Jake was born John Allen McDorman IV in Dallas, Texas, the son of Deborah Gale and John Allen McDorman III. He has a younger sister, Morgan, and an older half-sister, Amanda. After dropping out of Boy Scouts of American to pursue his acting career, he booked his first job playing a boy scout in an industrial film about the importance of scouting. Jake studied acting at the Dallas Young Actors Studio and attended Richardson High School, Westwood Junior High and Northwood Hills Elementary.