Post-football Career
After his career was over, he moved back to Canada; he owned a golf course and remarried his wife Char in 2004. From September 2004 until September 2005, Mandarich served as an NFL analyst for The Score TV sports network in Canada. He quit in October 2005 and moved to Arizona.
He now runs a photography studio; he began doing nature photography as a hobby in 1990. Mandarich has expanded his business, named Mandarich Media Group, to include photography, video production, web design, search engine optimization, and Internet marketing.
In September 2008, Mandarich admitted to using steroids at Michigan State and faking a drug test before the 1988 Rose Bowl. Mandarich has denied using steroids while in the NFL but has admitted to an addiction to alcohol and painkillers while playing for the Packers.
Tony had an older brother, John, who was instrumental in his development as an athlete, including sponsoring his younger brother's transfer to a stateside high school before Tony's senior year. John made his own reputation in professional football in the Canadian Football League. John Mandarich's early death from skin cancer is documented in Tony's memoir.
In the March 2009 issue of Sports Illustrated he tells about his use and addiction and about his new book called My Dirty Little Secrets—Steroids, Alcohol & God. In that book, Mandarich ascribes his underwhelming performance with the Green Bay Packers to his painkiller addiction, which buffeted his drive and work ethic. His addiction was so powerful he kept syringes in his athletic supporter to have his narcotics supply close at hand. He also said that steroid use was rampant among his teammates at Michigan State, substantiating allegations made against the 1988 Rose Bowl team two decades earlier. Mandarich goes on to describe his traumatic and triumphant stint in rehab, and his subsequent return to the NFL. "I didn't write the book for forgiveness," Mandarich said. "I wrote the book for explanation and for, hopefully, helping somebody see the light that there is hope for addiction or alcoholism and that you can change and save your life."
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“In time your relatives will come to accept the idea that a career is as important to you as your family. Of course, in time the polar ice cap will melt.”
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