Nate Orchard spent seven years in the NFL, is one of the most-beloved players in the history of the University of Utah, led Highland to a pair of state championships – one in football and one in basketball – and now has a great family and a thriving business.
But he almost lost all of it before it even began.
During his ninth-grade year at Highland, not only was he in a brand-new neighborhood with a whole new family, Orchard was also expecting a child.
“I’ll never forget sitting under [then] principal [Paul] Schulte’s desk crying and just saying, my life’s over,” Orchard said. “I haven’t even started my high school, and I have no future, no career, no anything.”
The promising two-sport athlete almost never made it to the field, where he now one of the greatest athletes to ever put on a Highland uniform.
When he sat in the principal’s office that day, Orchard could have easily just caved in and let this ruin his life, which he almost did. But instead, he turned it into a positive – motivation.
“At the time, I was facing a whole list of just emotions from depression, to suicidal thoughts, not feeling like I belong, but at the end of the day, that little girl was in the back of my head,” Orchard said. “It kept me motivated.”
Orchard often felt like he had the odds stacked up against him. From living out of a trailer with his single mother in California, to coming to Glendale and being on the verge of eviction, he had very little support. In a time of desperation, at the age of 12, Orchard knocked on a stranger’s door in Sugar House and asked a family if they would take him in, so he didn’t have to return to California.
Dave and Katherine Orchard had kids about around the same age as Nate. At the time, the 12-year-old knocking on their door was named Nate Fakahafua. Neither of them knew that he was about to become another member of their family.
“Growing up in Inglewood, California, to living in Glendale, to now moving up into Sugar House, living with a Caucasian family was a big change for me,” Orchard said. “I was just trying to figure out life and I got caught up in some things. But the Orchards took a chance on me.”
This was a huge milestone in Orchard’s life. He started school for the first time in sixth grade and found a lot more structure in the Orchard’s home with all of the role models he had in his new siblings and parents. Severely behind in school, he had come a long way when he entered Highland, but he still was not up to the academic levels of his peers.
“With that little girl in the back of my head, I made a commitment to myself that I’m gonna just try. And that’s all we can do in life, is just try. So I tried every year to get my grades up, try to be better, and I just always wanted to reach that 4.0,” Orchard said. “All of my siblings had 4.0s; everybody always talked about it and I thought, ‘someday, that’s gonna be me.’”
Orchard excelled in sports, finding success in both basketball and football. But he was looking to find himself more as a person at the time.
“From freshman year to sophomore year, it was about identity, just kind of, ‘who am I? What do I want to be?’” Orchard said.
Going into his sophomore year, Orchard stood out on the football field so much that he was recruited by other high schools. At Highland, he had stability and a group of people who cared about him.
But the promise of instant gratification pulled at him. Orchard remembers being picked up by a group of Cottonwood football players in a brand-new car. They showed him what he could have if he came to join them.
“I went there, visited with them, they showed me around, saying how I would get all these perks, and get this many catches, and I would have this amount of yards,” Orchard said. “And [Highland] ran the triple option so that sounded amazing.”
After seeing everything he could have at Cottonwood, Orchard felt that he had a real decision to make. He sat down with his coaches and close family members to try and decide what would be best for his future. He realized that even though they were offering all of these different perks, the grass might not always be greener on the other side.
“I’ll never forget, [then Highland coach Brody] Benson said, ‘Hey, if you stay here, and you put in the work, no matter where you are, [college coaches] are going to find you,’” Orchard said.
So that’s what Orchard did. He stayed. He worked harder. He found peace on the field and in the weight room. And he become an unstoppable force on the field.
“It was my escape from childhood trauma. From just questioning things as far as where I belong,” Orchard said. “Sports was definitely an outlet, my safe haven, where I could just go out and just unleash. Be myself.”
Orchard continued to progress athletically, however, he was still facing some challenges off the field that had him sidelined for some of the football season his junior year.
“It wasn’t until my senior year where everything started to click for me,” Orchard said. “We met with a sports performance gal who helped us with visualization which was totally new to me.”
After learning about visualization and the value that can come from practicing it, Orchard took it to heart. He started to visualize and write down the things that he hoped to accomplish.
“That 4.0 was at the top of the list for me,” Orchard said. “And then after that it was the state championships, and I really worked hard to bring those things to fruition.”
Orchard put up outstanding numbers his senior year on the football field, leading Highland to their first state championship in over 20 years. He had over 1,300 receiving yards paired with 17 touchdowns, and 17 sacks. In the state championship game, Orchard had 200 yards receiving and three touchdowns, and was named the game MVP.
“Coach Benson’s voice stuck with me,” Orchard said. “’Hey, the grass isn’t greener on the other side. You put it in the work, they’re gonna find you.’ And I felt like, okay, this is it.”
Orchard’s newfound success didn’t end after the football season. He led the basketball team that same winter to another state title. The Rams surrendered just three losses the entire season as Orchard led the team in rebounds, field goal percentage, and steals.
He was living the dream. But that was not the mist important thing he accomplished during his legendary senior year.
“I ended my senior year with the 4.0 which is something I’m more proud of than the championships, honestly,” Orchard said. “As a kid who didn’t know how to read, didn’t start school until sixth grade, and struggled academically, that was something I was really proud of.”
Orchard had completely turned his life around. His future was bright. He started high school having no idea who he was, terrified of what was to come, and struggled daily in the classroom. He now had two state championship rings, a 4.0, and a scholarship to go play football at the University of Utah.
While Orchard was playing at Utah, he was dating then Maegan Webber. She also attended Highland, and the two had been together on and off since high school. When Orchard was getting ready to marry her, he had a decision to make.
“Taking on a last name for someone who I thought was my dad wasn’t really in the picture, was hard,” Orchard said. “And then just given how much of sacrifice the Orchard family has made and their unconditional love for me, it was a no-brainer to take on their name.”
Once he changed his name, he suddenly flourished. Orchard’s senior year saw him become a first-team All-American and set a single season sack record with 18.5 sacks. That spring, Orchard was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the second round of 2015 NFL draft and had success in Cleveland as a regular starter.
Orchard jokes that NFL actually stands for “not for long,” as playing careers are short for most. He would have liked to play longer, but says, “I gave it everything that I had with no regrets.”
After parting ways with the Browns in 2018, Orchard bounced around various teams for multiple years. He ultimately decided it was time to step away from football in 2021, as he decided it was time to get into business and spend more time with his family.
“Being able to hang up my cleats and look back on my career and say I have no regrets on any of my decisions from training to the teams that I was on is something I’m happy about,” Orchard said. “I’ve come to realize later that sports are just a vehicle. It’s not who I am. But it has allowed me to be in a position to give back, to share my story. And it allowed me to have a career after football.”
Today, Orchard runs a window company, and lives at home with his wife and their four children. He has come full circle, living just a street over from the home that he once grew up in. Orchard has come a long way. As a renowned local celebrity, Orchard is often found at Highland sporting events, and makes an effort to give back to his community.
From a kid who couldn’t even read, searched for belonging, and wondered if he would ever have a future, Orchard has come a very long way. He has learned a lot.
He hopes that teenagers can learn from his struggle and perseverance.
“Understand that you matter. No matter what you’re going through right now, you’ll get through it. You belong,” Orchard said. “Everybody has a way to make a difference in people’s lives, whether you know it or not. So just be kind to people. You never know when somebody’s going through.”
