A veteran coach and Louisiana native, Frank Scelfo was named the 16th head football coach in Southeastern Louisiana University history Jan. 30, 2018.
A two-time Southland Conference Coach of the Year, Scelfo has led SLU to a 44-36 record, including a 34-18 mark in SLC contests. After leading the 2022 Lions to their first Southland Conference championship since 2014 and their third trip to the second round of the NCAA FCS playoffs in a span of four seasons, he was named the SLC Coach of the Year for the second time.
Under Scelfo’s tutelage, Southeastern was one of three FCS programs – along with the last two national champions South Dakota State and North Dakota State - to finish in the final national rankings in each season from 2019-22.
The team success has resulted in individual accolades for SLU student-athletes during Scelfo's tenure. A total of 13 Lions have earned All-American honors, including 2020 Walter Payton Award winner and 2021 SLC Player of the Year Cole Kelley, as well as 2022 SLC Offensive Lineman of the Year John Allen. Southeastern has earned 93 All-Southland Conference selections during Scelfo's seven seasons and has extended the program's streak of having at least one All-American to 13 seasons.
SLU student-athletes have also enjoyed success in the classroom under Scelfo, as 28 Lions have earned Southland Conference All-Academic honors, including league-high representative totals in 2021 (7) and 2022 (6). Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund was named the program's first Academic All-American in 2019, while Austin Dunlap was named SLC Student-Athlete of the Year in 2023.
The 2024 team battled back from a 1-4 nonconference start to finish 7-5 overall and 6-1 in conference play. Wide receiver/punt returner Darius Lewis was an All-America selection by the Associated Press and FCS Football Central, while running back Antonio Martin was a finalist for the Payton Award. The pair was joined on the All-SLC teams by Brockhim Wicks, Warren Peeples, Keydrain Calligan, Brandon Hayes, Riley Callaghan, Alec Mahler, Kaleb Proctor, Shemar Pearl, KK Reno, Kham Ford, Coryell Pierce and Will Davidson.
In addition to Dunlap’s accolades, Bauer Sharp earned All-America honors in 2023. Sharp, Dunlap, Allen, Lewis, Ian Conerly-Goodly, Herman Christophe, Harlan Dixon and Arlen Williams all earned All-Southland Conference honors.
In 2022, Southeastern finished 9-4 overall and won the Southland Conference with a 5-1 record, as Scelfo earned Coach of the Year honors. Allen was named Southland Conference Offensive Lineman of the Year and led a league-high 13 All-Southland Conference representatives for SLU, while also earning All-America honors from Stats Perform and the AFCA.
Scelfo’s 2022 squad opened the FCS playoffs with a 45-42 home victory over Idaho, before dropping a 48-42 overtime decision at No. 8 Samford. During the regular season, the Lions earned a 41-35 victory over No. 4 and eventual national semifinalist UIW and also won, 31-14, over a Jacksonville State team that was in its first season transitioning to FBS.
Scelfo led the Lions to a 9-4 overall record and an appearance in the FCS playoffs in 2021, advancing to the second round after a 38-14 first round home win over Florida A&M. The Lions finished No. 15 in both the Stats Perform and AFCA Coaches Top 25 polls.
Kelley was named Southland Conference Player of the Year and Louisiana Offensive Player of the Year, while earning consensus All-America honors and finishing second in the Walter Payton Award voting. Kelley, cornerback Zy Alexander and wide receiver Austin Mitchell earned All-American honors and were three of 18 All-Southland Conference performers.
The 2021 SLU squad broke 39 school records and finished in the top five nationally in nearly every offensive category, leading FCS in scoring offense, first downs and completion percentage.
The 2020 season was moved to the spring of 2021 and Scelfo led the Lions to a 4-3 record in a season that featured all four road games being played against ranked opponents. The Lions finished the unique spring season ranked No. 20 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 and No. 21 in the AFCA Coaches FCS Top 25.
Under Scelfo’s tutelage, Kelley won the Walter Payton Award – the Heisman Trophy of the FCS – as the nation’s best offensive player and was a consensus All-American choice. Kelley was joined on the Stats Perform All-America team by junior defensive back Ferlando Jordan, marking Jordan’s second straight year to earn All-America recognition.
Kelley, the Southland Conference and Louisiana Offensive Player of the Year, led a Lion offense that ranked in the top 10 nationally in nearly every offensive category. Southeastern placed 17 student-athletes on the 2020-21 All-Southland Conference teams.
In 2019, in just his second year at the helm of the program, Scelfo was named Southland Conference Coach of the Year after leading the Lions to the third NCAA FCS playoff appearance in school history.
In the opening round, Southeastern overcame a 17-point deficit to rally past No. 8 Villanova for a 45-44 victory – the second playoff win in program history. SLU finished with an 8-5 record and earned regular season wins over No. 6 Jacksonville State and No. 6 Central Arkansas. Scelfo’s squad was ranked 18th in the final AFCA Coaches poll and 19th in the final STATS FCS Top 25.
Scelfo saw 10 different student-athletes earn All-Southland Conference honors under his tutelage. He also had four players earn All-Louisiana recognition. The Lion offense finished ranked among the FCS leaders in total offense, passing offense, first downs and scoring offense.
Jordan was named All-American by STATS, The Associated Press and HERO Sports following the season. Adeyemi-Berglund, who was the No. 3 overall pick in the CFL Draft, became the first CoSIDA Academic All-American in program history and earned a spot on the CoSIDA Academic All-District 6 team for the second straight season.
The Lions finished with a 4-7 overall record in their first season under Scelfo, posting a 4-5 record in Southland Conference play. Among SLU’s victories were a win at FCS playoff participant Lamar and a victory over No. 11/12 McNeese. Scelfo’s charges in his debut season included 10 All-Southland Conference players.
Juwan Petit-Frere, Bransen Schwebel and Devonte Williams were all named to the first team, while Petit-Frere also earned All-American honors from the AFCA as an all-purpose player. Schwebel, Adeyemi-Berglund and Jon Miller also represented SLU on the Southland All-Academic Team with Adeyemi-Berglund claiming CoSIDA Academic All-District 6 accolades.
Scelfo’s inaugural season at the helm of the program saw his Lions play a part in the department’s Southland Strong Community Service Award for the 2018-19 campaign. Prior to the 2018 season, Scelfo announced the program’s partnership with CASA (Court-Appointed Special Advocates) in the Hammond area.
Scelfo came to Hammond with over 30 years of coaching experience. Scelfo took over the Southeastern program after spending the previous two seasons as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at UTSA. In 2016, his offense set 15 school records and helped the Roadrunners to their first-ever bowl game, the Gildan New Mexico Bowl.
Prior to his time in San Antonio, Scelfo coached for three seasons with the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars as an offensive assistant working with the quarterbacks. In his final season in Jacksonville, quarterback Blake Bortles threw for 4,428 yards and 35 touchdowns under Scelfo’s tutelage.
In 2010 and 2011, Scelfo was the quarterbacks coach at the University of Arizona. During his tenure with the Wildcats, he tutored future NFL quarterbacks Nick Foles and Tom Savage. Foles, a third-round draft pick in 2012, was the Super Bowl LII MVP after leading the Philadelphia Eagles to a 41-33 victory.
The three seasons prior saw Scelfo serve as the offensive coordinator at Louisiana Tech. Scelfo’s stint in Ruston included a 2008 Independence Bowl victory – the Bulldogs’ first bowl victory in three decades.
Before heading to north Louisiana, Scelfo spent 11 seasons on the staff at Tulane, including the final eight as the Green Wave’s offensive coordinator. Scelfo was the recruiting coordinator and tight ends coach for a 1998 TU squad that was one of two FBS teams to finish undefeated that season, recording a 12-0 mark and a Liberty Bowl victory.
Scelfo’s Green Wave offenses were ranked among the national passing leaders in five different seasons and four Tulane quarterbacks – Patrick Ramsey, J.P. Losman, Lester Ricard and Shaun King – went on to play in the NFL. A total of eight Tulane players were selected in the NFL Draft during Scelfo’s time in the Big Easy, highlighted by two-time Pro Bowl running back Matt Forte.
Scelfo’s Tulane offenses produced the school’s all-time passing leader in Ramsey, the program’s all-time rushing and all-purpose yardage leader in Mewelde Moore and Roydell Williams, who set the school’s career record for touchdown receptions. Moore was only the second player in NCAA history to top both 4,000 rushing and 2,000 receiving yards under Scelfo’s guidance.
Scelfo’s coaching career began at Prairie View High School in Bastrop, where he served as head coach for the 1982-83 seasons. He also coached at Jesuit High School (1984), River Oaks High School (1985-86), Vidor High School (1987), Orangefield High School (1988), Chapel Hill School (1989-91), Kilgore College (1992-94) and Galena Park North Shore High School (1995).
Scelfo was a four-year letter winner on the baseball diamond at ULM from 1978-81, earning the school’s Athlete of the Year award as a senior. He earned his bachelor’s degree from his alma mater in 1981, before completing his graduate studies in 1983.
He and his wife, Holly, are the parents of two sons, Anthony and Jordan. Anthony, who is the team’s offensive coordinator, played both football and baseball at Tulane and was selected in the 2008 MLB Draft by the Tampa Bay Rays. Jordan was on the baseball and football teams at SLU’s Southland Conference rival UIW from 2012-15 and hosts the Other D1 Podcast.
The Frank Scelfo File
Hometown
Abbeville, Louisiana
Wife
Holly
Children
Anthony, Jordan
Education
ULM, 1981 (Master's, 1983)
Playing Experience
ULM, Baseball, 1978-81
- 1981 ULM Athlete of the Year
Coaching Experience
2018- – Southeastern Louisiana – Head Coach (44-36 Overall Record)
2016-17 – UTSA – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
2013-15 – Jacksonville Jaguars (NFL) – Senior Offensive Assistant/Quarterbacks
2010-11 – Arizona – Quarterbacks
2007-09 – Louisiana Tech – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
1999-2006 – Tulane – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
1996-98 – Tulane – Recruiting Coordinator/Tight Ends
1995 – Galena Park North Shore HS – Defensive Backs
1992-94 – Kilgore College – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks/Wide Receivers
1989-91 – Tyler Chapel Hill HS – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
1988 – Orangefield HS – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
1987 – Vidor HS – Defensive Backs
1985-86 – River Oaks HS – Head Coach
1984 – Jesuit HS – Defensive Backs
1982-83 – Prairie View HS – Head Coach
