Minnesota head football coach Jerry Kill has announced that he is retiring, effective immediately, for health reasons.
Specifics about the health concerns were not given; Kill suffers from epilepsy, causing him to take a leave of absence from the Gophers two seasons ago, and is a cancer survivor as well.
Editor’s Update: At a press conference announcing the news, Kill cited his issues with epilepsy as the reason for the retirement. He indicated that he was under a lot of stress and had been unable to sleep more than three hours per night for several weeks. He also indicated that side effects from his epilepsy medication made him unable to do all the things he needed to do to coach, as a result he was taking less than his recommended dose. This reduction in his medication lead to him suffering two seizures on Tuesday, and from that he realized that this could not continue.
“This is not the way I wanted to go out,” Kill said at the press conference. “But you all know about the struggles, and I did my best to change. But some of those struggles have returned, and I don’t want to cheat the game.”
He went further into the recurrence of the health issues, later in the conference.
“I went through a bad situation two years ago, and I’m headed right back there,” Kill said. “I haven’t slept. Two nights ago, my wife was up with me all night, and I slept one hour and came to work. The most sleep I’ve gotten over the last three weeks is probably three hours or less.
“She stays there and sits in a chair and watches me,” Kill said, as Rebecca Kill wiped away tears. “That’s what she did last night. Hell, that ain’t no way to live. I’ve taken years off my life and hers. But we both say we’d do it again, wouldn’t we? Damn right.”
Defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys, who stepped in for Kill during his 2013 absence, will take over control of the team as interim head coach. The two coached Minnesota to a surprising 8-4 finish in 2013, followed by another in 2014. Needless to say, Jerry Kill is extremely popular with the Gophers and their fans, and will be missed.
Minnesota faces Mi1chigan this Saturday in a Big Ten matchup.
Main Image Credit:
Main Photo Caption: LINCOLN, NE – NOVEMBER 22: during their game at Memorial Stadium on November 22, 2014 in Lincoln, Nebraska. Minnesota defeated Nebraska 28-24. (Photo by Eric Francis/Getty Images)
