http://www.1500espn.com/vikings-2/2018/07/report-vikings-o-line-coach-tony-sparano-died/ Man he died way to young. I'm sure the cause of death will be out soon.
RIP, I never thought he was a bad head coach, he just made the mistake of surrounding himself with bad coordinators. Crazy to think he is the last coach not named Bill Belichick to win the AFC East.
From what I read, he went to the hospital on Thursday complaining of chest pains, they checked him out and eventually released him. Then he got up this morning and was getting ready for church, everything seemed fine, and then he was found unresponsive a few minutes later. My guess is that he had a massive heart attack and went almost instantly...which is definitely the way to go. I'll pray for his family; he seemed like a great guy and I know the players fought for him to stay. Very sad news.
His heart may have stopped pumping but now he's fist pumping Eternity. Thanks for the memories coach.
AMEN to that....it was an awesome game and the Pats had no idea what the heck was going on. Despite our record under him, he created an NFL trend and that's pretty darn cool.
The most accomplished coach we've had in the last 15 years. Gave us vengeance on the 1-15 season by winning the east, winning @ Jets @ Bills and @ Pats beat down. The first time we won all our road games against division foe's since 1984. RIP Tony.
RIP coach, the enduring memory of you will be how much you cared and how much pride you talk in being head coach of this team. You were always personable to the fans and always cared about your players. You made this organization, this game, and this planet better for having a person of your character. You gave me my first GREAT memory of being a Dolphins fan that felt like my generations own and for that I will always remember you. May your family find the strength and love they need, may your soul be at peace, and may you first pump for all eternity.
Very sad news. Seemed like a great coach to play for. Got screwed by Ireland and his inability to bring enough talent to compete
I saw this yesterday and couldn't believe it. He seemed liked a great guy and you could tell he loved football. May he RIP...
Never liked him as a head coach as I thought he was in way over his head but with that being said, the players did love him. He was a players' coach. 56 is just too damned young to die, in this day and age of modern medicine...TOO damned young! Guys, we all have that "macho" streak in us. We only go to the doctor when we are absolutely sick or injured. This is crap. You know your own bodies. You KNOW when something isn't right...may not be REALLY bothering you, but you know something, somewhere deep down is wrong. Hope I'm wrong, but I have a feeling that's what happened with Sparano. He ignored something until it was too late. Rest in peace
He went to the hospital complaining of chest pains four days before he died. So he knew something wasn't right. When I had my heart attack almost 2 years ago, I woke up with minor pain dead center in the middle of my chest- I thought it was heartburn. So I got up and walked around the house for 15-20 minutes. I guess my pacing woke up my wife though so she got up, checked my blood pressure and said we should probably go to the ER. I refused though because I wasn't really hurting....it as just dull, minor pain. About 45 minutes later, I sat back down in bed and then something hit- it was intense, searing pain for about 40 seconds. It literally doubled me over and I involuntarily started crying- it felt like I was being stabbed just above my collar bone. But just like that, the pain disappeared and I was perfectly fine again. It was the weirdest thing I've ever been through and I still figured it was heartburn. My wife kept nagging though so I drove myself to the hospital (with her) and they did an EKG. Everything was normal, but there's a chemical your body produces only when you've had a heart attack recently. The test showed I had it in my system so they admitted me, and they found two arteries with 80-90% blockages. They said it literally could have killed me at any given moment and it was a small miracle I didn't die that morning. Anyway, all my vitals were normal before and after the heart attack, plus all my blood work looked above average for a guy my age. My good and bad cholesterol were low. There were no real "warning signs" besides the 30-45 seconds of serious pain so it's hard to know....but they say every heart attack is different. One person may have almost no pain where someone else says it's the worst thing they ever felt in their life. I said all of that to say this- if something feels off, regardless of your fitness or pain levels, get to your doctor and run some tests. I nearly died from what I thought was heartburn...my remedy was to "walk it off" and that clearly didn't work. I am very fortunate to be here and it's only because my wife nagged the heck out of me for two hours. So don't be that guy like I was. By the way, I was 43 at the time. Don't assume you're safe because you're still young either.
Troponin My guess is that Sporano had a minor heart attack and Thursday and when he went to the hospital his EKG was normal. I assume that they drew a troponin, but his heart attack was so small it came back negative. He then went home and either a large piece of plaque broke free and completely clogged one of his coronaries, or it was almost closed and a small piece clogged it the rest of the way. Over the years working in cath labs I've seen this happen numerous times.
R.I.P. I think he gave it all he could while here. Hard to make koolaid when all you can use is water.