A Year Has Passed, but Pain of Loss Remains With Rypien

Last Monday would have been Andrew Rypien’s fourth birthday. His dad marked the occasion by visiting his son’s grave near the family’s Post Falls, Idaho, home.

Then, Mark Rypien got in his car and drove by himself to Lake Tahoe.

“I just kind of wanted to be alone,” said Rypien, a two-time Pro Bowl quarterback and 1992 Super Bowl MVP who shot a 2-under-par 70 Friday in blustery conditions to take the first-round lead in the American Century Celebrity Golf Championship.

Two-time Super Bowl champion John Elway, who retired as the Denver Broncos quarterback two months ago, and former major league pitcher Rick Rhoden were one stroke back in the tournament on the 6,726-yard Edgewood Tahoe course.

Rypien, who led the Washington Redskins to their last NFL championship, signed with the Atlanta Falcons early in 1998 but left the team before the season when his son was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Rypien’s wife, Annette, also was battling cervical cancer.

Rypien responded by putting his career on hold and spending as much time as possible with his family. Rypien often went around the house dressed as “Tigger the Tiger,” the huggable Winnie the Pooh character his son adored.

“I’m doing OK,” Rypien said. “You know, the month of July was great last year. I mean, he was as healthy as any 3-year-old could be. The month of August, that will be tough.”

That’s when Andrew’s health began to deteriorate. The boy lost his battle with the brain tumor last Sept. 22.

Rypien says Andrew is still with him. He even brought reminders of his son on the course. The wood covers on his clubs were in a “Tigger the Tiger” motif.

“They were a gift from my wife,” who is doing well now in her battle against cancer, he said. The couple also has two daughters.

Then Rypien rolled up his sleeve and there was a Tigger the Tiger tatoo on his shoulder. He just had it done two weeks ago on Father’s Day.

“It just kind of signifies Andrew, that he’s still with us,” Rypien said. “He was out there on the golf course today and a few times, he really helped us. I had a couple of breaks that went my way. All in all, I’ve hit the ball as well as I have in a long time.”

Rypien won the inaugural celebrity golf championship at the Tahoe course in 1990 and tied for 36th in 1997. He did not play last year.

“I don’t have any excuses this year,” Rypien said. “Before, there would be minicamps and last year I didn’t hardly play because of my situation at home. This year, I’ve played a lot of golf coming up to this. I’ve played almost every day the last two or three weeks. That’s helped, too.”

Rypien, meanwhile, is considering an offer to join the San Diego Chargers as a backup quarterback and help mentor Ryan Leaf, a fellow Washington State alum who endowed a scholarship in Andrew’s name at the school.

Rypien said he’s leaning toward retirement because he doesn’t like spending time away from his family but left the door open a crack to a possible return. He said he plans to talk to Chargers general manager Bobby Beathard and assistant Joe Bugel, a family friend, about the job soon after the tournament concludes today.