ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit shared that his son, Zak, came home from the hospital Wednesday after dealing with an unspecified heart issue. He also shared that his son, a junior tight end at Ohio State, will have a long road to recovery.
“Just an update on Zak. He came home yesterday from the hospital and is happy to be with his family,” Kirk Herbstreit wrote in a tweet. “With that being said, like I mentioned earlier, this is a long process. Will take months to see how his heart is responding to his medication. We are hopeful he will be okay but for now we are vigilant and in prayer.
“I really wanted to thank ALL the people that have reached out concerned about Zak,” he continued. “It has been overwhelming to see such outpouring of love and well wishes. The tweets-texts-calls have been very powerful and appreciated. Thank you for your ongoing prayers-Zak is an upbeat positive person by nature and is looking forward to feeling much better in the future. God bless all of you and thank you again for your concern over our son Zak.”
Before that, Zak said in a statement he was hospitalized Friday after undergoing several tests. The ESPN analyst appeared on the The Pat McAfee Show Thursday where he added that medical personnel initially thought he had pneumonia because he had fluid in his lungs. But that turned out to not be the case.
Kirk didn’t give specifics, but he said whatever his son is dealing with “came out of nowhere” and there were “very few symptoms.”
"We had a setback with Zak last Friday and the last week or so has been a real whirlwind..
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) June 22, 2023
He's at home in good spirits and it's gonna be a long process to see how his heart responds"
All of the positive vibes @KirkHerbstreit 🙏🙏#PMSLive pic.twitter.com/fDdQH6ca76