My MELD score was pretty high. And the worse you get on that scale, the sooner you get a transplant. It's based on how sick you are. And believe me, I was pretty sick.

So, I didn't get moved up because of celebrity status or anything like that. I got in line, and I passed the test. And they realized that I was sick enough, and as soon as the liver became available, I got one.

But like Mrs. Ford, I think that the more people realize what a difficult and what an insidious disease it is, the sooner people will start to correct that situation.

There were a couple of things in the intervention that made me know I needed help. One was a letter from my daughter saying that she was ashamed she had the same last name as I did, which will shock you a little bit.

I know I had been successful in football. I had been successful in broadcasting. I didn't think that anything could touch me. I thought, I can beat anything.

Well, to take me from where I was, and the life I was leading, to the life I lead now with the church and with the Lord and with Jesus Christ, it's a total, total turn-around.