Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Elliott Cherishes His Second Chance

Had life treated him differently, Bob Elliott could have been the coach at Iowa. Today he is blessed to be alive and eager to begin his first season as defensive coordinator at San Diego State. Elliott, who spent 12 years as an assistant on Hayden Fry's staff at Iowa, was in line to be Fry's successor until he began suffering from polycythemia vera, a cancer condition in which bone marrow becomes hyperactive. Elliott had to leave coaching to battle for his life and Kirk Ferentz took over for Fry. Elliott had a bone marrow transplant in 1999 and after he recovered, landed a job as an assistant at Iowa State before moving to Kansas State (pictured above left). His cancer has been in remission since the transplant with the exception of a brief setback in 2001, and he joined Chuck Long's staff in December. The Aztecs begin spring practice Tuesday.

No comments: