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Q&A With Rick Heller On July 12, Rick Heller was named the 20th head baseball coach in University of Iowa history. Heller has compiled 692 victories in 26 seasons at Upper Iowa, Northern Iowa and Indiana State. He spent a few minutes answering these questions for Hawk Talk Monthly. Q: In what ways does being a native Iowan create an advantage to being in this position? Heller: "It helps, not only being a native Iowan, but coaching so long in the state. I've had 22 years of head coaching and recruiting experience in the state. Knowing a lot of the high school coaches and having great relationships with those guys, as well as the junior college coaches in the state, will help a lot. I don't have to come in and look at a map. I've already got connections that make things a lot easier. We have earned the respect of a lot of those guys and the players that have played for me in the past are your best recruiters. I have a lot of players from Upper Iowa, Northern Iowa, and Indiana State that will be out there helping us sell the program. Being a long-time member of the Iowa High School Coaches Association and being active in that association my entire career has also helped with being able to hit the ground running and having the support of a lot of coaches in the state." Q: Was there a consistent formula of success that you used at Upper Iowa, Northern Iowa, and Indiana State that you can bring to the University of Iowa? Heller: "It's not magic, it's a system of discipline and accountability and hard work with a big emphasis on the development of the student athlete both on and off the field. It's a 'don't take no for an answer' attitude; getting our guys to believe in themselves." Q: When you were a student-athlete at Upper Iowa, did you think you would eventually be a head coach at a "BCS" conference school? Heller: "I knew I would be a coach. At 12-years-old I knew if I wasn't playing I would be involved in sports some way or another. I remember telling people back then that that's what I would be doing. It has been my drive to be involved in baseball since I was a young kid. Playing was fun, and I wish I could have done that longer, but coaching is the next best thing." Q: What has the reaction been when your contacts around the state have seen you walking around in a University of Iowa polo? Heller: "It was a lot of fun, because I have a lot of friends and coaches who are happy for me. It was kind of a homecoming. Getting a chance to talk to guys I haven't seen in a while, even people that I didn't know were coming up to me and congratulating me and saying how happy they were that I was the guy they chose to hire. It made me feel good." Q: A lot has been made of the University of Iowa being the lone Division I baseball program in the state. Why do you feel you can win with home-grown talent? Heller: "There are good players in our state and we need to keep the best players in our state year-to-year. When your best players are heading south or going to other schools in your conference, it makes it tough. The first thing we have to do is make sure we are getting the right recruit to stay at Iowa. If we do that, then we are in good shape. The state of Iowa has a lot of good athletes. I tell people that basically the athletes in every state are the same, it's the level of development, and the amount of time they have spent playing baseball, that determines 57