Minnesota’s Jerry Kill continues to deal with epilepsy

Minnesota announced Thursday that head coach Jerry Kill is going to take time off in order to focus on treating his epilepsy. Kill has twice suffered seizures this season, the most recent of them coming prior to the Gophers’ game against Michigan last Saturday. That prevented him from traveling with the team to Ann Arbor.

Defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys, who is a long-time member of Kill’s coaching staff, will serve as the head coach until Kill’s return. A timetable for his return hasn’t been set, though athletics director Norwood Teague said in a statement that Kill will “remain in very close contact with the team and his staff and provide direction and support as needed.”

Minnesota will be without head coach Jerry Kill after he suffered a seizure early Saturday morning. Kill, who has epilepsy, also suffered a seizure during halftime of the New Mexico State game just a couple weeks ago and missed the rest of that game.

Here’s the announcement from Minnesota’s athletic department:

Minnesota’s offensive and defensive coordinators struck back at critics who suggested head football coach Jerry Kill should resign, according to a story in the Star Tribune. Their defenses came after Kill suffered another in-game seizure in his team’s victory over Western Illinois on Saturday.

Both defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys and offensive coordinator Matt Limegrover have worked with Kill for more than a decade and are quite obviously very close to the head coach.

It’s Kill’s fourth seizure in 22 games as Minnesota’s head coach. He took over the program in 2011, and led the Golden Gophers to their first bowl game in three years last season. Minnesota is now 3-0 on the year -- the Gophers’ second straight year with such a start (they won four in a row to start out 2012 before losing six of their last eight).

Some columnists have suggested Kill’s health is not his own personal choice, instead surmising that the comfort of television watchers is more important. Kill has previously publicly refused to let his disease beat him, and has used it to help others.

Update: Kill is resting at a local hospital.

Minnesota head coach Jerry Kill appears to have suffered a seizure right before halftime of the Gophers game against Western Illinois.

According to a tweet from ESPN’s Brett McMurphy, Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach Jerry Kill was released from the hospital this morning after suffering a seizure on Saturday and he will return to work on Monday.

This wasn’t Kill’s first seizure. He has dealt with them for some time now and was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2005 but the cancer is now in remission. The seizures, however, continue to be a problem.

According to the report, Kill is alert and resting comfortably, but he’ll remain in the hospital for further testing, and that’s likely all we’ll hear on Saturday night. University officials may provide another update Sunday, ESPN Twin Cities reported.

Kill has had seizure issues in the past, including last season when he suffered one on the sidelines during a game against New Mexico State. Kill returned to coaching immediately following that game, but admitted himself to a hospital after two weeks to further deal with the problem. In 2005, Kill suffered a similar seizure during a game when he was coaching NIU.

Kill had previously suffered a seizure during a game back in 2005, and also had health issues that caused him to be hospitalized after a game last season.

Minnesota suffered a rather embarrassing loss with Kill on the sidelines on Saturday, as the North Dakota State Bison, a FCS team, came to Minneapolis and defeated the Gophers 37-24 on their home field. Kill made it through the game and through speaking to the media post-game, but things went south later. Reportedly, Kill suffered another seizure on Sunday, which is why he returned to the hospital.

Jerry Kill was back on the sidelines on Saturday, just one week after suffering a scary stroke during the Minnesota Golden Gophers’ loss to New Mexico State. It was a great moment, with Kill being applauded by the students before the game. And then his Golden Gophers went out and picked up their first win of the season, defeating Miami of Ohio, 29-23.

While it’s not often we applaud just seeing a coach on the field, but having Kill back on the sidelines is certainly cause for celebration.

Kill has not yet decided whether to coach from the sidelines or the press box, but the fact that he’s coaching at all is incredible. He said that the seizure was one of the worst that he’s experienced and that “It’s kind of knocked me out.” Kill did not stay with the team in their hotel on Friday night, but took place in the Friday walkthrough and participated in meetings with his assistants.

For more on the Minnesota Golden Gophers, visit The Daily Gopher.

Normally, a photo of a coach addressing his team after practice wouldn’t be particularly noteworthy. But nothing about this situation is normal. Minnesota head coach Jerry Kill is out of the hospital and returned to practice to address his team on Thursday. After what unfolded on Saturday, just seeing Kill up and moving is an excellent sight.

Via GoldenGopherFB

Smith seemed to feel strongly that Kill will be able to make it back to work in time to coach the Gophers this Saturday against Miami (Ohio) -- he called it a “gut feeling” that Kill would return. That’s no guarantee, of course.

Kill has suffered a seizure while coaching at least once before. In his case, they appear to be triggered by dehydration, which he’s also come down with during at least one game. Minnesota may need to make special accommodations for him on the sidelines, but it sounds like he’ll be back very soon.

A report from team doctor Pat Smith:

Kill has a history of dealing with both seizures and dehydration on the sidelines. Smith said the two ailments affect Kill in tandem, with hot and humid conditions threatening to trigger seizures.

According to the Minnesota SID, Kill is in stable condition after suffering the seizure (via Luke Zimmermann).

This is also a condition Kill has dealt with for awhile. In 2005, Kill suffered a mid-game seizure while coaching at SIU.