Heisler grew up in Ohio and attended Massillon Washington High School in Massillon, Ohio. He tried out for the school's football team in 1932 despite weighing only 135 pounds – undersized for a football player. He made the team under head coach Paul Brown, however, and was a regular starting in 1933, the first of a series of strong seasons. After graduating from Massillon, Heisler enrolled at Miami University in his home state. By then weighing 155 pounds, he won All-Ohio honors as a guard on the football team between 1935 and 1937.
