SLIPPERY ROCK — Three years into his NFL career, Chris Conrad grimly discovered something.

NFL careers don't last very long.

The former Pittsburgh Steeler offensive tackle's second career is settling in for the long haul, however.

Conrad is in his eighth season as offensive line coach at Slippery Rock University. He also serves as the program's recruiting coordinator and is the longest tenured assistant on SRU's staff.

“He's one of the most positive, upbeat guys I've ever met,” Rock head coach Shawn Lutz said. “Chris Conrad is the guy we want walking into the living rooms of prospective recruits, sitting down and talking to the players and their parents.

“He has a powerful, outgoing personality. We love the fact that he's representing Slippery Rock University when he visits these families.

“We win because we have good players. Chris has been instrumental in getting us those good players,” Lutz added.

Conrad was once a pretty good player in his own right. Selected by the Steelers n the third round of the 1998 draft out of Fresno State, he played in 17 games for Pittsburgh over three seasons, starting four of them.

He never got a shot at a fourth season.

“I had a few stingers while playing football and those things can build up,” Conrad said. “In a preseason game against Miami, I broke my neck.

“There were moments I lost feeling in my extremities when that happened. I'll never forget that.”

The break was at the base of his neck. Surgery was successful and he was medically cleared to return to football — with a stern warning.

“If I took a blunt hit in the wrong spot, I could be paralyzed,” Conrad said. “Play football and maybe not being able to walk again? Don't play football and be able to walk?

“The decision was a no-brainer to me.”

So at age 25, Conrad needed a new direction in life. He didn't have to stray far to find it.

“I always loved working with kids,” he said. “I did some work with the Boys and Girls Club when I was with the Steelers. I wanted to get into coaching kids somehow.”

Conrad said the Steelers' director of player personnel at the time had contacts with the Shaler and North Catholic high school football programs.

He became a volunteer assistant coach at Shaler.

“It was 15 minutes from my house,” Conrad said. “I stayed there seven years.”

He coached offensive and defensive linemen at Shaler, worked three years as an assistant football coach at Carnegie Mellon University and a year at Northgate High School before getting a call from then-SRU head coach George Mihalik.

“My nephew Greg was on that CMU staff and told me if I ever needed an offensive line coach, they had a good one there,” Mihalik said. “Chris called me after each CMU season, asking me if we had any openings.

“When we finally did, we brought him on board.”

Since 1990, SRU has had two offensive line coaches — Joe Walton and Conrad.

“We've had tons of great offensive linemen during that time. That's not by coincidence,” Mihalik said. “You want a coach who knows the X's and O's, but you also want a good person. And Chris's knowledge is unmatched.”

“The man has NFL experience,” Lutz said. “I mean, her's been there, done that, and at the highest level.”

Not that it matters to the offensive linemen he's coaching.

“It really doesn't,” SRU center Austin Wayt said. “It's the knowledge he brings. Sure, Coach Conrad had played in the NFL and that's impressive, but I've learned so much about technique from him.

“He is a patient teacher. He doesn't yell, doesn't scream. He just makes us better.”

Senior left tackle Chris Larsen said Conrad was one of the big reasons he came to SRU.

“He's made me a better person,” Larsen said. “He has an interest in all of us as people. I've talked to him about life, personal feelings ... The man is there for us.

“Coach Conrad knows how to motivate. When I was questioning whether I would succeed here, he had a one-on-one conversation with me, said it was my time to shine and made me believe in myself.

“I'm not impressed by Chris Conrad, the NFL guy. I'm impressed by Chris Conrad, period,” Larsen added.

Conrad knows he coaches a position that will never grab headlines in a newspaper or be talked up on the radio.

“I work to get our linemen all-conference or All-America recognition,” Conrad said. “That's where it's at for us. You get those honors by gaining the respect of your peers on the field. That's what we're here to do.”

Conrad has received phone calls from other collegiate programs inquiring about his services.

He hasn't been interested in leaving The Rock.

“Most of those calls were from coaches who moved on from here and asked if I'd like to join them where they're at now,” he said. “I'm not actively looking around for another job.”

His wife, Stephanie, is a fourth-grade teacher in the North Allegheny School District. The couple has small children as well.

“I can see myself being a head coach someday,” Conrad admitted. “I love coaching. But any move I'd make would have to be all about my family.

“Right now, we're thrilled to be where we are.”