Jan 30, 2007 4 min read

PITTSBURGH(AP)- Mike Tomlin apparently intends to make special teams a priority in his first season as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ coach. Tomlin completed his first staff Monday by hiring five new coaches, including Bob Ligashesky as the special teams coach and Amos Jones as Ligashesky’s assistant.

Also added were wide receivers coach Randy Fichtner, running backs coach Kirby Wilson and offensive line coach Larry Zierlein.

Tomlin, hired last week, retained six members of Bill Cowher’s final staff – including new offensive coordinator Bruce Arians, who was promoted last week from receivers coach. Also returning are defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, defensive line coach John Mitchell, linebackers coach Keith Butler and tight ends coach James Daniel.

Ray Horton, previously the assistant defensive backs coach, was promoted to defensive backs coach. Darren Perry, the former Steelers player who held that job for the last three seasons, was not retained.

“They are all good communicators who will help make sure our players understand what exactly is expected of them,” Tomlin said Monday – the first full day he has spent in his office since taking over last week.

Previously, Tomlin identified former Cincinnati Bengals player and assistant coach Ken Anderson as the quarterbacks coach. Anderson, 57, replaces former University of Massachusetts coach Mark Whipple, who had been the quarterbacks coach since Ben Roethlisberger was drafted in 2004 but was not retained.

The Steelers have never had two coaches devoted to special teams – Chuck Noll once coached them by himself – but Tomlin decided to do so following a major falloff in production by the kicking units last season.

Chris Gardocki’s 41.3 yards-per-punt average was the third-lowest among NFL regulars, and Jeff Reed missed seven of 27 field goal attempts. Reed had missed only five times in each of the previous two seasons, while attempting more kicks in each than he did last season.

Ligashesky, a 44-year-old native of suburban McKees Rocks, coached previously in the practice complex where the Steelers train – he was Pitt’s tight ends and special teams coordinator under former coach Walt Harris from 2000 to 2003. He was the St. Louis Rams’ special teams coach during the last two seasons after being the Jaguars’ assistant special teams coach in 2004.

Whipple’s departure signals the Steelers’ unhappiness with Roethlisberger’s play in the season after he won the Super Bowl in only his second year as starter. Roethlisberger threw 23 interceptions – three more than in his first two seasons combined – and was sacked 46 times, twice as many as in 2005.

Fichtner, 43, was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the last six seasons at Memphis, where Tomlin once was an assistant. The 45-year-old Wilson has been an NFL running backs coach for the last nine seasons with the Cardinals, Bucs, Redskins and Patriots.

Wilson is only the second Steelers’ running backs coach since 1972. He replaces Dick Hoak, who held the job for 35 seasons – the longest continuous tenure by an assistant with one team in NFL history.

Jones, who is 47, also coached at Pitt in 1992 as the kicking game coordinator. He was the special teams and outside linebackers coach at Mississippi State for the last three seasons. This will be the first time he has coached in the NFL.

The 61-year-old Zierlein was Buffalo’s line coach last season after holding the same job with the Browns from 2001-04.

Tomlin coached previously in college or the NFL with Zierlein, Fichtner, Wilson and Jones.

After being introduced as the Steelers’ coach on Jan. 22, Tomlin – formerly the Vikings’ defensive coordinator – spent the rest of the week at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., and at his Minneapolis-area home before returning to Pittsburgh.