Getty Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay
Long before the name Sean McVay became one all NFL fans knew, the father of the Los Angeles Rams head coach proved more than capable of impressing on the gridiron himself. But Tim McVay’s success came as a player and not a coach while proving that the football gene runs in the family.
The college and NFL football success involving the McVay name run further back than Tim as well, but we’ll get there. As far as Sean’s father’s time as a player goes, he spent three seasons with the Indiana Hoosiers as a safety. Through 33 career games at the collegiate level, McVay racked up 178 combined tackles, 11 for loss, three interceptions and one touchdown.
Although he never played at the NFL level, it’s apparent he had an impressive skillset as a defensive back. McVay’s final season with the Hoosiers came in 1977 when he posted career-best numbers across the board. The year was complete with 83 combined tackles, five for loss and two interceptions.
Sean McVay’s Grandfather Fueled the Football Love
Shortly after Tim’s college career wrapped up was when his own father (Sean’s grandfather), John, took a huge step forward in his career. John was an assistant coach with the New York Giants from 1976 to 1978 before his contract was not renewed.
That decision apparently worked out just fine for Sean’s grandfather, as his next career move was in 1980 when John McVay accepted a position with the San Francisco 49ers in the front office. He was the vice president and director of football operations at various points from 1980 to 1995 and played a part in the 49ers winning five Super Bowls, per FOX Sports.
It’s not surprising that Tim and Sean both have football in their blood after researching John’s impressive resume.
Tim McVay Didn’t Believe Sean Would Get Head Coaching Job
In defense of Tim McVay, it’s one thing to be supportive of your son and another to be realistic. As Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio revealed, Tim joined HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, back in July of 2018. He was asked about when Sean received job interviews for NFL head coaching jobs at the age of 30.
And in a brutally honest moment from the father, he spoke about how the conversation went down with both his son and then his wife.
“He says, ‘I think I’m gonna get an opportunity to interview for some of the open positions.’ And I said, ‘That would be fantastic,’” Tim McVay says.
“Did you think he had a chance?” Gumbel replies.
“Well, I don’t know if I should tell you this,” Tim McVay explains, “but he says, ‘I don’t think you understand, Dad. If I get an interview I’m gonna get one of these jobs.’ I said, ‘I’m all for you man.’ And then I hang up and my wife says, ‘Can he get one of those jobs this soon?’ And I said, ‘Nah.’”
Looking back on it, I’m sure Sean gives his father a hard time for this, but everything ended up perfectly for the Rams coach. And along with that, his dad is surely more than happy about the fact that he was proven wrong on this topic.
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