Russ Heffley joined Trisha Ford's inaugural staff at Texas A&M as volunteer assistant coach in August of 2022 before being elevated to assistant coach in July of 2023.
Heffley oversees the development of the outfielders and serves as the first base coach for the Aggies, while assisting with hitting duties and day-to-day activities. Additionally, Heffley is the team’s recruiting coordinator for off-campus recruiting and has played a key role in the program’s string of highly-ranked signing classes.
Last season Heffley was instrumental in the growth of Ariel Kowalewski, who earned NCAA All-Region honors in her first season at catcher. Kowalewski committed just two errors in a team-high 227 chances and threw out 7-of-12 base stealers, while leading the team with 16 doubles and ranking third on the team with a .382 batting average.
Under Heffley’s mentorship, catcher Julia Cottrill earned postseason honors for the first time in 2023 and 2024 after transferring to Texas A&M. Cottrill earned third-team NFCA All-America and first-team All-SEC honor as a junior and NFCA All-Region accolades as a senior.
Before coming to Aggieland, Heffley spent two seasons at Arizona State with Ford, specifically working with the outfielders. He helped lead the Sun Devils to the 2022 Pac-12 Championship and was instrumental in the development of outfield Jazmine Hill, who transferred to Texas A&M from Arizona State for her final collegiate season in 2024.
Prior to joining the Arizona State staff in 2020, Heffley served as the head coach of the 18 Gold Central California Dirt Dogs organization, which was constructed in 2007 to help players from central California hone their skills to compete in the highest levels of softball.
Heffley got his start in coaching softball at Hanford West High School in Hanford, California. He also served as a football coach for 22 years at three different high schools in central California.
A 27-year veteran in law enforcement, Heffley retired from the field in 2019.
Updated: 11/2026