Tracking Rams Coach Sean McVay's Success Back To His Alma Mater
Brookhaven, GA (CBSLA) -- It has only been two years since Sean McVay took over as head coach of the Los Angeles Rams, but since then, the 33-year-old leader has completely transformed the organization.
Some say McVay's rise to elite status started 15 years ago, on a football field just outside Atlanta, where the Rams will face off against the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LIII on February 3.
"We needed the skills he had running the football, and his quickness and aggressiveness -- his explosiveness with a ball in his hands," said coach Alan Chadwick of Marist School in Brookhaven, Georgia.
Chadwick has been a head coach at the school since 1985. McVay led his team to a state title in 2003, with postseason plays Chadwick says he'll never forget.
"There were 21 bodies in the pile up over here on the right side, where we'd faked off tackle. Sean stuck the ball in his stomach, made the fake, booted out the backdoor, walked in untouched. And it was beautiful -- so it made me look good, but Sean's the one that gets all the credit for that," he said.
Stream the Patriots-Rams in Super Bowl LIII on CBSSports.com.
McVay first made an impression on Chadwick during middle school, when Chadwick was holding a football camp on campus at Marist School. McVay suffered a broken nose and came back to football camp the next day -- already showing the grit that he is known for on the sidelines and in the locker room.
Chadwick said he knew McVay had the skills to be a coach, but he didn't see the role in his future.
"I thought he was smarter than that, to become a football coach. I figured he'd be a CEO for a major corporation, or something along those lines," he said.
When asked where he'll be on Super Bowl Sunday, Chadwick said, "I'm still waiting on that ticket to come this way, so we'll see. Just kind of keeping that open right now... I'm looking forward to it. I don't really care where I'm watching it, I just want the Rams to win. If I'm at home, on the couch, with a fire going and a cold beer in my hand, I'll be fine."
Catch McVay on the sidelines during the Super Bowl on Sunday on CBS.