Son's Illness Made Nelson Say No To Walsh, Stanford

Darrin Nelson was ready for a change when Bill Walsh, his college coach, called to ask if he wanted to be an assistant at Stanford, his alma mater.

"It was right out of the blue," Nelson said. "He knew I wanted to get back to California. He played that up to the hilt."

Nelson and his wife, Cam, went to Palo Alto for a weekend. The more Darrin thought about it, the more he liked the idea of returning to his California roots and trying something new.

Nelson went to two other Minnesota Vikings for advice.

"As a friend, I told him not to go," said Chris Doleman. "I said, `They're (the Vikings) telling you that you have a job here (as a player) and with what they're paying you, I'd take the guaranteed money."

Nelson smiled.

"Chris, you know me, right? At some point, money can't be a factor."

By going to Stanford, he would not make as much money - but he could do some other things.

"I discouraged him because I knew he was not going to like the coaching thing," said Steve Jordan. "But I knew he liked the other stuff he could get at Stanford."

The deal was Nelson would coach running backs for two years. If he liked it, he could continue as an assistant. If not, he could use that experience and move into a job in the athletic department. He could also pursue a Master's degree in business.

Nelson liked the possibilities, and so did Cam, an attorney. Ten days after the trip to Palo Alto, Darrin accepted the job.

"We all got pretty excited," he said. "I was ready to sell the house, pack the bags, get going. We were all ready for a change."

That same night, Cam Nelson noticed something unusual after her youngest son, Alec, went to the bathroom. There was blood in his urine.

"We took him in the next morning, but we didn't think it was any big deal," said Darrin. "Maybe a kidney infection or something. That was the first time anything like that had happened."

Within 24 hours, the Nelsons knew the truth: One of Alec's kidneys had been engulfed by a malignant tumor the size of a softball. It would have to come out. He would have to undergo radiation treatment and chemotherapy. His hair would fall out. He would have to stay home from preschool some days because his weakened system would be more susceptible to colds. His life would be changed forever.

Alec is 3 years old.

Dealing with this meant forgetting about the Stanford adventure. It meant calling Walsh and saying thanks but no thanks. It meant staying in Minnesota to take care of Alec. It meant trying to explain to a 3-year-old what was going on inside his body.

"They do a great job at the Children's Hospital," Darrin said. "They have this little doll and bring it in and show him what's going to happen. They talk about Bad Guy cells vs. Good Guy cells and Chemo-Shock to get rid of the Bad Guy cells."

Darrin and Cam have another son, 8-year-old J.D.

"He was jealous at first," Darrin said. "Before the surgery, it was like Alec was at camp. He would visit Alec at the hospital, and he'd be playing with all these toys, video games, tons of balloons, stuffed animals. I think J.D. felt a little left out. When he saw Alec after surgery it was a whole different ballgame."

It was a difficult moment for the Nelsons. For 24 hours, Alec Nelson wouldn't talk to his parents or his brother.

"He wouldn't say a word. Just two hours before the surgery, he's jumping around, having a good time. Then he comes down from the surgery and has three or four tubes in him, he can't move and he's in pain. I'm sure he's thinking, `What the hell happened in that operating room?' He wouldn't speak to us. Cam was hysterical."

But now, about 11 weeks after surgery, Alec is doing quite well. As expected, he lost his hair, but he thinks he looks like Michael Jordan, so that's no big deal. A new drug has helped keep him from getting too sick from the chemotherapy, which he will undergo intermittently for one year.

But it is still no fun, and there are days when it is not easy for mom and dad to convince Alec that it is time to go back to the doctor for more medicine.

"He doesn't like going in there, so you gotta fight with him a little bit," Darrin said. "You tell him we're just trying to get rid of the Bad Guy cells and he says, `Let's kinda leave the Bad Guy cells alone.' "

Darrin said the prognosis for Alec is "great." But because Alec has only one kidney, he will not be able to follow in his father's footsteps. No football or other contact sports.

"Golf clubs and tennis racquets," said Jordan.

Darrin couldn't care less whether Alec plays sports - just so he has a chance to live his life to the fullest.

"It hits you every once in a while that he's only 3 years old," Darrin said. "He doesn't even know what's going on, what he could be, what he's hoping to be. You realize all that stuff could be taken away."