Jeff Hecklinksi is in his third year with Michigan football, serving as the team's wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator. He comes to Ann Arbor after spending two seasons with Brady Hoke at San Diego State as assistant head coach, running backs coach and recruiting coordinator.
Hecklinksi's unit helped a Michigan offense that averaged 383.1 yards per game in 2012, including 199.3 through the air. Wideouts Jeremy Gallon and Roy Roundtree led the group. Gallon caught a career-best and team-leading 49 passes for 829 yards and four touchdowns, including a career-best nine catches for 145 yards and two touchdowns in the Outback Bowl. Roundtree caught 31 passes for 580 yards and three touchdowns and finished his career ranked sixth in U-M history in career receptions (154) and receiving yards (2,304).
The receivers contributed to an offense that averaged 404.7 yards per game in 2011, which ranked third in the Big Ten. Five different receivers had multiple touchdown catches, led by Junior Hemingway who totaled 34 receptions for 699 yards and four touchdowns. Two of Hemingway's touchdowns came in the Sugar Bowl, where he was named MVP in Michigan's 23-20 overtime victory over Virginia Tech.
The Western Illinois graduate joined Hoke at Ball State in 2004 as the team's receivers coach before taking on added duties as recruiting coordinator in 2008. On the field, Hecklinski helped coach two of the most prolific players in Cardinal history in wideouts Dante Love, who ranked second in the country in 2007 in all-purpose yards (206.92), and Dante Ridgeway, who was an All-American and one of three finalists for the Fred Biletnikoff Award in 2004.
Hecklinski was the quarterbacks coach at Arizona in 2003, after two seasons as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Central Missouri State, where he helped the team to the school's first-ever playoff appearance and bowl victory.
Hecklinski earned his bachelor's degree at Western Illinois in 1997, where he was a quarterback and threw for more than 5,980 yards to rank second in the school's career record book. He played for the Arena Football League's Albany Firebirds in 1998. He and his wife, Tiffany, have a daughter, Riley, and two sons, Mikey and J.R.
COACHING EXPERIENCE
Year
Team
Position
2011-present
Michigan
Wide Receivers, Recruiting Coordinator
2009-10
San Diego State
Asst. Head Coach, Running Backs, Recruiting Coord.
2004-08
Ball State
Wide Receivers, Recruiting (2008)
2003
Arizona
Quarterbacks, Passing Game Coordinator
2001-02
Central Missouri State
Off. Coordinator, Quarterbacks
1999-00
Fort Scott CC
Off. Coordinator, Recruiting Coordinator
1998
Benedictine U.
Quarterbacks, Wide Receivers
ABOUT COACH HECKLINSKI Age / 39 Date of Birth / Feb. 18, 1974 Hometown / Palatine, Ill. High School / Palatine College / Western Illinois State (communications, 1997) Family / Wife Tiffany, sons Michael and J.R., daughter Riley College Bowl Experience (5) / Michigan: 2012 Outback Bowl, 2012 Sugar Bowl; San Diego State: 2010 Poinsiettia Bowl; Ball State: 2008 GMAC Bowl; 2007 International Bowl
