Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Rudy Keeling, former head coach at Maine and Northeastern, passes away

keeling

ECAC

On Sunday the University of Maine announced that former head coach Rudy Keeling passed away at age 64 after a battle with an undisclosed illness.

In 13 seasons as a head coach (eight at Maine, five at Northeastern), Keeling posted a record of 154 wins and 214 losses. In 1994 Keeling was named North Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year after leading the Black Bears to a school-record 20 victories.

“The Black Bear Men’s Basketball program, and the entire UMaine community is deeply saddened to hear the news of the passing of Coach Keeling,” Maine head coach Ted Woodward said in a statement released by the school. “He was an outstanding coach, a first-class person and representative of the University of Maine, and a beloved and highly respected member of the entire basketball coaching community.

“He touched many lives of young people here at Maine, was an outstanding example of character, integrity, and intelligence, and his influence has, and will continue to be felt throughout our great school and all of college athletics.

“It has always been an honor to follow in his footsteps at the University of Maine and the wonderful example he provided daily and throughout his career. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family, and to all the outstanding young men who had the tremendous opportunity to be coached and mentored by him.”

Named commissioner of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) in 2007, Keeling officially retired in mid-January.

Raphielle can be followed on Twitter at @raphiellej.