Rams Offensive Coordinator Nate Scheelhaase Spent a Year Pastoring Youth in Louisville

Nate Scheelhaase now leads the offense for the Los Angeles Rams, holding one of the most sought-after positions in professional football. He was promoted to offensive coordinator last winter after serving as an offensive assistant on Sean McVay's staff. His path to that role began in a church basement in Louisville, Kentucky.

Scheelhaase moved to Louisville in 2014 after completing a four-year career as the starting quarterback at the University of Illinois. He joined Southeast Christian Church, one of the largest congregations in the United States, to work as a youth pastor. During that year, he visited dozens of high schools and served as a chaplain for two football teams.

He did not initially plan to coach. Scheelhaase had married shortly before retiring from playing and feared the instability of coaching for a young family. He called Jason Epperson, the Illinois football chaplain, who had recently taken a position at Southeast and knew of the youth pastor opening.

Observers in Louisville saw a natural fit. Chris Burke, an ESPN baseball analyst who lived nearby, noted Scheelhaase's athleticism during pickup games. A local mother asked for help for her eighth-grade son, whose father had recently died. Scheelhaase provided rides and attended the boy's practices. That son, Nate Hobbs, is now a defensive back for the San Francisco 49ers and a close friend of Scheelhaase.

Andrew Coverdale, who coached at Trinity High School at the time, described Scheelhaase as displaying confident humility. Coverdale said Scheelhaase did not expect teenagers to listen simply because of his college playing history. He emphasized the need for positive adult mentors for young players.

A specific moment at Eastern High School shifted Scheelhaase's perspective. In 2014, he delivered a speech to football players that received little reaction. The head coach then stood to give a pregame talk, and the room reacted with intense focus. That contrast highlighted the potential influence of a coach.

Scheelhaase returned to coaching in 2015, working with running backs at Illinois. He said the work felt similar to the trust-building he performed in Louisville. He later became a coordinator at Iowa State in 2023. In 2024, he left for the Rams to use software to design plays for McVay. McVay called him a rising star in 2025.

The overlap between faith and sports is a long-standing tradition in American athletics. James Naismith, the inventor of basketball, believed sports allowed him to express his faith more effectively than the pulpit. Amos Alonzo Stagg, a divinity student at Yale, helped introduce the huddle and numbered jerseys to football. Rocky Seto and Frank Reich have also moved between coaching and ministry roles.

Scheelhaase contacted Frank Reich, the interim Stanford coach, last winter while interviewing for head coaching jobs. He said his time in Louisville provided skills he did not expect to use later. His life centered on Sundays during that year. He noted that this routine still influences his current schedule.