A Celebration of Bo -- streaming video

[Birdscribe]

Re: Bo Schembechler dead....


My wife, who got her Masters from Wisconsin, has a deep, deep hatred of Schembechler and Michigan, one fostered by 1) the fact that the Wolverines used to metronomically kick the crap out of Wisconsin when she was there, and 2) Schembechler once flipped her and her friends off when they were giving him shirt coming out of the tunnel at Camp Randall.

Three years ago, when I first started working at the PR agency I'm at, I helped out on the Rose Bowl account, which basically consisted of help run quotes, set up any TV interviews, other sundry duties and watch the game from the USC sidelines. Before the game, one of my other sundry duties was to escort Bo, his wife and another couple through the media entrance and into the press box, since Bo was supposed to work the game for the Michigan Radio Network.

He could not have been nicer, even telling me to tell my wife "Hi" for him after I told him the story. Then, he thanked me for "going to all this trouble" getting him in.

R.I.P. Bo. Another chapter of my life -- watching Michigan in the Rose Bowl every year as a kid -- gets a "-30-" next to it.

 

[ned racine]

Re: Bo Schembechler dead....

actually it was Jim Long of WJR who fired Ernie

 

[Johnny Dangerously]

Re: Bo Schembechler dead....

Don't know how many interviews he gave after Wednesday, but I think I'm going to hang on to the recording I have from that day. He had some interesting things to say.

You need to send me a copy of that...

http://www.mcspoll.com/mcsroundtable2006.htm (selected dialogue from the conference call) or

http://www.yousendit.com/download/ZpTDOp0wBIc%3D (entire conference call).

 

[slappy4428]

Re: Bo Schembechler dead....

Don't know how many interviews he gave after Wednesday, but I think I'm going to hang on to the recording I have from that day. He had some interesting things to say.

You need to send me a copy of that...

http://www.mcspoll.com/mcsroundtable2006.htm (selected dialogue from the conference call) or

http://www.yousendit.com/download/ZpTDOp0wBIc%3D (entire conference call).

Danny Vermin thinks you're swell.... Nick Saban, not so much...


Was reading the statements of tribune on mgoblue.com this morning... and there were a lot of heartfelt thanks.
And then I read this....
"We are deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Bo Schembechler. We join the entire Michigan family in mourning this tremendous loss, and we offer our sincerest condolences to his family."
... and thought what a cold, hard asshole. That's about as warm and fuzzy as the Cubs PR woman...

So Michigan basketball coach Tommy Amaker, may your team rot, miss the NCAA tourney and you get shirtcanned in March....

 

[slappy4428]

Re: Bo Schembechler dead....

Other statements...

U-M Equipment Manager Jon Falk
"I first met Bo Schembechler when I was a student equipment manager at Miami of Ohio in 1967 and 1968. In February 1974, Bo called and asked if I would like to be head equipment manager at Michigan. I was 23 years old and lived with my mother and grandmother. That night after meeting with Bo, my mother came in at 4 a.m. after I told her I was not going to take the job, and she told me I had to go because Bo Schembechler was going to take care of me. How right she was. I am truly lucky to have worked for such a great man.

"Bo has been a close confidant, friend, family member and father figure to me the past 33 years. He has always been there for me whenever I needed something. When I was hurt last year Bo came every day to see me and called to see if I need anything.

Former Big Ten Conference Commissioner Wayne Duke
"What an unbelievable tragedy that Bo's passing comes on the eve of the very game on which he had such an incredible impact over the years. Bo played a vital role in not only the success of Big Ten football, but collegiate athletics as a whole, and he will be missed. I want to send out my condolences to his family and the entire University of Michigan community."

U-M Heisman Trophy Winner Desmond Howard (1989-91)
"Words cannot adequately describe the pain I am feeling today at the loss of someone who I loved and admired so much. The Michigan family - along with the entire college football world - has lost a giant. Bo was a man who shaped his young players into men both on and off the field. It was just a few weeks ago that when asked by ESPN executive Mark Gross why Bo Schembechler was my favorite coach, I replied without hesitation that Bo took me under his wing at a critical juncture in my life. In 1988, I was an 18-year-old kid going off to college and leaving home for the first time. In just a few short years, Bo prepared me to be a man ready to take on the world. He will be missed by so many but missed the most by all those Michigan men he helped to create."

Former U-M Tight End Jim Mandich (1967-69)
"Today we lost the greatest Wolverine of all. He was a giant of a man and touched so many people, especially his players. Everyone knows about his toughness and discipline, but he was fun to play for, he was a hoot. He was the most fun person to be around, he was always very conversational, talked with great passion and had a twinkle in his eye. He made playing football fun. He was a hard-headed SOB."

 

[slappy4428]

Re: Bo Schembechler dead....

Former U-M Defensive Back Tom Curtis (1967-69)
"The news of Bo's passing hit me very hard. He was instrumental in the lives of so many Michigan athletes -- and not just football players. Bo was a symbol of Michigan to so many. To say he will be missed would be an understatement. Michigan meant so much to him and there will be a lot more players playing for him tomorrow than those dressed in Maize and Blue uniforms in Columbus, Ohio."

Former U-M Assistant Football Coach Tirrel Burton
"I'm kind of in shock but it was inevitable. I just saw him yesterday at Tom Slade's funeral - doing all the things he wanted to do. It's too bad he didn't make it until after the game tomorrow. It is still a shock, and we probably won't realize it for some time to come."

U-M Hockey Head Coach Red Berenson
"It's a sad day for Michigan. Bo was an icon, not only in football but in Michigan athletics. He set a standard that every coach will try and emulate. He had an undying spirit for Michigan, for winning, for academics and for his players, in all sports. Obviously, he's going to be missed."

Michigan Basketball Coach Tommy Amaker
"We are deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Bo Schembechler. We join the entire Michigan family in mourning this tremendous loss, and we offer our sincerest condolences to his family."

Michigan Head Softball Coach Carol Hutchins
"If you love Michigan you love Bo. Bo is Michigan. I learned everything I know about Michigan from Bo. He taught us all how to coach. He defined the modern day Michigan. There isn't an athlete who plays here, in any sport, who isn't affected by him. He believed everybody at Michigan should win.

"One of my first years coaching here I was in after-hours and I needed to talk to him about our upcoming banquet which he was speaking at. I was wearing an old Michigan State shirt from my playing days. He looked at me and said, 'What are you wearing? Why are you wearing that?' It scared the heck out of me. When he came to our banquet he gave me a new Michigan sweatsuit – the first one I ever had. He gave me a Michigan football sweatsuit which I wore proudly.

"I ran into him in the parking lot the other day and I asked him how he was and he told me, 'Ah, it would have felled a lesser man.'

"It's a very sad day. I'll never forget the day he stepped down as head coach. One of my best friends called me – a huge Bo fan – and she just sobbed. It was so sad.

"He called me personally when we won the national championship. He was so proud. I was sitting on the patio at a restaurant on Main Street about a month later and I look up and there's Bo just standing on the sidewalk waiting for me to catch his eye. He was so proud of softball because it's Michigan."

Penn State Football Coach Joe Paterno
"Bo was a giant. He was a great football coach and person. He was a great supporter of college football and the way it's supposed to be played. He was a great ambassador for Michigan and was proud to represent Michigan.

"He was an interesting guy and fun to be around. He was the kind of guy you would want to be your friend. You always knew where you stood with him. I looked forward to seeing him at the Big Ten meetings. I respected him and enjoyed being around him.

"He was a super coach and I'm not sure he has gotten his due as far as being one of the truly great football coaches of all-time. I'm going to miss him."

Florida State Football Head Coach Bobby Bowden
"He was a heck of a coach and a really good guy. I remember a statement he made about 10 years ago that was very significant. He was speaking to our coach's convention somewhere in Texas and he had already been retired for a few years, so he was kind of giving the old-timers view. I'll never forget that he said he wished that he had never stopped coaching. He said he should have continued coaching, but also said he would probably be dead by now if he had. Here I was 60-something years old listening to him and thinking that coaching meant that much to him that he wished he had continued even if it meant shortening his life.

"We played against him in 1986 and lost 20-18 in a very tough game. He was just a great coach and his rivalry with Woody Hayes and Ohio State was certainly one of the biggest in college football. We coached together in several Hula Bowls and I thought he was just a very nice guy, but very, very competitive."

 

[slappy4428]

Re: A Celebration of Bo

For anyone who can't see it on TV, his memorial at Michigan Stadium is live on the web... you must register

http://all-access.cstv.com/cstv/player/player.html?code=mich&sport=m-footbl&category=Features & Interviews (MediaType)&media=17502

 

[Birdscribe]

P.O., people remember that just fine. Harwell got his job back. It was fixed. Hope you never made a mistake, other than being a lifelong asshole.

One comment and I'm a lifelong asshole? Cute.

Of course I've made mistakes, short of running one of the greatest voices of all time out of town. Anytime someone else dies, the good and bad are always mentioned, but no where have I heard or read about the Harwell situation since Bo's passing.

Notice I never said fork Bo or anything like that. I just pointed out a negative from Bo's legacy.

Great football coach, and, from the looks of it, a great man.

First of all, as a friend of the Harwell Family, the reason that Harwell would be at Bo's Funeral would be due to the fact that Ernie had class. Bo did not, as evidenced by his public comments that falsely accused Ernie of running to the media. Ernie did not. Bo did.

Secondly, it was NOT Monahagn's call to fire Ernie, it was Bo's.

Not to threadjack, but speaking of Ernie Harwell... this from Sundays Free Press

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061119/SPORTS02/611190579/1050

 

[wickedwritah]

Not to threadjack, but speaking of Ernie Harwell... this from Sundays Free Press

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061119/SPORTS02/611190579/1050

And a couple paragraphs relevant to this discussion, specifically Jimmy Olson's claim:

His entrance into the lucrative world of endorsements and speaking engagements was made possible by his firing in 1991. Bo Schembechler, the late football coaching legend and former Tigers president, was the target of much of the criticism that followed. However, Jim Long, then the WJR general manager, admitted in early 1991 that he, and not Schembechler, had fired Harwell

"I never completely blamed Bo," Harwell said, after Schembechler's death on Friday. "He was part of it. Whatever happened, happened. ... I never had any bitterness about that. I still don't."