Pierre Ngo honors Vietnamese heritage through work ethic, passion

Story by Gabby Hajduk

Bears head strength & conditioning coach Pierre Ngo recently received the Illinois Treasurer's Outstanding Achievement in Sportsmanship Award, one of eight awards from the state that highlights the achievements of community leaders during Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

"I am honored to receive the Outstanding Sportsmanship Award, a recognition that speaks to the importance of how we lead every day," Ngo said. "To me, sportsmanship is about setting a standard of respect, integrity and accountability. It is about being the same person in victory and defeat and using every moment to positively impact those around you."

To celebrate Ngo's achievement, ChicagoBears.com profiles Ngo to detail how his Vietnamese heritage has helped shape his career.

At just 12 years old, Pierre Ngo knew the career path he wanted to pursue.

Sure, it may have seemed a bit unusual that a 12-year-old boy from Muskogee, Oklahoma, who was raised by Vietnamese parents, dreamt of being a strength & conditioning coach. But thanks to the influence of one football player, Dat Nguyen, Ngo knew what he wanted his future to look like.

When Ngo's began playing tackle football in fifth grade, his parents Kiman (dad) and Thanh (mom) wanted to support their son's interest. Kiman discovered Nguyen a talented Texas A&M linebacker at the time, who later became the first Vietnamese-American linebacker to be drafted, play and become an All-Pro in the NFL.

"I was roughly around sixth, seventh grade at that time, and my dad told me to watch football and Dat," Ngo said. "I wanted to be just like him because his family was from Vietnam."

While Ngo's path didn't exactly follow Nguyen's, aspiring to be like the Aggies' all-time tackling leader led him to his own passion weightlifting.

"My middle school football coach, a guy named Larry Heard, told me, 'if you want to play in the next level, you've got to get bigger. If you want to get to varsity, you've got to start lifting weights and training,'" Ngo recalled.

"I then fell in love with training of weights and once I did my first powerlifting competition at 12 years old, my coach told me that this was a profession, and I knew I wanted to become a strength coach."

Ngo's own path to the NFL started right there.

He poured into strength training to the point where it became an obsession. He competed in state powerlifting competitions throughout middle school and high school, culminating in a State Championship victory his senior year.

Ngo continued playing football all the way through college, starting as a scholarship athlete at Langston University before transferring to the University of Oklahoma as a walk-on. Making the jump to a Division I program was less about competing for a chance at the next level and more about gaining valuable experience around football as well as earning an exercise science degree.

His education and football knowledge led to internships at Arizona State and UNLV, but there was one caveat.

"I remember doing internships for almost two and a-half years for free," Ngo said. "I did it for free just starting out and doing odd jobs. I was working at a Halloween store in Las Vegas. It's called Halloween Mart. I was working sporting events, like pulling cables for the cameramen.

"So I remember when I got my first paycheck, I was like, 'oh my God, I'm getting paid for this.' It was like $1,000 for the whole month, but I thought, 'this is so awesome.'"

While paychecks from Halloween Mart were sporadic, one thing remained constant his parents' support.

Since Ngo was young, Kiman and Thanh dealt with puzzled looks from friends when they explained their son's desired profession. When he graduated and didn't have a steady income, more questions poured in from those outside the family.

"When I was working for free for those two and a half years, I was 26 and still making nothing," Ngo said. "Everyone's like, 'hey, what's Pierre doing now? He's got his degree.' My parents were like, 'yeah he's still working for free.'

"They have been my biggest supporters from Day 1. They sacrificed a lot. They never second guessed it at all. I'm very lucky, because a lot of people don't have that."

But to Kiman and Thanh, all they really wanted was for their son, as well as their two younger daughters Yvonne and LeAnn, to be happy with the life they created. It's the reason Kiman immigrated from his small hometown of Song Cau, Vietnam to the United States in 1975, with Thanh and her parents, Diep Bao Hon (grandfather) and Nguyen Thi Rong (grandmother), later joining in 1980.

Starting over from scratch in a new country, Kiman took on multiple jobs, often working 80-hour weeks, to put Thanh through college and support their young family. Once Thanh earned her degree, she too began working long hours.

On a day-to-day basis, Ngo and his sisters were raised by their grandparents, who eventually returned to Vietnam in 2010 and lived there until they passed away in 2017.

While Ngo didn't see his parents often, their sacrifices were felt and appreciated. Despite them working two jobs each, they still made it a priority to attend their son's football games and powerlifting meets.

Ngo knows he wouldn't be here without them.

"Like many others, my family's journey started with struggle," Ngo shared. "My grandparents and parents came to this country after the Vietnam War with nothing but grit and hope. Both parents worked two jobs each, doing whatever it took so my sisters and I could have a better life. That work ethic wasn't just something to talk aboutit was something I witnessed every single day growing up."

Kiman and Thanh's work ethic now reflects in Ngo's own dedication to his profession, one where he enters his ninth overall season with the Bears and his first as the head strength & conditioning coach.

Ngo earned his first paid position in 2009-11 where he worked at Las Vegas' Philippi Sports Institute owned by now-Bears assistant strength & conditioning coach Mark Philippi training NFL, MLB, MMA and youth athletes. He went on to work for the Jets (2012-13), UCLA (2014), the Bears (2015-20) and Broncos (2021-22) before making his way back to Chicago in 2023.

"Pro football was never a thought in my head," Ngo said. "It was just strength & conditioning. I wanted to do strength. I wanted to train for sport, and I happened to just love football. But the NFL was just never a thought. One thing just led to another. I'm just very, very blessed. I don't take a great day for granted because this is not work to me."

Leading an NFL strength & conditioning program not only fulfills Ngo's 12-year-old self's dream, but allows him to fulfill that of his parents'.

Every day, Ngo has the opportunity to work as hard as his parents did, support his own wife, Anh, and 5-year-old son, Nathan, and serve as an inspiration for other Vietnamese Americans, much like Dat Nguyen did for him.

"For me, representing the Vietnamese community as a coach in the NFL is about more than just a title it's about carrying forward the values of perseverance, humility and excellence that my family taught me," Ngo said. "It's about honoring their sacrifices and using my platform to shine a light on the incredible contributions of Asian Pacific Islanders, both on the field and beyond."

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