Northwest Missouri State Athletics

Northwest Missouri State University head football coach Rich Wright reached into his coaching past to tab Todd Sturdy as the new offensive coordinator for the Bearcats.

In 2023, Sturdy's offensive produced a 100-yard rushing game from sophomore running back Jay Harris in all 11 games. Harris was the only NCAA performer to reach 100 or more yards in every game in the 2023 season. Sturdy also had his quarterback Mike Hohensee notched third-team all-MIAA status as he passed for 22 touchdowns to rank fifth in the league.

Quarterback Mike Hohensee earned honorable mention all-MIAA honors in 2022 as he led the Bearcats with 2,170 passing yards and 16 touchdowns. Hohensee led the MIAA and ranked No. 5 in the nation in completion percentage (68.3%).
 
Sturdy called the plays for the Bearcat offense in 2021 that ranked No. 13 in the nation in total offense (457.5 yards per game). The offense paved the way for Harlon Hill Trophy finalist running back Al McKeller to lead the MIAA in rushing (1,601 yards). The offense featured Hohensee, who ranked No. 1 in the nation in passing completion percentage (73.6%) and No. 1 in the nation in passing efficiency (187.3 rating). The Bearcat offense produced six games of 500 yards or more offense which was the most for Northwest since the 2013 season. 

Sturdy and Wright worked together on the same coaching staff at St. Ambrose from 2000-2004 before Wright made the move to Northwest. Wright served as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at St. Ambrose during Sturdy’s head coaching tenure.
 
Sturdy will serve as the offensive coordinator at Northwest and he brings a wealth of coaching experience with him to Maryville. Sturdy has coached football at the FBS, FCS and NAIA levels for 28 years. He has served as an offensive coordinator in 20 seasons. In 14 seasons as a head coach at the collegiate level, Sturdy has compiled a record of 96-51.
 
Sturdy served as the head coach at MidAmerica Nazarene in 2018 and 2019. He guided the Pioneers to a 7-4 mark in the Heart of America Conference this past season.
 
He is a native of Tipton, Iowa, and produced a mark of 85-40 in 12 seasons as a head coach at his alma mater, St. Ambrose in Davenport, Iowa from 1995-2006. Sturdy guided the Fighting Bees to six conference championships and six NAIA playoff appearances. He coached 64 first-team all-conference performers and 28 All-America picks while his players rewrote the offensive school records in virtually every category.
 
Sturdy gained assistant coaching and coordinator experience at the FBS and FCS levels following his time at St. Ambrose. Sturdy worked at Eastern Washington (OC, 2007), Washington State (OC, 2008-2011), Iowa State (assistant/OC, 2012-2015), Northern Iowa (OC, 2016).
 
Sturdy began his coaching career after his freshman year of college, taking over the Tipton High School sophomore baseball team in the summer of 1987. He continued to coach Tipton baseball for the next four seasons as the head sophomore coach and assistant varsity coach. He served as a graduate assistant in 1990 at St. Ambrose. 
 
As a student-athlete, Sturdy was a quarterback for St. Ambrose University from 1987-90, while he earned a bachelor's degree in history education. In 1988 he was named the team's MVP, and as team captain in 1989, he received the coach's appreciation award.

Sturdy attended Tipton High School, where he played four sports and accumulated 14 varsity letters. He was named all-state as a quarterback and started at quarterback for the South team in the 1986 Shrine Bowl.
 
He and his wife, Gina, are the parents of sons Keegan, Carson and a daughter, Kenzington.