No coaching, no mentoring, no pigskin-related jobs for Ryan Leaf in the near future. For now, he's working with a fishing trip-planning company. And that's alright with him, as long as he's not being haunted by all that football stuff anymore.

"I sort of decided I didn't want to play because, for something I loved for so long, it sure gave me a lot of pain," said Leaf. "Even when I got out of recovery, the first thing on my mind was to do something football-wise. Maybe do something with the B.C. Lions, because I assumed I couldn't do anything else. All I knew was football, and then I just thought about it more and more, talked to my counsellor and my family, people around me and realized, for something that I loved for so long, it continued to give me pain."

Leaf has also now come to terms that he was a friendless dickhead during most of his playing days to his hyper-competitive nature. And when he was pill-popping, he became an anti-social nightmare for most of the people in his life. And he hates reporters, too, even though he's obviously talked to a couple of them in recent days to let them know about his recovery. But he'd rather not.

To be honest with you, I didn't want to do any of this," said Leaf, near the end of an hour-long interview in his downtown Vancouver apartment. "I don't want anybody to know anything about me. I'm scared to talk to reporters, because I never know. I've got such trust issues with them. But, if it helps the company that gave me the support, and they were willing to go hire a PR firm (to help me) . . . I'm putting my faith in a PR firm that does this for a living."

And Leaf plans on staying in Canada once he gets all his court dates and visa issues settled, so there is a chance that we will never, ever hear about Ryan Leaf again. It's the end of an era. Again.

Yes, this is the photo we all know and love from a couple months ago, taken close to two years ago by a Montana reporter during a night when Ryan Leaf decided to just waste away in a Missoula snowbank. Why the repeat? Well, it fits in nicely with the most recent tale of the Ryan Leaf saga:

Former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf has been indicted by a Randall County grand jury on drug and burglary charges.

The indictment handed up Wednesday in Canyon charged the 33-year-old former San Diego Chargers quarterback and former West Texas A&M quarterbacks coach with one count of burglary to a habitation, seven counts of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and one count of delivery of a simulated controlled substance.

The indictment said Leaf presented an incomplete medical history to several physicians between January 2008 and September 2008 to get or try to obtain the painkiller Hydrocodone.

It was not clear whether Leaf had an attorney.

Canyon police Lt. Dale Davis said Leaf is suspected of breaking into a Canyon apartment on Oct. 30 and stealing Hydrocodone, which had been prescribed to an injured football player.

"There were signs of a forced entry," Davis said. "A window in the back of the home was [damaged]."

The count of delivery of a simulated controlled substance alleges Leaf gave an individual a substance he said was Hydrocodone but was not that drug.

James Farren, Randall County criminal district attorney, said Leaf has been undergoing drug rehabilitation in British Columbia, the Amarillo Globe-News reported.

Farren told the newspaper that efforts were under way to try to convince Leaf to return to the United States on his own.

"We have not found any evidence implicating anyone other than Mr. Leaf in this case ... but believe there's additional evidence implicating him in other events," Farren said. He would not elaborate.

Leaf, a Great Falls, Mont., native, led Washington State to the Pacific-10 Conference championship and Rose Bowl appearance. The Chargers made him the second pick of the 1998 NFL draft. He played for the Chargers from 1998-2000 and also played for the Dallas Cowboys in 2001. He threw for 3,666 yards and 14 touchdowns in his career.

New Blue Blood/Great White Hope has gone on and Ryan Leaf'd himself again. Think it's probably time to stop the train.

*****

Good morning. Today is a half day. So drop your socks and grab your cocks, it's going to be a bumpy ride until 3 p.m.

I remember it was 20 degrees out, that Ryan was underdressed and possibly over-beveraged, and that he chugged the beer of the dude on the right and then paid him $100...I actually took it, after he bounced into the Missoula Club (or "Mo Club") shirtless...[I] remember it was 20 degrees out; I found this worthy of recording for historical purposes. It all went down before he left West Texas A&M, and I was pretty sure one of my buddies' buddies would send it into your Website before now.

Just a note - the highlight was Leaf paying $100 to drink a beer belonging to the dude on the right.

Long story short, Ryan Leaf paid for steak and eggs at Finnegan's.

The photographer that evening would like to be known as an "anonymous professionally trained journalist" so we'll grant him that.

In other Ryan Leaf news, Busted Coverage found some more photos of The Great White Hope/New Blue Blood getting felt up and kissed by adoring fans. At least he kept his shirt on.

Ryan Leaf Will Let Men Kiss Him/Grab His Man Cans [Busted Coverage]

According to the reader who sent us this extremely enjoyable photograph, this was taken this past weekend in Missoula, Montana(This was actually taken in January of 2008.) Leaf, born in Great Falls and a C.M. Russell High School legend, obviously enjoyed his homecoming. Look at the expression on his face — does that look like a man haunted by inner turmoil? Not at all. His hand gestures let everyone know where the party is at, as if you couldn't tell by his unbuttoned stripey and tousled hair. And I love the way he's balanced out the obviousness of the Live Strong bracelet with that weird Blair Witch-inspired necklace. We all bleed if we get too close to Ryan Leaf's edge.

He could be drunk, taking some time to decompress back home where people won't judge him, bracing for April and the inevitable "Who Will Fail As Mightily As Ryan Leaf?" columns leading up to the NFL Draft. Or he could be oblivious to his own history of public failures and is just overcome with combustible joy — that he's still the new blue blood, he's the great white hope.

He won't fuck us over.

*****
Thank you for your continued support of Deadspin. Oh, and The National.

Come with Mike now as he attends the gala screening event with his wife at the San Diego Public Library (yes, that's where it was held). Among other things, he waited in line to get in behind a woman in a Ryan Leaf Chargers jersey, which she had purchased for her son, who had given it back to her. Also at one point Mike compares the film to an episode of Rescue 911. But I'll let him tell you himself.

First off, full disclosure...I live in San Diego currently but I'm from Indianapolis and a Colts fan. So the prospect of seeing a Ryan Leaf biopic was sort of intriguing to me, if only to pat my 'fan ego' on the back and confirm that the Colts made the right choice with Manning.

My wife tagged along (I'd like to take the time to apologize to her), and we arrived about 45 minutes before showtime, mainly because I didn't know what to expect as far as crowd size. I thought there would either be a huge line out the door, or we'd be at the front of the line. Being that this was a Ryan Leaf biopic, it was clearly the latter. We immediately got in line behind a woman wearing a Leaf jersey. She explained that she bought it for her 12 year old son in '98 when Leaf was drafted. The son used to wear the jersey constantly, she said, preferring it over a Seau jersey. I didn't have a response to that.

The "theater," which was really a lecture room situated on the 3rd floor of the San Diego library, filled up nicely with probably around 150 people. The movie kicked off and I initially thought, 'OK, it's kind of a mockumentary' with actors portraying Charger fans and sports writers. Not only were they unable to get Ryan Leaf to appear in this movie, apparently they couldn't get any actual fans to stoop that low. Then the movie veered towards documentary territory when they started interviewing San Diego Union Tribune writer Jay Posner about his spat with Leaf in the Chargers locker room. These documentary style segments were the best parts of the film. Hugh Douglas appears as "Himself" a couple of times, sitting in a bar discussing how one of the highlights of his career was sacking Leaf 4 times in one game.

It was clear that the director/writer/lead actor, Tim Carr, couldn't lock down any rights to use NFL licensed footage. This led to some very awkwardly acted, "Rescue 911" or "Unsolved Mysteries" style re-enactments. In fact, there's only about 30 seconds of footage that actually shows Ryan Leaf, and all of that was from his Washington State days. I found myself thinking, if this were a 60 minute NFL Films production, I'd probably be really into it. However, 82 minutes of Carr's production was too much, and people started walking out after about 45 minutes.

This will probably not make it to a theater screen near you, and if you see it on Netflix someday, I'd suggest staying away, unless of course you're a Ryan Leaf fan. In which case, you probably already enjoy inflicting pain upon yourself.

Leaf's Notorious Legacy Gets Celluloid Debut [San Diego Union Tribune]

Carr, a Woody Allen fan who has acted himself — he had the role of "Robert's friend" in Rocky Balboa — will not actually be at tonight's 6:30 p.m. screening. He's busy re-editing the ending of Leaf to incorporate his subject's resignation as an assistant coach at West Texas A&M. Yes, that West Texas A&M.

From the San Diego Union Tribune:

“I put myself in the San Diego fans' spot so many times because I'm a huge sports fan and I love my team like San Diego loves their team,” Carr, a diehard Philadelphia Eagles fan, said by phone from his home in Delaware. “I think when they see it, they might get on me for maybe taking it easy on him, although I assure you I didn't – we throw everything in – but the way we kind of left it was so people can kind of make their mind up: Maybe he redeemed himself; maybe he moved beyond this."

On the free screening:

"I insisted it be free for all the Chargers fans because it's their story," Carr said. "I was like, 'Chargers fans have been through enough — let them have this.'"

Is the actual Ryan Leaf in the movie? Um, no. Carr said that he had several phone conversations with him about appearing in a cameo, but that the conversations “got progressively less cordial.”

The screening is at 6:30 tonight at the San Diego Library, 820 E Street, third-floor auditorium. Best Deadspin reader report will win a bunch of stuff I have lying around my office, including a somewhat-official Ryan Leaf Chargers jersey.

Yes, It's True, Ryan Leaf's Life Has Been Turned Into A Movie. Tim Couch Is Now Waiting For His Big Screen Deal [The Play In California]
Leaf It To Hollywood [San Diego Union Tribune]
Tim Carr's MySpace Page

Coach Leaf offered his resignation this morning, which I accepted," WTAMU athletic director Michael McBroom said. "He does not want his personal issues to become a distraction to the players that he has coached for the past three seasons.

This is a shame. Ryan Leaf is obviously not the first or the last big-time quarterback bust in the NFL, but unlike those before and after him, he'll always be remembered for thevein-popping freak-out against the San Diego Tribune's Jay Posner. Now he can add alleged painkiller abuser to his life's resume. For his third act, expect nothing short of a DUI or spousal abuse charge to complete this vaunted trifecta of failure.

After taking leave of absence, Leaf steps down as WAMU assistant [ESPN]

A person briefed on the situation said that Leaf acknowledged he had asked a player for a pill to help him deal with pain in his wrist dating to his NFL playing days.

The West Texas A & M athletic department hasn't had an official comment yet, but they also said they weren't sure if Leaf would still coach at the university after this gets sorted out.

Leaf placed on leave of absence [ESPN]

Leaf joined Don Carthel's West Texas A&M staff in 2006. His success has been nothing short of astonishing: In his first season, the Buffaloes put up 5,139 yards of total offense and ranked second, nationally. Quarterback Dalton Bell completed 386 of 583 passes for 3,998 yards and 32 touchdowns. In 2007, the Buffaloes gained 5,155 passing yards, averaging 396.5 yards passing a game and tossing 51 touchdowns. Their pass yardage and T.D.'s were tops in the country. That same year, Leaf also became the school's golf coach. Once a 2-handicap, he drives his team to tournaments across Texas and New Mexico in a 15-passenger bus.

He lives modestly in an 1,800-square-foot home in Amarillo. Leaf says he banked the millions he made in the N.F.L. and, for the last 10 years, has lived off endorsement money from Nike, Pepsi, and a couple of football-card companies.

After reading this, I can't figure out if this story makes me feel worse about myself or better about Ryan Leaf. Or worse about myself for possibly admiring Ryan Leaf? Or worse because I'm actually conflicted over having such inner turmoil about Ryan Leaf's post-NFL career. Drinking now.

Thrown For A Loss [Portfolio]

Leaf tells the tale to Sports Illustrated, via Larry Brown Sports, of What Could Have Been.

It’s ironic: I had some of my storage stuff from Montana shipped down to Texas, and I ran across — I forgot I even had it — an Indianapolis Colts jersey, number 16, with LEAF on the back, that I think they had ready for draft day. I’m thinking about auctioning it off for charity. There’s no reason for me to keep it.

Of course this would not be quite as valuable as my Chicago Bears Favre jersey. Other valuable collectibles:

• Barry Bonds Red Sox jersey.

• LeBron James Knicks jersey.

• Fred Thompson White House stationary.

• Romo-Simpson wedding invitations (with envelopes).

Greatest Sports Collectible Ever? [Larry Brown Sports]
What If The Colts Had Chosen Ryan Leaf Over Peyton Manning? [The Red Zone Report]

[Filmmaker Tim] Carr, 30, wrote and directs the film and also plays Leaf. The film is tentatively titled "Leaf: An Almost True Story" and is scheduled for an October release. Carr describes it as a pseudo-documentary. Carr even got in touch with Leaf, now an assistant football coach and head golf coach at West Texas A&M. Though Leaf wasn't enthusiastic about the idea, Carr said, he didn't try to talk him out of it, either.

"Once I convinced him that this wasn't just going to be a hatchet job, he didn't seem to mind me telling his story," Carr said. "And he really has gotten his life together, so he has a different perspective on things now." Carr got some former players to play themselves, including Hugh Douglas of the Eagles.

You can find the movie's trailer right here. We are still awaiting the Andre Wadsworth documentary.

Parking Lot Films [MySpace]
NFL's Biggest Bust Coming To The Big Screen [The News Journal]
Too Deep Zone [Football Outsiders]

Anyway, during the interview, Leaf talked about how he has been working as an unpaid quarterbacks coach at Division-II West Texas A&M for the past year. (West Texas A&M. Wow. That name really needs a "State" at the end of it.) And then he revealed that, in 2007, he expects to be paid there. As quarterbacks coach? Nope; a year of having Ryan Leaf as quarterbacks coach — for free — apparently wasn't enough to lift the spirits of the West Texas A&M crew, so instead, he's taking over as the school's golf coach.

So, to reiterate, rather than have Ryan Leaf coach its quarterbacks on a volunteer basis, West Texas A&M is paying his to coach golf. Right now, famed Chargers fan The Mighty MJD is bashing his face into something blunt.

Poor Ryan Leaf [GetUntracked]

What you just saw was the trailer for Leaf: An Almost True Story. I read the article at Football Outsiders three times to convince myself that this wasn't a joke. But it's not. Leaf: An Almost True Story is happening sometime next year.

I understand that you might not share my enthusiasm, but I'm more excited about this than I was the news of the Will Ferrell ABA movie last weekend. Full disclosure: I was a huge Ryan Leaf fan. I'm not kidding. I remember beaming with pride on the day he was drafted; my heart filled with glee that the Chargers had the reckless, doesn't-give-a-damn, cocky prick instead of the polished, safe, say-the-right-thing golden boy Peyton Manning.

And then he ruined every one of my Sundays for about three years. Looking back, my judgment on the Leaf/Manning situation might've been a little off.

But yes, independent film maker Tim Carr is making and starring in the Ryan Leaf movie. The other subjects he considered were Maurice Clarett, Jeff George, George Best, and Billy Ripken. At least Leaf won this one for me.

Too Deep Zone: Leaf! [Football Outsiders]

What's great too is that, apparently, the 1997 WSU staffers got bored just three weeks into the enterprise and stopped updating three weeks in. That was still enough time for a classic quote.

"They (WSU) have a tremendous quarterback. The blitzes didn't phase him. He is huge and is what the NFL guys are looking for. He is big-time." — Boise State Head Coach Houston Nutt, Sept. 27, 1997.

Also statements from Nutt that year:

• "Barry Bonds is too skinny to ever be considered a power hitter."
• "Yeah, Clinton's totally getting impeached, which is fine, because Al Gore will take over, and he's very electable anyway."
• "I don't understand why everyone's so worked up about Islamic extremism."

The Ryan Leaf For Heisman 1997 Homepage [WSU.org]

Here's some suggestions we have for other ways to capitalize on this:

• Scott Norwood (or Dan Marino, for that matter) at the Super Bowl.
• Chris Webber at the Final Four.
• Mike Tyson on Earth.
• Kobe Bryant at a hotel room, any hotel room.

NFL Net Turning New Leaf? [NY Post]

Leaf was recommended to West Texas A&M coach Don Carthel by Mike Price, currently the head coach at Texas-El Paso and Leaf's coach at Washington State, where Leaf had a historic season and fooled the San Diego Chargers into thinking he was the next Dan Fouts.

A nice little fluffer quote from Carthel sets Leaf's coaching career in motion—and should serve as the death knell for the college careers of both of West Texas A & M's quarterbacks:

"Ryan brings a great deal of football experience and knowledge to our quarterbacks. We're excited about him further developing our quarterbacks Dalton Bell and Keith Null."

It'll be interesting to see if both Bell and Null develop anything other than breasts under Ryan Leaf's tutelage. Good luck with that.

Leaf Takes QB Coaching Job at West Texas A & M [ESPN]
Ryan Leaf Player Card [ESPN]

Honestly, we'd totally vote for him. We'd want Tony Manderich to be the lieutentant governor, Sam Bowie the treasurer, Akili Smith the attorney general, DeSagana Diop the inspector general and Brian Bosworth the comptroller. Actually, we always want DeSagana Diop to be the inspector general.

First And Ten [TMFTML]