Keith Heckendorf (born April 23, 1981) is 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 who is currently the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at

Arkansas State University Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage la ...

. He was previously the quarterbacks coach and pass game coordinator at the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

Playing career

Heckendorf played

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 ...

St. Cloud State St. Cloud State University (SCSU) is a public university in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Founded in 1869, the university is one of the largest institutions in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. Its enrollment in 2020 was approximate ...

from 2000 to 2003. At St. Cloud, he set program records for career passing yards, career touchdowns, and career pass completions. He was also a three-time

Harlon Hill Trophy The Harlon Hill Trophy is an award in American college football given to the individual selected as the most valuable player in NCAA Division II. The award is named for former University of North Alabama and National Football League player Harlo ...

finalist (the D-II equivalent of the

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

), and an All-American. He was also a National Football Foundation Scholar athlete in 2003, and was inducted into the school's hall of fame in 2017.

Coaching career

After his playing career concluded, Heckendorf was an assistant at his high school alma mater Mosinee High School in

Mosinee, Wisconsin Mosinee is a city in Marathon County, Wisconsin. It is part of the Wausau, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 3,988 at the time of the 2010 census. History Early history The traditional inhabitants of the area were ...

before spending time at

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

as a quality control coach and graduate assistant. He also had a stint at

Western Carolina Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...

from 2008 to 2010 as their offensive coordinator. Heckendorf was hired in a player development position at

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

in 2011. He was promoted to quarterbacks coach and recruiting coordinator in 2014. At UNC, he was the position coach for

Mitchell Trubisky Mitchell David Trubisky (born August 20, 1994) is an American football quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at North Carolina and was drafted second overall by the Chicago ...

, who rose from a backup quarterback to the No. 2 overall pick of the

2017 NFL Draft The 2017 NFL Draft was the 82nd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. It was held in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art on April 27–29, returning to Philadelphia f ...

over the span of a year.

Arkansas State

Heckendorf was named the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at

Arkansas State Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage l ...

in 2019. He spent time as their tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator for about a month before he was re-hired as the quarterbacks coach at North Carolina. Heckendorf was named a nominee for the

Broyles Award The Broyles Award is an annual award given to honor the best assistant coach in college football. First awarded in 1996, it was named after former University of Arkansas men's athletic director Frank Broyles. The award is presented in Little R ...

in 2019, an award given to the top assistant coach in

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

. On December 10, 2020, after head coach

Blake Anderson Blake Raymond Anderson (born March 2, 1984) is an American actor, comedian, producer, screenwriter, and fashion designer. Beginning in 2006, Anderson helped create and join the sketch-comedy troupe Mail Order Comedy, which produced online videos ...

left to take the same job at

Utah State Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public land-grant research university in Logan, Utah. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. With nearly 20,000 students living on or near campus, USU is Utah's ...

, Heckendorf was named interim head coach for the Red Wolves. After initially being replaced by

Major Applewhite Major Lee Applewhite (born July 26, 1978) is an American football coach and former player who is currently the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the South Alabama Jaguars. He served as head coach at the University of Houston from ...

and A. J. Milwee, Heckendorf was retained as offensive coordinator by newly hired Arkansas State head coach

Butch Jones Lyle Allen "Butch" Jones Jr. (born January 17, 1968) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach at Arkansas State University. Jones previously served as a special assistant to the head coach and offensive analyst at the Univ ...

References

External links

Keith Heckendorf
on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

National Football Foundation bio

Arkansas State Red Wolves bio

North Carolina Tar Heels bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heckendorf, Keith 1981 births Living people People from Mosinee, Wisconsin Players of American football from Wisconsin American football quarterbacks St. Cloud State Huskies football players High school football coaches in Wisconsin Nebraska Cornhuskers football coaches Western Carolina Catamounts football coaches North Carolina Tar Heels football coaches Arkansas State Red Wolves football coaches