Ed Marinaro's New Show "Blue Mountain State" Is Right Up Our Alley

Ed Marinaro is a former NFL running back who starred in the 1980s television show "Hill Street Blues." He's currently appearing on Spike TV's new program "Blue Mountain State," about a college football team. It is, he promised Imus, the raunchiest college football-themed show on television.

That Marinaro wound up in Hollywood was more a product of inertia than of raw talent. Unsure what to do with his life after the NFL, Marinaro listened to the advice of those who said his good looks would land him some acting roles.

"I was fighting that stereotype of an ex-athlete trying to be an actor," said Marinaro, who was grateful for the break "Hill Street Blues" provided. "It was the perfect situation for me, and it kind of elevated me."

Until that point, he added, "I was just doing stuff where they put a tight t-shirt on me, and paraded me around."

Marinaro lamented he used to be a hunk, but now feels like more of a chunk. But at least one person in the studio this morning disagreed. "You're getting Charles all hot," Imus divulged.

"Blue Mountain State," Marinaro's new show, beings tomorrow at 10pm on Spike TV. He was happy to talk about it today because a) that's why he was here, and b) he comes from the Imus school of ego, where talking about yourself is, as Marinaro put it, "a dream come true."

"It's a comedy about a powerhouse football team that is basically the team from hell," said Marinaro. "That's where I'm probably going to go for doing this."

The show is so vulgar that Marinaro said it's the first gig he doesn't want his mother to watch. "I've gone over to the dark side," he confessed.

But given his close friendship over the years with notorious ladies man and football great Joe Namath, chances are Marinaro has been there before.

"It was scary," he said about hanging out with Namath. As Imus began to tell a story relayed to him years ago about Namath, Marinaro interjected. Because he had been there.

At a bar in Puerto Rico around closing time, he recalled, Namath snuggled up to a girl who, Marinaro said delicately, "was not up to his standards." He advised his friend against liaising with this woman, presuming Namath had had too much to drink.

"He said, 'You know, Ed, it's two in the morning,'" Marinaro said. "And Miss America ain't walking in."

Imus seemed to have newfound respect for his guest. This admiration only grew when Marinaro said that "Blue Mountain State" is all about "sex, drugs, and football."

"Then we already like it," Imus assured him.

-Julie Kanfer