Keefe begins his first season at Gannon in 2017 as the special teams coordinator and cornerback coach. He owns a loaded resume that includes 10 years of coaching experience, including nine on the professional level. Keefe also has five years of professional playing experience.
The Washington, D.C., native comes to Gannon after a highly successful run in the Arena Football League (AFL). Most recently, he served as the head coach and vice president of football operations for the Orlando Predators from 2014-16. The team won 36 games during that three-year span and won back-to-back South Division championships during his first two campaigns. In his first season as head coach, Keefe directed the franchise to its first division title since 2006 and came within one win of a berth in the Arena Bowl. The Orlando Predators ceased operations following the 2016 season.
Keefe is the only person in Arena Football history to win ArenaCup (Arena Football 2) and ArenaBowl (Arena Football League) titles as both a player and a coach, totaling four championships in five years. He won his first title as a player with the Spokane Shock of the AF2 in 2006, before adding another championship with the Philadelphia Soul of the AFL in 2008. Keefe was a two-time All-AF2 first-team selection as a defensive back for Spokane in 2006 and 2007, ending his two-year tenure with the Shock as the team’s career leader in tackles (168) and interceptions (19). He played with four different teams in all, including the Columbus Wardogs (2004) and South Georgia Wildcats (2005) of the AF2.
Following a successful playing career, Keefe transitioned into coaching as a defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator for Spokane in 2009. The Shock boasted the AF2’s top-ranked scoring defense that season, allowing just 37.6 points per game. Keefe’s secondary surrendered the fifth-lowest passing yards per game (231.6) and registered the second-highest interception total in the league (34). The season culminated with a 19-1 record and ArenaCup Championship.
Keefe was promoted to head coach and director of football operations as Spokane transitioned to the AFL in 2010. At age 29, he became the youngest head coach in AFL history to win the Arena Bowl during his first season at the helm. His stint with Spokane lasted two seasons, finishing with a 25-10 record.
After two seasons as the defensive coordinator of the AFL’s Utah Blaze (2012-13), Keefe moved to Orlando to begin his championship run with the Predators. He developed 28 AFL players who signed contracts with National Football League (NFL) and Canadian Football League (CFL) teams from 2009-16.
Keefe has always been a fixture in the community wherever he has been. His volunteerism and community outreach resume includes time as a Product/Business Development Manager for Clean the World in Orlando, Florida. He has been a volunteer at Florida Hospital for Children (Orlando, Fla.), Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children Hospital (Spokane, Wash.), National Read Across America, YMCA Youth Flag Football (Spokane, Wash.), Christian Service Center (Orlando, Fla.), American Education Week Teach-In (Orlando, Fla.), The American Red Cross, Coalition for the Homeless, Pop Warner, 5K Breast Cancer Awareness Runs, United Way Mentoring Program and Habitat for Humanity.
A familiar name with local football fans, Keefe starred at Mercyhurst College as a student-athlete from 1999-03. He served as a team captain during his senior campaign, being named team MVP that season. Keefe earned Daktronics All-America honorable-mention, Don Hansen Football Gazette All-America second-team and All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) second-team honors after his final collegiate season. Ranked 11th all-time at Mercyhurst in career interceptions with eight, he still holds program records for interceptions in a game (3) and punt return yards in a game (118).
Keefe graduated from Mercyhurst in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and minor in business marketing.
Personal Data
Hometown: Washington, D.C.
College Education: Mercyhurst ‘03
