A familiar beard in Northeast Indiana football will once again be roaming the sidelines, as Casey Kolkman has been named the head coach of the Heritage Patriots.
The Heritage athletic department tweeted a video on January 22, introducing Kolkman as the new head coach.
“I’m very excited about the opportunity,” Kolkman, a 1991 Heritage grad and 1990 All-Allen County Athletic Conference selection, said in the video. “I want the people in the community to understand that I feel called to be here.” He also teaches at his alma mater.
Kolkman returns to head coaching duties for the first time in 7 years. He coached at Bluffton from 2010 to 2013 and at North Side from 2004 to 2009. In ten total seasons, Kolkman’s teams were 46-59.
Kolkman spent the past 2 seasons as defensive coordinator at Bishop Dwenger. The Saints won the 4A state championship in 2018; and this past season, Dwenger’s defense allowed just 8.69 points, which was tops in Class 4A and ranked 3rd overall in the state.
“What’s most important to me is that we develop (the players) as young men: their family, their studies, then football - in that order to the best of our abilities.”
Heritage is one of 26 high schools that partners with Parkview Sports Medicine for athletic training, sports performance, athletic rehab, nutrition and other sports medicine services for Patriot athletes. Learn more at parkviewsportsmedicine.com.