Imagine my surprise when I glanced at Yahoo’s trending topics this morning and saw an old, familiar name: Tony Mandarich.
For those too young to remember, in 1989, coming out of Michigan State, Tony was one of the most celebrated college football prospects of all time. He was an offensive lineman who was going to change the game. The Packers made him the draft’s second all-around pick and he went on to become one of the biggest 1st round busts in league history.
Now, 30-years later, Mandarich is the subject of this week’s episode of ESPN’s E:60 and a companion story on Penn.com, How Tony Mandarich survived legendary 1989 NFL Draft class bust, shed steroids and painkillers to live again. It’s a pretty compelling read!
Here’s our own history with Tony. Before the 1989 draft he was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated where they called him “The Incredible Bulk”. The accompanying story, The Big Enchilada by Rick Telander, included details that, as fans of both the Packers and rock music, grabbed our attention. For instance;
“He puts his baseball cap on backward, the way Guns n’ Roses lead singer W. Axl Rose does, on top of the do-rag. A gold crucifix dangles between the pectorals of his 54-inch chest like a coin between two pigs.
‘You’re——ing crazy!’ screeches W. Axl while the lead guitar melts down. The feeling in this gym, a converted disco that has the front end of a school bus sticking out of one wall, is intensity.
What’s the attraction of Axl? ‘His uniqueness, his tattoos, the stories behind his songs,’ says Mandarich. ‘And he’s bad, but he doesn’t try to be.’ Mandarich has named his Siberian husky puppy Axl and has papered his garage in California with Guns n’ Roses posters.”
Clearly, Mandarich was our kind of guy. And so, when he held out for more money from the Packers, we had their backs and launched our Two Bits for Tony Tour. Len and I broadcast the WAPL morning show from on-site locations in Appleton, Oshkosh, Green Bay and Manitowoc collecting 25 cents a piece from listeners/Packer fans, who like us, wanted this once-in-a-generation player to end his hold-out and join the team. Ok, we enticed them to participate by giving all donators a chance to win all the items on Tony’s grocery list which he need to maintain his 84,000 calorie-a-week diet. (see list below)
While we collected a little over $730, (which may not seem like much, but that worked out to a quarter a piece from almost 3000 Rick and Len Show listeners) we had something more up our sleeves.
We knew that $730 wasn’t quite the million-plus he was looking for, so we sweetened the pot with an Appetite for Destruction gold record that we procured from the band. That must have done the trick, since he signed with the Packers a few days later. He would eventually join us for breakfast and a morning show broadcast where we presented him with the quarters and the gold record. Tony donated the cash to Special Olympics but you bet your sweet ass he kept the Appetite gold record for himself.
At the breakfast, I remember someone asked him if, like Axl, he had signed any women’s boobs. Tony said he had not, however, one woman wanted him to sign her butt. Did he do it? Sort of. He said he only autographed the back of her jeans. But I snapped back that she was probably wearing carbon paper underwear. (You know, if you’re not old enough to remember Tony Mandarich, you’re probably don’t know what carbon paper is, either).
I recall Tony being very nice to us that morning. I’m glad he got his life on track and is now doing well. I also find it hard to believe that that was five years more that a “quarter” century ago.
For more info about our Two Bits for Tony Tour listen to Len and I discuss it (and our Bras Across the Grand Canyon adventure) on episode #36 of the WAPL 40 for 40 podcasts. -Rick-
Listen to “#36 – More Rick + Len” on Spreaker.
Tony Mandarich’s 1889 grocery shopping list for the week:
Two dozen eggs
4 eight ounce loaves of rye bread
2 dozen bananas
4 eight ounce loaves of Italian bread
3 pounds of dinner rolls
2 pounds of Italian sausage
2 pounds of mozzarella
1 dozen granola bars
8 ounce cream cheese
3 pounds canned pineapple
3 pounds hot dogs
2 cans nacho cheese dip
2 pounds chili sauce
4 gallons of orange juice
1 gallon of cranberry juice
2 quarts Gatorade
1 quart cottage cheese
6 pounds ground beef
6 pounds spaghetti sauce
1 watermelon
1 pound carrots
4 pounds ground turkey
3 lemons
3 heads of lettuce
1 pound of bagels
32 slices of American cheese
4 pounds of Rice-a-Roni
2 pounds rigatoni
2 pounds of peas
1 pound dried fruit
2 gallons orange slice
4 pounds frozen corn
3 whole pineapples
2.5 pounds strawberries
7 green apples
4.5 pounds applesauce
2 cucumbers
2 pounds french fries
2 pounds cheddar cheese
2 grapefruits
2 pounds potato patties
4 pounds spaghetti
15.5 pounds of steak
12 oranges
2 pounds oatmeal
1 pound raisins
.5 gallons of apple juice
2 pounds pork
4 pounds chicken
1 pound margarine
2 gallons of low fat milk
2 pounds grape nuts
10 pounds of potatoes
1 gallon of Oreo ice cream!!!
2.5 gallons of bottled water
[PENNLIVE]
