Neuheisel played his college football at UCLA, beginning his career as a walk-on and holding placekicks for John Lee.
Neuheisel led the Bruins to a 45–9 victory over 4th-ranked and heavily favored Illinois in the 1984 Rose Bowl, in which he was named the MVP; two of his four touchdown passes were caught by a sophomore wide receiver from San Diego named Karl Dorrell, a future Neuheisel assistant coach and later his predecessor as the UCLA head coach.
While attending USC Law School on an NCAA postgraduate scholarship, Neuheisel served as a graduate assistant with UCLA, where he tutored Troy Aikman.
After the season, the Buffs were forced to forfeit their five wins due to an ineligible player, though Neuheisel was subsequently ruled to not be affected.
In the 2000 season, the Huskies won the Pac-10 title and the Rose Bowl over Big Ten champ Purdue, led by quarterback Drew Brees.
Washington, led by senior quarterback Marques Tuiasosopo, the Rose Bowl MVP, finished the season at 11–1 and was ranked third in the final national polls.
In 2008, The Seattle Times ran a series of articles which accused Neuheisel and athletic director Barbara Hedges of overlooking numerous discipline problems—including outright criminal behavior—during the 2000 season.
[7] During that year, UW safety Curtis Williams was allowed to play despite being issued an outstanding arrest warrant for assaulting his wife, Michelle.
[7] Linebacker Jeremiah Pharms was under investigation for robbing and shooting a drug dealer after police found his fingerprints at the scene, but was not charged until the season was over.
[7] Jerramy Stevens, the Huskies star tight end, was under investigation of raping a UW freshman on sorority row.
However, a few days later, a Seattle newspaper reporter wrote that he'd eavesdropped on a private conversation of Neuheisel discussing the 49ers job on his cell phone while the two were waiting for a flight at San Francisco International Airport.
[9] In the summer of 2003, Neuheisel came under fire for taking part in a neighborhood pool for the 2003 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament and lies he told about his actions.
UW athletic director Barbara Hedges learned that the NCAA was considering giving Neuheisel a two-year show-cause order, which would have effectively blacklisted him from the coaching ranks for two years.
[14] Ravens head coach Brian Billick assured that he would allow Neuheisel to leave the team before the completion of the 2007 NFL season.
[16] On December 29, 2007, Neuheisel was introduced as the head coach of the UCLA Bruins in a five-year contract that paid him $1.25 million per season and included incentives that could add $500,000 a year.
A brutal 59–0 defeat on the road at the hands of #15 BYU was followed by a disappointing 31–10 loss at home to unranked Arizona in the Bruins' Pac-10 opener.
The class was headlined by two former USC commits, Morrell Presley and Randall Carroll, offensive linemen Xavier Sua-Filo and Stan Hasiak, and running back Damien Thigpen.
[25] At the end of the season Neuheisel fired two assistant coaches, including Chow, and said he would "be crushed ... if we're not going to a bowl game a year from now."
The Bruins won the first Pac-12 South Division title, as crosstown rival USC was ineligible due to NCAA sanctions.
[27] In May 2018, Neuheisel was announced as head coach for the Arizona Hotshots, a Phoenix-based team for the planned Alliance of American Football.
[28] In December 2011, Neuheisel joined the CBS Sports Network as a guest analyst for their "Inside College Football" show.
[31] Neuheisel and his wife, Susan (née Wilkinson), have three sons: Jerry (b. April 1992), Jack (b. August 1994), and Joe (b. January 1997).
Rick's father, Richard "Dick" Gerald Neuheisel Sr., is an attorney and past president of Sister Cities International.