Former Miami Hurricanes OL coach Art Kehoe gets wide support following stroke

Former Miami Hurricanes offensive lineman and coach Art Kehoe received wide support following a stroke that was announced on Friday morning.

Former Miami offensive lineman and coach Art Kehoe received well wishes throughout the Miami Hurricanes community following a stroke on Friday as first reported by Susan Miller Degnan of the Miami Herald. Kehoe is the only player or coach who was a part of all five Miami championship teams between 1983-2001.

Kehoe was most recently an assistant coach on the Miami Hurricanes football staff under Al Golden from 2011-15. When his former Miami teammate, Mark Richt was hired, Kehoe was not retained. Kehoe played football for the Miami Hurricanes on the offensive line in 1979 and ’80. He was on the 1981 Miami Peach Bowl Champions.

Following this playing career for Howard Schnellenberger, Kehoe joined the coaching staff as a student assistant for the 1981 season. Kehoe was a graduate assistant from 1982-84. That including being a part of the first National Championship team in 1983. Kehoe was the offensive line coach from 1985-2005.

National Championship Miami coach Larry Coker relieved Kehoe of his duties as the offensive line coach following the 2005 season. Kehoe was the offensive line coach at Mississippi in 2006-07. The former Hurricane spent three seasons as the offensive line coach of the California Redwoods of the United Football League.

Updates and well desires about and for Kehoe were plastered throughout social media on Friday and into Saturday hoping for a sound recovery for Kehoe. Kehoe is one of the most important if not well-known figures in the history of Miami football. At only 62 years old, the stroke came as a shock to many.

Kehoe was a part of the original group of modern football for the Miami Hurricanes. He is joined in the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame by former teammates Jim Kelly, Jim Burt, Fred Marion, Lester Williams and Ronnie Lippett. All of the above except Kehoe played in a Superbowl. He was too busy winning national titles.

Kehoe blocked for Kelly who was the inaugural quarterback in of a group of signal-callers that led to Miami being called QB U in the 1980s through the early 1990s. Kehoe then tutored Miami offensive linemen that protected Bernie Kosar, Vinny Testaverde, Steve Walsh, Craig Erickson and Gino Torretta.

Kehoe coached on the Miami national championship team in 2001 with two current members of the Miami coaching staff. Cornerbacks coach Mike Rumph and Chief of Staff Ed Reed. Current Miami talk show host Brett Romberg was the center of the 2001 team under his position coach Kehoe.

It wasn’t only offensive players from the Miami Hurricanes wishing Kehoe a complete recovery. Rohan Marley who played linebacker for Miami in the 1990s and is the son of legendary Reggae musician Bob Marley sent out well wishes to Kehoe. Marley, like everyone else, is thankful Kehoe is recovering.

The severity of the stroke is not has been released. The reports that his former teammates and players have spoken to him is an extremely encouraging sign. Director John Singletary and actor Luke Perry suffered fatal strokes in 2019 and were about 10 years younger than Kehoe currently is.