Football Notebook

Associated Press

The football notebook ...

PITTSBURGH — Steelers' wide receiver Hines Ward wants to retire with the Pittsburgh Steelers, offering to restructure his contract to do it.

Ward posted on his Facebook page Saturday that he's already told the Steelers he's willing to work with them on altering his deal so he can remain with the team. Ward's comments came after NFL.com reported the Steelers are planning to cut the franchise's all-time leading receiver.

"I don't normally like to respond to rumors, but as I've said all along, I want to finish my career with the Pittsburgh Steelers," Ward posted.

The 14-year veteran is scheduled to make $4 million in 2012. He's coming off a season in which he finished with 46 receptions for 381 yards and two touchdowns, the lowest totals in each category since he was a rookie in 1998.

Ward, who turns 36 next month, became the eighth player in league history to reach 1,000 career receptions in the regular-season finale against Cleveland. He and Jerry Rice are the only players in league history to reach 1,000 receptions and win multiple Super Bowls.

GIANTS

TAMPA, Fla. — New York Giants quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan is leaving the Super Bowl champions to become the offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Sullivan spent the last eight seasons with the Giants. He has coached Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning and the rest of New York's quarterbacks for the past two years.

SUPER CASE OF MEASLES

INDIANAPOLIS — Health officials say a person diagnosed with measles may have exposed others at a downtown Indianapolis storefront that housed a television studio, a hat shop and a nightclub during last week's Super Bowl festivities.

COLLEGE

BELLEFONTE, Pa. — A judge said he would decide soon whether to grant former Penn State assistant coach Jerry Sandusky greater freedom — and visits from his young grandchildren — while he awaits trial on child sex-abuse charges, but prosecutors countered that Sandusky's home is not a safe place for children.

Judge John Cleland set a tentative trial date of May 14 for Sandusky and promised to rule quickly on a number of other issues, including dueling requests for changes to his bail restrictions.

WAKE FOREST COACHES

WINSTON-SALEM — Wake Forest has added two assistants to its football staff.

Coach Jim Grobe said Friday that Jonathan Himebauch will coach the offensive line and Derrick Jackson will be in charge of the defensive line.

Himebauch had coached in the Canadian Football League since 2009 and was hired as the Toronto Argonauts' offensive coordinator two months ago.

Jackson spent last season coaching the defensive line at Rice.

Their hirings were announced roughly a month after the school said special teams coordinator Keith Henry and co-defensive coordinator Tim Billings would not return.