Former Steelers DT Stops Potential School Tragedy

One former Pittsburgh Steelers first-round pick stepped in to prevent something much bigger than he imagined.

PITTSBURGH -- Former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle Ziggy Hood recently stepped in to help a student and, in doing so, prevented a school tragedy at Palo Duro High School in Texas. 

The former first-round pick has since found a new life outside of football. After retiring in 2019, Hood turned to education, becoming a history teacher, currently employed at Palo Duro. In a story first reported by KAMR/KCIT, Hood stepped in to speak to a student and ended up preventing a much larger incident from occurring at the school.

Hood and a school resources officer discovered the student had thoughts of causing violence due to incidences of bullying. Ultimately, a weapon was discovered and the student was arrested. 

"After talking with him for a little bit, trying to explain to him, there’s multiple ways of doing about going about this," Hood told KAMR/KCIT. "And one way was not the way which he had planned."

Afterward, Hood made it clear that he credits PD’s liaison officers for the safety of everyone involved, and instead of spotlighting his actions, he sent a message to young people struggling. 

"The pressures of social media and trying to live up to a certain standard. This ain’t the way to do it," Hood said. "Talk to somebody. If it’s not the teacher, if it’s not the counselor, if it’s not the principal, go to a local coach or go to somebody. You don’t want to make a permanent decision based off a temporary motion."

Make sure you bookmark All Steelers for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!

Minkah Fitzpatrick Returns to Steelers

Joey Porter Jr. Wins Day at Steelers Training Camp

Kenny Robinson Shooting Up Steelers Depth Chart

Steelers LB Looks Like a Superstar

Steelers Named Worst Behaved Team in NFL

Kwon Alexander Looks Like Steelers Best LB

Steelers Add Three More Injuries at Training Camp

• Subscribe to the All Steelers YouTube Channel