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Northwestern to hire Jerry Neuheisel as QBs coach

by: Matthew Shelton01/01/26M_Shelton33

Northwestern made its second reported addition to its offensive coaching staff under new coordinator Chip Kelly on New Year’s Day, with the addition of Jerry Neuheisel as quarterbacks coach.

ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg was the first to report the addition of Neuheisel, who drew national acclaim this season as the interim offensive coordinator for UCLA during the last eight games of the season, including a 42-37 win over then-No. 7 Penn State.

Northwestern hasn’t had a dedicated quarterbacks coach on its staff before. It had been rolled into the role of the offensive coordinator in the past.


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Neuheisel started his coaching career as a quality control coach for Texas A&M in 2017 but then spent the bulk of his time working with Kelly at UCLA. He was a graduate assistant for the Bruins from 2018-20, then the wide receivers coach from 2021-23. He is the son of former UCLA quarterback and head coach Rick Neuheisel.

When Kelly departed for Ohio State, Neuheisel stayed on at his alma mater as the tight ends coach in 2024 before adding an assistant head coach title for 2025. When UCLA fired DeShaun Foster, Neuheisel stayed on under interim head coach Tim Skipper.

After Skipper’s first game as interim coach, a 17-14 loss at Northwestern, he fired offensive coordinator Tino Sunseri and promoted Neuheisel to interim coordinator for the last eight games of the season.

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