake left Peyton with the possibility of resuming their relationship if that was what she wanted. However, this never came to be as Peyton realized she was actually in love with Lucas.

Jake and his daughter, Jenny, were not seen or heard from again after the end of the third season, though it is assumed they continued to reside in Savannah. While the matter of Jenny's permanent custody arrangement was never addressed, it is likely he either maintained shared custody or was awarded full custody.

Character arc[]

Season 1[]

He was a basketball player for the Ravens and one of the few to support Lucas. It was soon revealed that he had a daughter named Jenny, which was why Brian 'Whitey' Durham let him skip practices at times. He hid her until Lucas told him that he wasn't happy that his mother hid him and then Jake decided to show Jenny off at the open night at Karen's Café. Peyton Sawyer soon got close to his daughter and later to him. His ex, Nicki, however, decided to come back and take Jenny after a discussion with Lucas about how his father left him. Fearing that Nikki would take Jenny, he left for family in Savannah with the help of Peyton and her dad.

Season 2[]

He then returned in season 2, after Lucas called him to cheer Peyton up and they got together, but the day they made love, Nicki came back to take Jenny, having gained custody of Jenny since Jake didn't show up at the process (his convocation had been sent to Seattle, allegedly). He went to jail when he refused and gave Jenny to Coach Whitey Durham, who drove her to Florida. Nicki found her the day he was released and was about to gain custody so he decided to leave Tree Hill and a broken-hearted Peyton behind for good.

Season 3[]

In season 3, after Peyton was shot, she came to visit him in Savannah, where he had moved, and learnt that Nicki's parents finally had enough of her and were caring for Jenny, who Jake had visitation rights to. Seeing that he wasn't on the run anymore, Peyton resumed her relationship with him and even proposed to him when Jenny called her "mama", but in her sleep she said "I love you, Lucas", so he told her to go back to Tree Hill, realizing that she still had feelings for Lucas and she had to figure out who she really loved: this was the end of their relationship for good because Peyton, as soon as she got home, understood that Lucas was the one for her and also marked Jake’s last appearance on the show.

Season 6[]

Jake didn't make a physical appearance but he was mentioned by Peyton. When Peyton finds out she may die from her pregnancy, they realize that Lucas may have to raise the baby alone. She makes a joke to lighten up the mood by saying "Just think about all that sexy single dad Jake Jagielski tail you're gonna rake."

Relationships[]

• Relationships: Jake Jagielski/Relationships
• Family: Jake Jagielski/Family

Family[]

Jake had a daughter Jenny while in high school with his older girlfriend Nicki. After Jenny was born Nicki abandoned both her daughter and Jake leaving him to care for her; however it is made clear by Jake that his parents have helped to raise her. Jake didn't tell anyone about Jenny until she was 6 months old, but this wasn't out of choice, as his close friend Lucas Scott came to his house asking him why he was missing basketball practice, leaving Jake to explain he had Jenny to take care of. Jake introduces his daughter to the town by singing a song at the Karen's Café open mic night with her on stage and explaining his situation. Telling the truth allows the rest of the basketball team and the cheerleaders to pitch in and help Jake with caring for Jenny so he doesn't miss practice. When one of his cousins gets married, Jake asks his friend Peyton Sawyer to babysit the night of the wedding, something Peyton happily accepts; throughout the night Peyton and Jenny bond and are later joined by Jake when he returns from the wedding early to be with them. Jake, Peyton and Jenny become a sort of surrogate family to one another.

Jenny's biological mother Nicki comes back to Tree Hill, wanting to see her daughter and spend time with her. Jake refuses as he doesn't want Jenny to be upset when Nicki skips town like he knows she will. Upset with how Jake will not let her see her daughter, Nicki applies for full custody of Jenny and sets out to prove to Jake that she can be a good mother, this leading to disastrous consequences as she messes up each opportunity by either failing to show up, making Jenny upset or buying the wrong formula for her age. Dispite all of this Nicki manages to get a court hearing for full custody, so Jake leaves Jenny with Peyton and Brooke for the day so he can fight for her in court. Taking Jenny out to the mall Peyton leaves her in her stroller unaccompanied for a few moments, and upon return, Jenny is gone. Frantically searching, it is discovered that Nicki took Jenny leaving Jake devastated as her disappearance makes him look like an inadequate father.

Horrified that she may be the reason for Jake losing custody of Jenny, Peyton arranges for the pair of them to escape to Savannah so that Nicki won't find them.

Romantic Life[]

Jake had a one night stand in high school with Nicki that resulted in him becoming a father to his daughter Jenny Jagielski. Nicki abandoned the pair of them shortly after Jenny was born leaving Jake to care for the baby all by himself.

Jake had a sort of flirtation with Peyton Sawyer after they started talking at Karen's Cafe on Open Mic Night, buy everything ended after Jake had to move to Savannah to get away from Nicki who wanted full custody of Jenny. The pair reunited when he was called back by Lucas to help her during a dark time and the two started a real relationship, which soon ended again because Jenny was kidnapped by Nicki and Jake decided to go after them, leaving Tree Hill again, this time for good, and breaking Peyton’s heart. Then, Peyton visited Jake in Savannah, where they rekindled their relationship once again: she asked him to stay, but in her sleep Peyton mumbled that she loved Lucas, so Jake told Peyton to come back to Tree Hill, saying that once she'd sorted out whom her heart truly belonged to, she may have come back to him, since she clearly had unresolved feelings for Lucas. However, this was the end of their relationship for good because, once at home, Peyton realized Lucas was the one for her and never came back.

Trivia[]

• Jake's address has been listed as both; 212 Chestnut Street (also Haley's address) and 340 Keaton Avenue.
• In Spanish dubbed version, Jake's surname is Kanioski.
• Jake is of Polish Jew descent.

Gallery[]