Eric Hipple

Eric Ellsworth Hipple (born September 16, 1957) is an American public speaker and a former professional football player. He played as a quarterback for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Utah State Aggies.

Early life and education Eric Hipple was born in Lubbock, Texas.

Hipple attended Utah State University with an athletic scholarship. He was named to the All-Century team in 1993. In 2012, he was inducted into the Utah State Hall of Fame.

Professional career Hipple was selected by the Detroit Lions in the fourth round of the 1980 NFL draft. Hipple spent the 1980 season entirely on the bench while Gary Danielson served as the starting quarterback. Hipple made his first appearance in a game in Week 5 (October 4) of the following season, throwing 4-of-15 for 102 yards and two interceptions in a loss. After the first six weeks had ended, Hipple was tapped to start against the Chicago Bears on October 19 due to Danielson suffering an injury, which resulted in him going 14-of-25 for 336 yards to go along with four passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns in a 48-17 victory where he threw just four total passes in the second half. The jersey worn by Hipple from that game was collected by the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He would start the remainder of the season, going 6-4 as a starter as Detroit finished 8-8; he threw 2,358 yards with 14 touchdowns to 15 interceptions with a passer rating of 73.4.

In the strike-shortened 1982 season of nine games, Hipple started the first four games while Danielson started the last five as Detroit made the postseason in an eight-team NFC playoff bracket. For the postseason game against the Washington Redskins, Hipple was tapped to start the first playoff game for the team since 1970. He went 22-of-38 for 298 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions (one returned for a touchdown by Jeris White) as Detroit lost 31-7 in a game where they trailed 10-0 from the first quarter on. Hipple was the undisputed starter for the 1983 season, and he threw for 2,577 yards with 12 touchdowns and 18 interceptions as the Lions went 9-7 but Hipple suffered moderate tear of his left knee ligament against Tampa Bay in the season finale (which meant he would be out for roughly 2-6 weeks) that resulted in Danielson serving as the starter for the Divisional Round playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers, which Detroit narrowly lost. Hipple played in just two games of the 1984 season due to knee issues. The team signed him to a two-year contract on March 26, 1985. Hipple would start the first fifteen games of the 1985 season before being used in relief for the finale that ultimately saw the Lions go 7-9 while he passed for 2,952 yards with 17 touchdowns to 18 interceptions.

Hipple started the first ten games of the 1986 season, which saw them win just three games before Joe Ferguson and Chuck Long finished out the season. He threw for 1,919 yards with nine touchdowns to 11 interceptions. Hipple had 63% of his passes (192-for-305) result in a completion to lead the NFL. He was the first Lion to lead in completion percentage since Bobby Layne in 1955 and is currently the last Lion to finish as a leader. The following month, on November 7, 1989, the Lions cut him from the roster, which now had Bob Gagliano and Rodney Peete start games. The game against the Vikings was the last one that the 32-year-old played in. In total, Hipple made appearances in 102 games (with 57 starts) and threw for 10,711 total yards and 55 touchdowns to 70 interceptions. He went 28-29 as a starter.

Career statistics

NFL Legend Led the league Bold Career high

Year Team Games Passing GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int Lng Rtg 1980 DET 15 0 Did not play 1981 DET 16 10 6−4 140 279 50.2 2,358 8.5 14 15 94 73.4 1982 DET 9 4 2−2 36 86 41.9 411 4.8 2 4 52 45.3 1983 DET 16 16 9−7 204 387 52.7 2,577 6.7 12 18 80 64.7 1984 DET 8 1 1−0 16 38 42.1 246 6.5 1 1 40 62.0 1985 DET 16 15 7−8 223 406 54.9 2,952 7.3 17 18 56 73.6 1986 DET 16 10 3−7 192 305 63.0 1,919 6.3 9 11 46 75.6 1987 DET 0 0 Did not play due to injury 1988 DET 5 0 − 12 27 44.4 158 5.9 0 0 31 63.5 1989 DET 1 1 0−1 7 18 38.9 90 5.0 0 3 30 15.7 Career 102 57 28−29 830 1,546 53.7 10,711 6.9 55 70 94 68.7

College Season Team GP Passing Cmp Att Pct Yds TD Int Rtg 1976 Utah State 11 74 151 49.0 760 2 10 82.4 1977 Utah State 11 91 173 52.6 1,301 10 11 122.1 1978 Utah State 11 150 287 52.3 2,088 9 15 113.3 1979 Utah State 11 144 239 60.3 1,924 13 6 140.8 College career 44 459 850 54.0 6,073 34 42 117.3

Post-athletics career Hipple has been married twice.

After retiring, Hipple started his own business, Hipple & Associates, an insurance business targeted toward car dealers. In 1995, he was hired for the pregame show on Lions broadcasts, which he worked until 2000. In 1998, he attempted to kill himself by jumping out of a car window, but it was reported as merely an accident with non life-threatening injuries. In 2000, his 15-year-old son committed suicide. Hipple soon became involved in educating people about the dangers of depression. Hipple delivers speeches on suicide prevention and mental illness at high schools, youth groups, members of the military and their families, local organizations and corporations. A documentary film by the Depression Center features Hipple. It discusses Hipple's playing career with the Lions, his bouts with depression, and details of the warning signs of teens who have died from suicide.

Personal life In 2000, Hipple's 15-year-old son Jeff died by suicide via shotgun.

In other media A football poster of Hipple can be seen on the wall in the 1983 feature film Mr. Mom.

He was a guest star in the show Home Improvement as himself (Season 3, Episode 18), building a house for Habitat for Humanity that guest starred various athletes alongside a special appearance by President Jimmy Carter.