ASU football coach in ICU
By A. Stacy Long
Montgomery Advertiser
COE
Alabama State University football coach Charlie Coe was in the cardiovascular intensive care unit of Jackson Hospital on Sunday, a day after he missed the Hornets' win over Prairie View AM.
Two players said they were told that Coe had undergone open heart surgery, but ASU officials and coaches wouldn't confirm it.
"Anything about that needs to come from the school," defensive coordinator Tony Pierce said.
Alabama State University had no update on Coe's status, spokesman A.A. Moore said.
"We're going to keep Charlie in our prayers," Pierce said. "I know if I was in that situation, I'd want all you guys praying for me."
Coe checked into the hospital Friday when he experienced chest pains at ASU's football complex. Pierce led the team Saturday in Coe's place.
The hospital confirmed that Coe was in ICU on Sunday, but a spokesperson said it could not release his condition due to privacy laws.
A person who declined to identify herself in the ICU's waiting room said Coe's family would have no comment. The person also declined to say whether she was with the Coes or the hospital.
"That's not important right now," she said.
Coe's wife, Debbie, and his mother -- both live in St. Louis -- were at the hospital with the 54-year-old, Pierce and assistant coach Jack Bush said after the Hornets practiced Sunday.
Coe's son, Michael, is a defensive back at the University of Arkansas and remained with the team Sunday. School spokesman Kevin Trainor said Michael Coe was at a team meeting and meal, and that he was aware of his dad's hospitalization.
Pierce and Bush said they did not know if any other family members were with Charlie Coe.
"All we can do is pray for him, visit him when we can and show we're there for him," linebacker Ronald "Rock" Dillon said. "We found out before the game that he was going to have it (surgery), but I don't have all the details."
Coe, a career college assistant, took over the ASU program in early August following the school's suspension of L.C. Cole.
Picked to finish last in the Southwestern Athletic Conference's Eastern Division, the Hornets (5-2) are first in the division entering the Magic City Classic. ASU and Alabama AM play at 3 p.m. Saturday at Birmingham's Legion Field.
Whether Coe can return by Saturday is unclear.
"I know of the process and how serious it is," running back Keldrick Williams said. "I'm praying for Coach Coe and I know everything will be fine."
In January 1999, Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Reeves returned to the sidelines less than a month after undergoing quadruple bypass surgery. The Falcons advanced to the Super Bowl and lost to the Denver Broncos.
"We just hope he gets back soon," offensive lineman Kevin Harris said.
Coe's hospital stay is the latest in a long list of events that have plagued the ASU program this season, starting with Cole's suspension.
Cole has sued ASU for his reinstatement in Montgomery County Circuit Court.
The team's top returning offensive player -- tight end Chris Coleman -- has not played after being ruled academically ineligible the week of the team's season opener.
This month, the school released the self-imposed penalties it proposed to the NCAA for violations allegedly committed by Cole. Both Coe and Cole called the proposed two years probation and loss of five scholarships each year drastic.
"It's nothing new for something to go wrong for us," Williams said. "This team is strong, we're going to support Coach Coe and we're going to work through it."
