Western Illinois football finalizes coaching staff

MACOMB, Ill. - Western Illinois head football coach Myers Hendrickson finalized his coaching staff, it was announced on Thursday (Jan. 20). Seven new coaches will be joining Hendrickson, two of whom played collegiately at Western Illinois, and Zach Grant is set to enter his third season at WIU, with current oversight over the fullbacks and tight ends.

"I'm excited to announce these outstanding individuals that have joined Leatherneck Football," said Hendrickson. "This staff represents the game of football from all levels. We have FBS coordinator experience, as well as Illinois High School head coach state championship experience on this staff. This staff brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to our program, more importantly, they are great people committed to creating a family environment and being excellent role models for our student-athletes.

"We will create the model Missouri Valley Football Conference program, and this staff is in place to get that done. We will build this program the right way, and this staff is committed to executing that vision. We have a remarkable tradition of football," Hendrickson added. "We will celebrate the past while creating excitement for a new era of success to move our program forward. As a proud Leatherneck alum myself, as well as hiring two additional Leatherneck players on staff, we are committed to building on the excellent tradition of Western Illinois Football."

Matt Feeney - Defensive Coordinator

Feeny previously served as the defensive coordinator at the University of Akron (2018-21) and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (2017-18). His time in Ohio resulted in four All Mid-American Conference selections, and back-to-back, highly-ranked red zone defenses - No. 2 in 2019 and No. 3 in 2020 and 2021.

Jeremy Curry - Defensive Line

Curry, a WIU football alum ('14), returns to his alma mater to coach the defensive line after holding a similar position at Lake Charles College Prep. His coaching tenure includes stops at St. Louis Catholic High School, Buena Vista University, SUNY Alred State College, and Rochester Community & Technical College.

Brandon Kreczmer - Linebackers

Kreczmer also suited up for Leathernecks will be responsible for the same position in which he played. As the head coach at Newman Central Catholic High School from 2019-2021, he guided his team to a 23-6 record and a 2019 2A state championship title. His collegiate coaching journey began as a linebacker coach at Illinois College in 2012.

Jeremy Wilson - Defensive Backs

Wilson joins Hendrickson's staff after one year at the University of Akron, where he coached defensive backs while serving as the team's defensive pass game coordinator. Wilson played collegiately at Lenoir Rhyne University and Huntingdon College, and has coaching experience that includes time spent at Florida State and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Zach Grant - Tight Ends / Fullbacks

Grant will remain on staff with the Leathernecks after previously serving as the team's running backs coach. His coaching career began at his alma mater, the University of Illinois. The former Illini letter winner played three seasons of football, appearing in 25 career games, before making the transition to an offensive graduate assistant.

Quinn Schafer – Quarterbacks

Schafer was most recently at the University of Indianapolis, where he worked as the quarterbacks coach. In 14 games this past season, the Greyhounds' quarterbacks held a 4:1 touchdown to interception ratio while being named All-Conference Honorable Mention. Schafer's collegiate coaching career includes stops at Northern State University, Lake Forest College and Coe College.

Donnell Kirkwood - Running Backs

Kirkwood comes to Western Illinois after spending two seasons as the running backs coach and player experience coordinator at Northern State University in Aberdeen, S.D. Kirkwood played five seasons at the University of Minnesota, seeing action in 53 games. During his sophomore season, Kirkwood led the team with 218 carries for 926 yards and six touchdowns.

Brian Frana - Offensive Line

Brian Frana joins Coach Hendrickson's staff with nearly 20 years of coaching experience, often working with his teams' offensive lines. Frana was most recently at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, where he was the team's offensive coordinator while also coaching the offensive line and tight ends. A graduate of Eastern Illinois, Frana earned his Master's degree from St. Cloud State in 2007.

"Our staff is eager to build relationships with our current players, alumni, campus, and Macomb community. We are passionate about carrying on the Tradition of Tough. Western Illinois University is special because of the people, and these individuals are going to add to that special dynamic of our great campus."

Western Illinois Football Coaching Staff

Myers Hendrickson - Head Coach

Matt Feeney - Defensive Coordinator

Jeremy Curry - Defensive Line

Brandon Kreczmer - Linebackers

Jeremy Wilson - Defensive Backs

Zach Grant - Tight Ends / Fullbacks

Quinn Schafer - Quarterbacks

Donnell Kirkwood - Running Backs

Brian Frana - Offensive Line

This article originally appeared on The McDonough County Voice: WIU FOOTBALL