by Will Graves
AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP)—Steelers running backs coach Kirby Wilson was hospitalized on Jan. 5 after being severely burned during an early morning fire at his home in a Pittsburgh suburb.
Authorities say the fire broke out around 3 a.m. in the kitchen of Wilson’s home in Seven Fields, about 30 minutes north of the city. Flames were visible to firefighters when they arrived on the scene, according to Cranberry Township director of Public Safety Jeffrey Schueler.
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| HOSPITALIZED—This May 5, 2011 photo shows Pittsburgh Steelers running backs coach Kirby Wilson. (AP Photo/File)
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The 50-year-old Wilson, in his fifth season with the Steelers, was taken to a hospital before being airlifted to UPMC Mercy Hospital for treatment. His condition was not immediately available. The cause of the fire has not been determined and remains under investigation.
Wilson did not travel with the team on Sunday when the Steelers faced Denver in the first round of the AFC playoffs. Offensive assistant Harold Goodwin worked with the running backs during Friday’s practice.
Steelers president Art Rooney II said he was “saddened” by the news.
“We know that he has the best medical care in the country treating him,” Rooney said in a statement posted on the team’s website. “The entire organization is praying for Kirby to have a full recovery and we will be by his side through this difficult time.”
UPMC Mercy has the area’s only Comprehensive Burn Center. It’s the same hospital where quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was treated following a motorcycle crash in 2006.
Wilson, who is from Los Angeles, played running back and wide receiver at Illinois before playing briefly in the Canadian Football League. He served as running backs coach in New England, Washington, Arizona and Tampa Bay before joining the Steelers when head coach Mike Tomlin took over in 2007.
Popular with the players because of his high-energy approach, Wilson guided running back Rashard Mendenhall to consecutive 1,000-yard seasons and spent this week helping third-year back Isaac Redman get ready for his first playoff start after Mendenhall was lost for the season with a torn ACL in his right knee.
“He’s really taken me from a practice-squad running back to a running back that’s capable of playing in this league,” Redman said of Wilson. “He had a lot to do with my development, being able to recognize defenses and being able to be just a complete professional in how I go about my life every day.”
The players were alerted to Wilson’s condition during a team meeting Friday, and his players realized something was amiss when Wilson—a notoriously early riser—was not at the facility looking at film.
(Associated Press writer Joe Mandak in Pittsburgh contributed to this report.)
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