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Fear factor Recently retired Irvin was worried about going to prison
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Michael Irvin was frightened about spending 20 years in prison, the penalty that loomed if he broke probation after pleading no contest to felony drug charges. "I promise you it was scary," the former Dallas Cowboys receiver told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in an interview published Sunday. "So I'm glad it's done." Irvin retired last week, a week after his probation ended. "I'm sorry to the people I hurt," he said. "I have said it before, I have said it 100 times. You can never say it enough. I don't know if people will ever forget it. They shouldn't. It is my reality." Irvin, 34, who is going into broadcasting, holds nearly every major career or single-season team receiving record, and also helped the Cowboys win three Super Bowls in four years. He caught 750 passes for 11,904 yards over his career. At the time of his final play, in which he was temporarily paralyzed after landing awkwardly on the turf at Philadelphia's Veterans Stadium, both figures were ninth in NFL history. After pleading no contest in '96, he said, the fear began to creep in. "I was worried about somebody saying I did something to set them up, and I had no grounds to fight back," Irvin said. "You realize how one little thing can mean 20 years for you ... But then you realize it ain't just me. I can do all of those things and it still might not work out for me. That's scary."
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