Thoughts, prayers, good vibes and everything of the sort goes out to Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano, who was recently diagnosed with Acute promyelocyic leukemia (APML), and will be sidelined for a period of time.
Pagano, who turns fifty-two this week, was diagnosed with the illness days ago during a bye week.
Pagano’s physician, Dr. Larry Cripe, indicated his condition is a relatively favorable form of acute leukemia in terms of a likelihood of remission and of him achieving a cure. There are specific treatments for the disease, and those procedures started on Pagano last Wednesday night.
Pagano, who served as a graduate assistant at Miami during the 1986 season, returned to the Hurricanes’ football program for a five-year run as the seconday coach and special teams coordinator. In his second coaching term with the Hurricanes (1995-2000), Pagano coached four NFL first-round draftees: Duane Starks (1998), Phillip Buchanon (2002), Ed Reed (2002) and Mike Rumph (2002).
He was reunited with Reed during his stint as secondary coach of the Baltimore Ravens from 2008-2010. In the team’s first season with Pagano as an assistant coach, Baltimore led the NFL with 26 interceptions, including Reed’s league-best nine picks. Pagano also served as a graduate assistant at Miami for the 1986 season.