Randy Fichtner
| Pittsburgh Steelers | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Quarterbacks coach |
| Personal information | |
| Date of birth: | November 7, 1963 |
| Place of birth: | Cleveland, Ohio |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Meadville (PA) Area Senior |
| College: | Purdue |
| Undrafted: | 1986 |
| Career history | |
| As coach: | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Randy Fichtner (born November 7, 1963) is an American football coach who is the quarterbacks coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL).[1][2]
Early years
Fichtner, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, was a standout football player at Meadville Area Senior High School.[3] He chose to attend Purdue University, playing defensive back for the Boilermakers. His father is Ross Fichtner, who played quarterback for Purdue, and then played defensive back for the Cleveland Browns.
Coaching career
Fichtner began his coaching career as a graduate assistant, serving with Michigan, USC, UNLV, and Memphis from 1986–1987, 1988, 1989, and 1990–1993 respectively. He earned the position of wide receivers coach and recruiting director at Purdue in 1994, serving for two years before moving to Arkansas State to become the offensive coordinator from 1997–2001. Under Fichtner's tutelage, current CFL quarterback Cleo Lemon flourished, setting numerous school records for passing and total offense. Fichtner returned to Memphis in 2001 to serve as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, instituting a new, highly effective spread offense that set school records for total offense. The new system allowed the teams to amass prolific offensive statistics, totalling over 5000 yards in both 2003 and 2004 to rank in the top ten for both yardage and scoring, as well as supporting the development of quarterback Danny Wimprine and running back DeAngelo Williams.[1]
Fichtner's NFL coaching debut began in 2007, serving as wide receivers coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers as part of new head coach Mike Tomlin's regime, replacing the promoted Bruce Arians.[4] He was instrumental in the development of the Steelers young wide receiver corps, mentoring Santonio Holmes to multiple 1000-yard seasons and a Super Bowl MVP award as well as supporting the growth of emerging wideouts Mike Wallace, Emmanuel Sanders, and Antonio Brown. In 2010, Fichtner became the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterbacks coach, replacing Ken Anderson after Anderson's retirement.[1]
References
- 1 2 3 "Randy Fichtner Bio". Steelers.com. Pittsburgh Steelers. Retrieved June 8, 2011.
- ↑ "Pittsburgh Steelers Assistant Coaches". National Football League. Retrieved May 21, 2011.
- ↑ Turrisi, T.J. (February 18, 2009). "Fichtner speaks of work ethics at sports banquet". The Meadville Tribune. Retrieved June 28, 2011.
- ↑ Dulac, Gerry (January 30, 2007). "Tomlin's coaching staff is complete". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved June 28, 2011.