Lane Kiffin was released from Queen of the Valley Medical Center Wednesday at about 11 a.m., but the Oakland Raiders’ coach didn’t go home.

He went straight to work, watching film of the defense in a preseason game last week against Arizona, attending a staff meeting followed by a team meeting, and then going to the field at Redwood Middle School for an afternoon practice.

Kiffin, hospitalized Monday and Tuesday with a viral infection, said he was feeling better, but was under doctor’s orders not to exert energy when he returned to training camp. So that meant low keying it and not raising his voice as his team went through drills.

Wearing a white golf visor, he didn’t have that usual bounce in his step as he moved from field to field for the two-hour practice session in 80-degree weather. He mainly observed the team and took time to talk to players 1-on-1.

Kiffin is still awaiting results of further tests that were conducted, but doctors that have told him that they think he has mononucleosis.

“They’re treating it as if it is,” Kiffin, 32, said, adding that he lost 11 pounds due to the sickness. He had a temperature of 103.7 when he woke up Sunday, but didn’t go to the hospital until Monday morning. His top assistants — offensive coordinator Greg Knapp, defensive coordinator Rob Ryan and special team’s coordinator Brian Schneider — ran practices in Kiffin’s absence.

“He couldn’t be as energetic as he wanted to be and talk as loud as he wanted to,” said safety Stuart Schweigert. “But just having him back on the field was nice. We did well with him being gone, which was nice.

“He’s the head man and he’s the one making all the decisions, so when he’s not out there things could easily go astray a little bit. But with the coaching staff that we have, we went without skipping a beat.”

Kiffin was weak, but he still worked when he was hospitalized, reviewing film of each day’s practice on a lap top computer. He also got updates on the team from assistant coaches.

The rookie coach, who said he is used to putting in long work weeks, had a difficult time on game day at McAfee Coliseum Saturday. He said he spent two hours in the darkness of the coach’s locker room before warm-ups, “just trying to re-charge and make it through that game.”

As soon as he was done speaking to reporters after the game went final late Saturday, Kiffin said he hit rock bottom. “It was all downhill from there,” he said, adding that he’s never had a serious illness in the past.

“The worst thing that I feel was that it distracted from this team and distracted from what we’re supposed to be doing. It’s really unfortunate that we even have to be talking about it.”

Kiffin said he’s not looking too far ahead, instead going day by day to try and recover and gain his strength back as much as possible.

“It’s really good to be back out and just be with them and get some work done,” he said.

• SIRIUS NFL Radio in town today

SIRIUS NFL Radio, the only radio channel devoted to the NFL 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, will broadcast live from the Raiders training camp today. Former NFL defensive lineman Tim Ryan and former NFL pro personnel executive Pat Kirwan will host the “The Red Zone,” live from 10 a.m. to noon exclusively on SIRIUS NFL Radio channel 124.

The visit is part of the third annual SIRIUS NFL Radio Training Camp Tour, which features live on-site broadcasts from all 32 NFL team training camps from July 26 to Aug. 16. Hosts interview players, coaches and executives at each stop to provide an inside look at the progress of every NFL team as they prepare for the 2007 season.

 

• Raiders support education

The Raiders have teamed up with other Bay Area sports teams in a collective effort to support education. The Bay Area All-Star Scholarship Team honored local students during a visit to the Silver and Black’s training camp in Napa.  

Established in 1996, the BAASST program is a partnership supported by the Raiders, Oakland Athletics, San Francisco 49ers, San Francisco Giants, Golden State Warriors, and San Jose Sharks. The BAASST program is the first of its kind in the realm of professional sports.

Teams have awarded scholarships of $3,000 to college-bound students who have achieved a minimum grade point average of 3.0, displayed leadership qualities in the classroom and on the athletic field, and demonstrated the value of education, hard work, and community outreach.

High schools from the Bay Area’s nine counties, including Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, San Francisco and Sonoma counties, submitted applications and nominated worthy students for the scholarships.

The Raiders’ 2007 BAASST recipient is Denisha Brekke of San Rafael High School.

• Other developments

• Week No. 2 of the NFL preseason arrives Saturday, when Oakland plays the 49ers at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. The teams have split the last six preseason meetings. “It’s big to win the Battle of the Bay,” 49ers wide receiver Arnaz Battle said on the NFL’s web site.

• Buddy Ryan, wearing a Raiders hat, was at practice Wednesday. His son, Rob, is the Raiders’ defensive coordinator.

• Raiders owner Al Davis watched practice from a golf cart.

• Kiffin said he’ll address the quarterback rotation for this week’s exhibition game today.

• A flag football game between camp interns followed practice.

• The Raiders haven’t announced a practice schedule for Friday.