Georgia Tech coach Chan Gailey has a heart attack

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Glad he's resting comfortably.

 

Georgia Tech coach suffers heart attack; undergoes angioplasty

By PAUL NEWBERRY, AP Sports Writer

March 14, 2005

 

ATLANTA (AP) -- Georgia Tech football coach Chan Gailey suffered a heart attack Monday while playing racquetball at the campus recreation center.

 

Gailey, who turned 53 in January, was taken to Piedmont Hospital after experiencing chest pains. He underwent a balloon angioplasty, a procedure that is used to clear a blocked artery, and was resting comfortably, the school said.

 

``He'll be in hospital probably three or four days, but they do expect a complete recovery,'' athletic director Dave Braine said. ``We expect him to be back here within a few weeks.''

 

Braine said the angioplasty was needed to clear an artery that was totally blocked. He wasn't aware of the coach having any previous heart problems.

 

``It was touch and go for a little while, it really was,'' Braine said. ``We were told it was serious, so everybody said a prayer and hoped he was going to be fine, and he is. His family -- his wife and his two sons -- are there with him, and he's doing well.''

 

Gailey began feeling pain in his chest and left arm during an early morning racquetball game. After calling Georgia Tech's athletic trainer, the coach went next door to the student health center. Two school doctors examined Gailey and called an ambulance to take him to Piedmont, just a couple of miles away from the downtown campus.

 

``He was in pain,'' Braine said. ``They did an EKG and found out that he was having a heart attack.''

 

Most of the players learned of Gailey's condition shortly after he went into the hospital.

 

``I couldn't believe it,'' said safety Chris Reis, one of the team's top defensive players. ``He's like a father-figure to all of us. He's like a mentor to all of us. It's just disbelief and a feeling of helplessness. You can't do anything except hope for the best.''

 

Gailey, entering his fourth season as Georgia Tech's coach, has a record of 21-17 and has guided the Yellow Jackets to three straight bowl appearances, extending the school-record streak to eight years in a row.

 

This is considered a critical year for Gailey, who has been criticized for failing to match the success of his predecessor, George O'Leary. The Yellow Jackets have yet to win more than seven games in a season after eclipsing that total each of the last four years under O'Leary.

 

Gailey plays racquetball every morning but was told by doctors that he'll need to make a major change in his diet to reduce the chances of additional heart problems, according to Braine.

 

``The worst thing is he's not going to be able to eat ice cream anymore,'' Braine said.

 

Georgia Tech began spring practice last Friday. Much of the attention is focused on the quarterback position, with junior-to-be Reggie Ball fighting to keep his job.

 

The Yellow Jackets were scheduled to practice Tuesday, Friday and Saturday, then take next week off for spring break. School officials were considering whether to cancel practice this week, with hopes that Gailey would be well enough to resume at least some of his duties after the break.

 

Spring practice is scheduled to end April 16. Georgia Tech would likely need a waiver from the NCAA to extend its spring schedule an extra week.

 

``I think he would want us to go ahead and go through practice,'' Reis said. ``He's one of those coaches who's very humble. He doesn't want things to stop on account of him.''

 

Gailey previously coached the Dallas Cowboys for two seasons, leading the team to an NFC East championship and consecutive playoff appearances. Despite that success, he was fired by owner Jerry Jones.

 

Gailey also worked as an assistant with the Denver Broncos, Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins. He was a head coach at Samford and Troy State and served a one-year stint in the same position with the Birmingham Fire of the ill-fated World League of American Football.

 

Gailey is one of several football coaches who have experienced heart problems, a possible side effect of a job where the pressure to win each week is greater than any other sport.

 

Former Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Reeves, a close friend of Gailey's, needed an angioplasty while in his 40s and had quadruple-bypass surgery late in the 1998 season. He returned to coach in the playoffs, leading the Falcons to their first Super Bowl.

 

Former Georgia coach and athletic director Vince Dooley underwent an angioplasty five times between 1987 and 1996 to clear blocked arteries, but has had no further heart problems.

 

``It's definitely a stressful position,'' Reis said. ``Coaches have it rough. With their traveling schedule and all their speaking engagements, they probably don't eat as well as they want to and don't get to work out as much as they want to. Then, when you add all the stress to that, it's definitely a recurring theme throughout coaching.

 

``I don't know how you cut it back. You just try to relax and do your best.''