Kory Kozak, producer of ESPN writes about Tony Mandarich’s history with steroids. Most of his career in the NFL was driven by steroids. He was the biggest player college football back in 1984. He was unnaturally big at 308 pounds. Everyone of the field was afraid of him and every aspiring football player idolized him. When he was out on the field, he was dangerous. He would maim, flatten, and handled two players at a time. A regular football player could not do that even if he had an all-natural 260pounds of muscle.

Mandarich was high on steroids at that time. He downed the juiced every chance he got. He was the icon of steroids. He was into every kind of compound in the market, especially those that were meant for race horses: equipoise, Winstrol, Anavar.

By 1989, he had gained enough power to call the shots. He got the highest rating than any other NFL player. When he decided to get off steroids, he replaced them with painkillers. The steroids had numbed him from the pain during training and every game. Without them he became almost too sensitive to the muscle soreness. He would inject himself with all kinds of painkillers and eventually take oral pills. This went on until he got drowned in drugs and he became a recluse.

However, in 1995 Tony Mandarich changed for the better. He checked himself in a rehab and vowed never to return to being a junkie. From that point on he was going to do everything clean.

A year after he joined the Indianapolis Colts and he played – 320lbs of pure, all natural muscle. He tells the story of his steroid addiction in the book “My Dirty Little Secrets.” He had disposed any reminder of his past as a junkie except the cover of Sports Illustrated that did a story on him entitled “The Incredible Bulk.”

Tags: Indianapolis Colts, My Dirty Little Secrets, NCAA, NFL, steroids, The Incredible Bulk, Tony Mandarich

Posted in bodybuilding, steroid nation, Steroids and Anabolic Steroids, Steroids in NFL, Steroids in Sports

It is of no wonder why many believe the National Football League is the premier sports organization in the United States which has the most number of players who take anabolic steroids.

Another NFL player has bitten the dust for using these banned compounds. Cincinnati Bengals’ linebacker Darryl Blackstock was suspended for violating the league’s policy regarding anabolic steroids and related substances.

“I’ve apologized to my coaches and teammates for an unfortunate mistake,” Blackstock said. “I did not intentionally violate the policy, but I know it’s my responsibility to use only approved nutritional supplements, and I didn’t realize I was taking an over-the-counter product that included a banned substance. I also want to apologize to our fans, and I’ll do everything I can to be ready to come back strong next month.”

Apologies accepted, disciplinary action imposed. Blackstock has been suspended for four games

Early this month, Dallas Cowboy’s practice squad receiver Mike Jefferson was suspended for the same violation. New Orleans Saints’ Jamar Nesbit, meanwhile, was also suspended late September for same infringement. Both Jefferson and Nesbit received four-game suspension without pay.

The NFL’s statistics on steroid use is also the reason why many don’t believe Tony Mandarich when he denied he had used steroids during his lackluster career in the NFL. Mandarich stated he had only used steroids during his Michigan State days. C’mon, not using steroids while playing in the NFL? That’s like hearing Michael Jackson saying he did not undergo rhinoplasty while visiting his cosmetic surgeon!

Tags: anabolic steroids, Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys, Darryl Blackstock, Jamar Nesbit, Mike Jefferson, New Orleans Saints, NFL, NFL players suspended for using steroids, steroids, Tony Mandarich

Posted in steroid nation, Steroids and Anabolic Steroids, Steroids in NFL, Steroids in Sports

Following his appearance with Showtime’s Inside the NFL, Tony Mandarich gave an interview with Free Press reporter Shannon Shelton. Both interviews provided the public a preview of what to expect with his tell-all book entitled My Dirty Little Secrets – Steroids, Alcohol & God.

Scheduled to hit book stores March 2009, the book “is not a Jose Canseco-style book,” says the former NFL offensive lineman. The following are excerpts from his interview with Free Press.

QUESTION: What type of reaction have you gotten thus far about the book and its admissions?

ANSWER: In the interview with “Inside the NFL,” I was obviously candid about what I’ve done, mistakes I’ve made and how I’ve tried to fix those mistakes. After we did the interview, I was told that they had so much good content that they planned to break it into a two-part series. My concern was that they’d put all the sensationalistic parts in Part I, and the information about my recovery in Part II.

I expected negative reactions, but I got a lot of positive reaction for standing up and being honest.

I didn’t have any motive. I want to help others suffering through drug and alcohol addiction and provide a warning that no matter what level you’re at — Pop Warner, high school, college, NFL — no one is bulletproof. My motive is to help people who are hurting, and that comes out in the second show.

I have no intention to point the finger at anyone other than myself. This is not a Jose Canseco-style book.

Q: What’s the reaction from Michigan State, if any?

A: The personal contacts I’ve received have pleasantly surprised me. I heard from former MSU players and that made me feel good. I’m a huge Michigan State supporter. I love the school, the program, the coaching staff and I love George Perles. George taught me a lot of great life-lasting lessons.

Q : Have you spoken with George about the book?

A: I last talked to him two years ago when I was on campus and appeared with him on a pregame radio show. Before that, I hadn’t talked to him since I was a player. So that’s 30 minutes in the last 20 years.

Q: What was your experience while taking steroids?

A: They obviously work if you’re already athletic. Steroids make you stronger. I don’t think they make you more athletic if you aren’t already. As much as they have a strong physical effect, they have just as much psychologically. I remember I was taking steroids once for eight weeks and then I went off. On my first day off, I thought, “Oh my god, I’m already getting weaker, I’m already getting smaller.” That’s how much they can affect you psychologically.

Q: Did anyone at MSU know what you were doing?

A: There was a time when some trainers sat me down and asked me point-blank if I was using steroids. I denied it. They did their due diligence and they explained the consequences to me if I was using. I lied to them. But at no point did I talk to any coaches about it.

Q: How did you pass the drug tests, including the one before the 1988 Rose Bowl?

A: “It was easy. I cheated on one test, but in my five years at MSU, I was only tested five times. There was no test when we went to the Cherry Bowl. At the All-American Bowl, I got off the drugs and got clean before I went to Birmingham, Ala., and had to take the test. We didn’t go to a bowl in my junior year.

At the Rose Bowl, they tested us twice. Again, I got off drugs and went clean and passed the first test. Then there was a surprise test, and I knew I was (in trouble). I had to improvise. The story of what I did is amusing because it was so simple. I won’t tell you because it’s in the book.

Testing is more advanced today, but back then, it was Mickey Mouse.

Q: Once you left for the NFL, more focus was placed on MSU in terms of steroid use. Did a culture of steroid use exist in East Lansing?

A: It was a very awkward time. Even though I was in Green Bay by then, it was interesting that they went after me and MSU only. I personally knew players at Michigan and other Big Ten schools that were doing it. While I didn’t expect a Detroit paper to go to Madison, Wis., to investigate that program, I wondered why they only went after MSU.

Tags: anabolic steroids, doping, Michigan State University, NFL, steroid use, steroids, tell-all book on steroid use, Tony Mandarich

Posted in steroid nation, Steroids and Anabolic Steroids, Steroids in NFL, Steroids in Sports

Tony Mandarich has admitted using anabolic steroids during his playing days in college.  It’s obivous that all NFL players use steroids, so why is this a surprise to so many people?  Mandarich used anabolic steroids and cheated steroid tests after the 1988 Rose Bowl.  Then again, which NFL players are NOT using steroids, can you name one? we can’t.

Tony Mandarich is just trying to pump up the mainstream crowd for his new book scheduled to release in March 2009, in which he details his steroid use in the NFL and his career.  Obviously he doesn’t have football, so he’s going to make money talking about steroids.

State News: Former MSU football player Tony Mandarich has admitted to using steroids and cheating on a steroid test administered in conjunction with the 1988 Rose Bowl, which the Spartans won.

Mandarich was an offensive lineman for MSU in the late 1980s and was selected by the Green Bay Packers with the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft in 1989. Mandarich, dubbed “The Incredible Bulk” by Sports Illustrated prior to the draft, was a bust in the NFL during his three seasons with the Packers.

Mandarich tells of his steroid use and the Rose Bowl steroid test during an interview on Showtime’s “Inside the NFL” that will air Wednesday at 9 p.m. Mandarich has a book scheduled to be released in March 2009 that is expected to detail his steroid use.

Tags: anabolic steroids, MSU, National Football League, NFL, NFL draft, Rose Bowl, steroid use, steroids, Tony Mandarich, use steroids

Posted in steroid nation, Steroids and Anabolic Steroids, Steroids in NFL, Steroids in Sports

Former NFL lineman Tony Mandarich has admitted that he used anabolic steroids at Michigan State and that he submitted a fake urine test before the 1988 Rose Bowl.

Mandarich, who had played for the Green Bay Packers and Indianapolis Colts, made the confession on a TV interview. However, he denied that he had used steroids during his NFL career but was hooked on alcohol, painkillers, and narcotics.
“I got to the point where it was a struggle to work out three or four times a week because the priority of getting high was above the priority of working out,” Mandarich said in the interview.

Mandarich was the first round draft pick of the Packers in 1989, second overall behind Troy Aikman and ahead of the third selection Barry Sanders. Aikman and Sanders have been elected in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Mandarich, meanwhile, is considered as one of the top 5 bust NFL draft picks of all time. He was dropped by the Packers from his four-year contract after three seasons on unimpressive performance. His rumored steroid use could also have been a factor.

Mandarich is releasing his autobiography in March.

Tags: anabolic steroids, Green Bay Packers, Indianapolis Colts, NFL, pro football, Rose Bowl, steroids, Tony Mandarich

Posted in steroid nation, Steroids and Anabolic Steroids, Steroids in NFL, Steroids in Sports