Head Coach Rick Heller

Hellerball

Head coach Rick Heller has injected new life into the Iowa baseball program over the last 11 seasons. He is one of two Iowa coaches all-time to lead the Hawkeyes to NCAA Regionals.

Home Field Advantage

NCAA Regionals

2017 Big Ten Tournament Champions

Player Development

A Global Game

QUICK HITTERS UNDER COACH HELLER

Averaged 32 wins per season in his time at Iowa

Advanced to three NCAA Regionals (2023, 2017, 2015)

Claimed Iowa’s first Big Ten Tournament title (2017) in program history

Advanced to the Big Ten Tournament nine times, including three title game appearances

Coached 34 MLB Draft Picks over the last 11 seasons

I-O-W-A HAWKEYES

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A Player’s Coach

Get to Know the Rest of the Staff

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Mr. 1000

Heller earned the 1,000th win of his career during the 2023 season. He owns a 1,041-774-4 career record and ranks sixth in wins among active college coaches.

Rise to the Occasion

Heller is 36-34 all-time against ranked opponents and 18-10 since 2019.

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THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE BANKS.

Since 2015, Heller and the Hawkeyes are 164-48 at Duane Banks Field with 18 walk-off victories.

Home Away From Home

The Hawkeyes broke a 25-year NCAA Regional drought in 2015 and made it two NCAA Regionals in three seasons by winning the Big Ten Tournament in 2017. Iowa made its third NCAA Regional in 2023 after a runner-up finish in the Big Ten Tournament. The Hawkeyes then fell to Indiana State in the Terre Haute Regional to end the year with 44 wins, tied for the most single-season victories in program history.

NCAA Regionals: 2015, 2017 & 2023

2015: 41-18

In Heller’s second year, he established a newfound Iowa baseball culture after Iowa claimed its first NCAA Tournament win since 1972, going 2-2 at the Springfield Regional.

2017: 39-22

Big Ten Tournament Champions and one win away from a trip to the Super Regionals.

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2023: 44-15

Tying the program’s single-season win record, Iowa ended the year as the Big Ten Tournament runner-up and one win short of a Super Regional appearance.

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2017 Big Ten Tournament Champions

Heller led Iowa to its first conference title in more than two decades.

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B1G Rings

The Hawkeyes have qualified for the Big Ten Tournament in every season under Heller. In 2016, Iowa advanced to the championship game as the No. 8 seed. Iowa is one of three schools (Indiana and Michigan) to qualify for the last six Big Ten Tournaments.

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Follow Coach Heller on Twitter

Player Development

How We Develop

“Our goal is to find players who are great teammates and love baseball. This is noticeable in how they interact with their teammates, parents, and opponents. Skill is important, but it also needs to be coupled with intangibles that excel in our program."

Coach Heller

"Our promise is to blend cutting edge technology with more than 50 years of combined coaching experience to give our student-athletes the best chance to improve and achieve their goals. We push our athletes to be 'where their feet are' every day, whether that is in class or practice. Our coaching staff promises to do the same."

Coach Heller

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Hawkeyes in the Pros

34 MLB Draft Picks over the last 11 seasons.

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A Global Game

2017 World University Games

Heller and the Hawkeyes represented the United States at the World University Games in Taipei, Taiwan. Heller led USA to a 5-2 record and a silver medal, becoming the first American squad to medal in Universiade history.

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2016 Dominican Trip

Heller also took his team to the Dominican Republic for a preseason trip during Thanksgiving Break. It was a trip full of playing, teaching, and loving the game of baseball that built team chemistry and prepared the team for a special 2017 season.