Posted
November 10, 2026
St. Edward alumnus Chenzo Funari ’12 was featured in The Athletic, the sports publication of The New York Times, for his journey from SpaceX engineer to NFL coach.
As a child, Chenzo Funari ’12 fixated on two things: space and sports. Years later, those passions led him from developing rocket engines at SpaceX to coaching in the National Football League.
Funari’s path began taking shape at St. Edward, where injuries altered his experience as a student-athlete. After tearing his ACL during both his freshman and junior years, he was invited by his coaches to remain involved as a coaching assistant. Staying connected to the team rekindled his love of football and offered an early glimpse of the role coaching could one day play in his life.
Still, Funari initially chose to pursue his other passion. “As a 17-year-old, I figured the engineering degree was probably the smarter choice,” he told The Athletic. He earned a degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from The Ohio State University and a master’s degree in the same field from Purdue University. His aerospace career included work with Masten Space Systems and Blue Origin before he joined SpaceX, where he contributed to the company’s Raptor rocket engine.
In 2020, he made the bold decision to leave SpaceX and return to football. Now he serves as the Minnesota Vikings’ assistant defensive backs coach.
Click here to read the feature article by Alec Lewis.