Minnesota aide to Cougars
Washington State University will introduce its new head volleyball coach over the telephone from Pullman this afternoon, and sources close to the job search say the voice on the other end of the line will be that of University of Minnesota assistant Brian Heffernan.
Heffernan, a fourth-year assistant under Golden Gophers head coach Mike Hebert, was promoted to associate head coach two years ago and has been instrumental in UM’s recent rise to national prominence. Minnesota finished 26-11 last fall and advanced to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament before losing to No. 1-ranked Southern California.
Heffernan could not be reached for comment Wednesday evening, but WSU sources confirmed he has been tabbed as the successor to Cindy Fredrick, who resigned earlier this spring to become the head coach at the University of Iowa.
Hebert refused to confirm or deny whether Heffernan had officially accepted the WSU job, but said, “If he were to become a head coach in Division-I, he’d be wonderful. He’s one of the bright young coaching stars in the country.”
Another source from the University of Minnesota said Heffernan visited the WSU campus and officially interviewed for the job last week.
Heffernan, who could not be present for a formal introduction because of previously scheduled obligations, is expected to address the media via a teleconference call at 1 p.m. WSU athletic director Jim Sterk and senior associate A.D. Marsha Saneholtz, who headed the search for Fredrick’s replacement, are both in Tucson, Ariz., attending the annual Pacific-10 Conference meetings and will take part in the conference call.
Heffernan, who assisted Hebert in coaching the U.S. National Team in its training for the 2003 Pan American Games, is a 1993 graduate of Penn State University, where he played in three NCAA semifinals with the Nittany Lions. He served as an assistant coach on the Penn State men’s team that won the 1994 NCAA championship.
Heffernan, 33, was an assistant coach for the Pepperdine men’s team for two years and spent one year as a women’s assistant at Cal State Los Angeles. He founded the Renegade Volleyball club in Ventura, Calif., in 1995 and served as the club’s head coach for five years. He has also been heavily involved with the USA Volleyball, having served as the head coach of the USA Women’s Junior National team at the 1999 Junior World Championships.
He will take over a WSU program that established itself as a national power under Fredrick, who led the Cougars to a 278-192 record in 15 seasons as head coach. Under Fredrick, the Cougs won 20 or more matches in seven different seasons and made nine trips to the NCAA tournament, advancing to the Elite Eight in 1996 and 2002.