Handsome hunk is first NFL (not head) coach to come out

samhexum · July 21, 2023

Jaguars coach comes out as gay in first for US pro sports

Jacksonville Jaguars associate strength coach Kevin Maxen came out as gay on Thursday in what is believed to be a first for a male coach in U.S. professional sports.

Maxen, who has been with the Jaguars since 2021, told Outsports he made the decision to come out in hopes of inspiring others while being true to who he really is.

“I don’t want to feel like I have to think about it anymore,” Maxen told Outsports.

“I don’t want to feel like I have to lie about who I am seeing, or why I am living with someone else.”

“I want to be vocal in support of people living how they want to live, but I also want to just live and not feel fear about how people will react.”

Maxen has been involved in football for several years, playing for Division III Western Connecticut State University in college before working as a strength coach at Baylor and Vanderbilt.

The strength coach said that he had wrestled with his sexuality in college but is hopeful Jaguars players will react positively to the news.

Maxen told Outsports his accomplishments inside of football should quiet the doubters.

“I have a pretty good sense of humor,” he said.

“So a lot of the guys I can joke with and not take anything personally."

Maxen said that being around staff and players on the team led him to his decision to want to come out. He saw others inside the organization introducing their families, and this made Maxen want to be able to do the same.

Maxen said he’s been dating his boyfriend, Nick, for over two years, and said he felt guilty that he couldn’t share that part of his life and struggled to reconcile those feelings.

In February 2022, Maxen reached out to Carl Nassib, who became the first NFL player to come out a year prior, as he decided on how and when to come out.

“For a while I had such an anger for myself and hatred that I thought was from a fear of what others might think about who I am,” Maxen said.

“But that wasn’t it. It was an anger and hatred of myself because I put myself in a life where I was living by other people’s rules and not by my own.

“And I was right to be angry at myself for thinking that I had to live in the image of anyone else.”

Jacksonville’s director of player development, Marcus Pollard, had positive things to say about Maxen.

“In an environment that is diversifying, it is a privilege to work alongside Kevin who is hardworking, dedicated and thriving as a strength and conditioning coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars,” Pollard told Outsports.

Maxen said he’s been with his boyfriend for two years.