Nate Monroe seeks to build ‘something special’ as Vikings’ next football coach

The Northern Lebanon football program isn’t far removed from success. But there’s no doubt it’s been a slog in Fredericksburg since 2021, the Vikings’ last District Three playoff berth.

Nate Monroe, a defensive coordinator at Palmyra for the last four seasons, plans to flip the script. He’s prepared to turn the tide. He’s ready to bring postseason football back to Northern Lebanon territory.

Monroe gained approval as the Vikings’ next head coach at Tuesday’s meeting of the Northern Lebanon school board. He replaces Jason Rice, who resigned in October after captaining the Vikings for five seasons to a cumulative 14-37 record.

“I think it’s a real blessing and a great opportunity being presented in front of me,” Monroe said. “This is something I’ve talked about doing my whole life, and something I’ve been prepping and preparing for. I’m just glad that God has opened up the opportunity for this to happen. I can’t wait to see where I can take the program, see how I can be able to lead the young men to something special.”

“Something special” has always been part of Monroe’s football DNA. He’s a 2014 Bishop McDevitt graduate and helped steer the Crusaders to four consecutive District Three titles. He later returned to his alma mater — under his former skipper and Lancaster native Jeff Weachter — and joined Middletown in another assistant role.

Monroe played collegiately at Bloomsburg. He amassed 172 career tackles at his linebacker spot while forcing two fumbles and pirating an interception.

“Once I meet the players and everything, the first goal would be establish a culture and establish belief,” Monroe said. “That’s one thing I want to be able to do, because I’m a big believer in, ‘Hey, if we don’t believe in ourselves, how are we able to accomplish anything?’”

Monroe realizes it won’t be an instant transformation. The Vikings completed their 2025 campaign at 1-9, only winning their season opener against Pine Grove (35-8).

In seven playoff appearances, they’ve yet to claim their first victory.

“It’s just about getting this thing rolling and seeing where the cards may lie and everything,” Monroe said. “But I feel confident. As long as we do our part, as long as the kids show up to work, we put in the time and the effort, and again, we just believe and have faith that we can do this thing, we’re gonna take some great things out of this.”

An additional adversity is the Vikings’ Lancaster-Lebanon League section schedule. NL resides in Section Four, which produced back-to-back PIAA Class 4A runners-up — Lampeter-Strasburg in 2024 and Twin Valley last year — and includes powerhouse Wyomissing.

The Vikings are 2-12 against league opponents across the last two seasons.

“I kind of look at it in a different viewpoint,” Monroe said. “Even though it’s a tough section, that means we must have a good section of football around us. So to me, I want to be able to embrace those challenges.”

And with the challenges comes benefits. Northern Lebanon began hosting games in its renovated stadium this fall.

With the upscale facilities in place, Monroe can give his undivided attention to Xs and Os.

“Last season (with Palmyra), we played a majority of our home games at Northern Lebanon,” he said. “It was the first time I’ve ever been out there … and I was just blown away. There’s a lot of good stuff going on here.”

There’s much to build as the offseason progresses. But Monroe can already feel the script beginning to flip, the tide beginning to turn and the echoes of winning football being summoned in the distance.

“Let’s not doubt ourselves before it happens,” he said. “Let’s just go in there and see what transpires.”