Jim Bob Helduser (February 27, 1957 – February 26, 2010) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

coach whose last coaching role was as an assistant coach for the Bryan High School Vikings football team. His last college coaching position was as the offensive line coach at

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

(2003–2007).

Early life

Helduser was a native of Groves, Texas and a 1975 graduate of Port Neches–Groves High School. He attended

Texas Lutheran University Texas Lutheran University (TLU) is a Private university, private Evangelical Lutheran Church in America university in Seguin, Texas. History The university traces its roots back to 1891, to an academy of the first German Evangelical Lutheran S ...

in Seguin, where he graduated ''

summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

'' in 1979 with a degree in biology, before earning a master's degree in educational administration at

Southwest Texas State University Texas State University is a public university, public research university in San Marcos, Texas. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has grown to the second largest university in the Greater Austin, Greater Austin metropolitan area ...

in San Marcos.

Coaching career

His first coaching experience was at

Alief Elsik High School Alief Elsik High School is a high school in the Alief region of Houston, Texas, United States. Elsik is divided into two campuses: the main campus (12601 High Star in Houston, zip code 77072), and the Alief Elsik Ninth Grade Center (located at ...

in Houston. He then became an assistant to

Ray Alborn Gus Raymond Alborn (born December 23, 1938) is a former American football player and coach. He served as head football coach at Rice University from 1978 to 1983 and at Lamar University from 1986 to 1989, compiling a career college football record ...

Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...

. Following Alborn's dismissal in 1983, Helduser dropped out of the collegiate coaching ranks for a couple of years. In 1986, he was hired by

John O'Hara John Henry O'Hara (January 31, 1905 – April 11, 1970) was one of America's most prolific writers of short stories, credited with helping to invent ''The New Yorker'' magazine short story style.John O'Hara: Stories, Charles McGrath, ed., The L ...

to coach the

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

s, wide receiver, and offensive linemen at Southwest Texas State University, and stayed on in that position when O'Hara was replaced in 1990 by Dennis Franchione. Altogether, Helduser spent 11 seasons coaching at Southwest Texas State University. He assumed the role of head coach when Franchione left after the 1991 season, and remained in that position until 1996. In five seasons, he compiled a 20–34–1 total record. He was replaced by

Bob DeBesse Robert Damien DeBesse aka uncle Bob (born September 30, 1959) is an American football coach. He was most recently the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach of the Georgia Southern Eagles. He was relieved of his duties by Head Coach Chad Lu ...

, with whom he later coached at

. After one year as head coach at

Lake Travis High School Lake Travis High School is a public high school located in unincorporated Travis County, Texas, United States, approximately 20 miles west of Austin, near Lake Travis. The preparatory is accredited by the Texas Education Agency and rated as an ...

in Austin, Helduser was approached by Franchione to join his staff at

Texas Christian University Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private research university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison and Randolph Clark as the Add-Ran Male & Female College. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples ...

as offensive line coach. His job was coaching the offensive line blocking for future

NFL Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...

running back LaDainian Tomlinson. After an 11–1 winning season at Texas Christian University and two

Western Athletic Conference The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, New Mexico, Utah, Washington (state), Washington, and Texa ...

championships, Helduser left with Franchione to coach at the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...

(ending in a 10–3 season) and later, Texas A&M University. In his collegiate coaching career he produced many nationally recognized and NFL athletes and was renowned for his experience in recruiting. He left Texas A&M in 2007 to become offensive coordinator for Bryan High School in Bryan, Texas. He retired from football coaching after the 2009 Bryan Vikings football season.

Death

Helduser died on February 26, 2010, at his home in

College Station, Texas College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East-Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley, towards the eastern edge of the region known as the Texas Triangle. It is northwest of Houston and east-northeast of Austin. ...

, after a battle with colon cancer. He was survived by his wife, Janet Wiegman Helduser of

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

, son, Brant, and daughters, Kylene and Jenna.

Head coaching record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Helduser, Jim Bob 1957 births 2010 deaths Alabama Crimson Tide football coaches Rice Owls football coaches TCU Horned Frogs football coaches Texas A&M Aggies football coaches Texas Lutheran Bulldogs football players Texas State Bobcats football coaches High school football coaches in Texas People from Jefferson County, Texas Players of American football from Texas Deaths from colorectal cancer in the United States Deaths from cancer in Texas