Introduction Continued
Don Canham has an
illustrious Michigan athletic and coaching history as well. Don obviously felt
confident that he could weather out the storm he initiated. To ease some
feathers, he offered Bump a position in the athletic department as Assistant
Athletic Director.
Don Canham lettered in track at the University of Michigan
from 1939-1941. In 1940, he held the NCAA title in high jump and was an
All-American. From 1949-68, he was the track and field coach for the Wolverines.
He led them to 12 Big Ten Conference Championships, of which seven(7) were
indoor and five(5) were outdoor. His Michigan track team also set world records
in both the 4 mile relay and the distance medley relay. Yes, he too was
impressive as an athlete and as a track and field coach .
From 1968-88,Athletic Director Canham rebuilt and solidified
Michigan’s dominance as a sports powerhouse. In fact, under his stewardship,
Michigan’s Wolverines teams amassed 72 Big Ten championships. Behind his
marketing and promotional leadership, the attendance for Michigan football
reached unheard of heights. Since 1975, the average attendance for 186 home
football games averaged more than 100,000. And from 1973 through 2004,
Michigan, led the nation, in football attendance 30 out of 31 times. Throughout
the land, the Michigan Stadium is known as the “Big House.” Canham, used his
business skills as a marketer, promoter and fundraiser talents wisely. In fact,
he was a first-ever to incorporate a direct mail advertising program to solicit
attendees for football and other sports at the University Michigan. This genius
won many awards as an athletic director; his counsel with sought by many; and
his model was imitated throughout NCAA sports. This icon set the bar very high
and redefined the position of athletic director.
Who was this 39-year-old man from Ohio named Bo? What did
Don Canham, realize, at the time, that others did not? Was Don really a genius
or was he just lucky? Maybe the planets were aligned since this was the Age of
Aquarius. Well, Bo was born in Barberton, Ohio. Was there significance in where he was born? Maybe, just
maybe, being from a rural farmland area suggests that Bo knew about the world
of hard, physical work first hand. What about the fact that he played football,
tackle position, in high school and achieved all-state honors? Okay, he was a
very good high school football player and played in one powerful football
milieu within our country. Terrific football and other sports are played, at
exceptional levels, in this state. So far we have a combination of a young man
knowing about hard work, playing a team sport and excelling in the sport of
football. Further, we know, that he attended college at Miami of Ohio, played
offensive tackle in football and lettered in 1949 and 1950. Now we know, that
he can learn, he can follow direction, he likes game of football, he is
teachable, and he made a significant contribution to his teams.
Bo Schembechler was forming and curing the foundation for
what was to follow. This might interest
you as the dots start to be connected. You might ask, and/or might be curious
as to who coached, Bo in college? If you’re football fan, you certainly know
the name Sid Gilman. Mr. Gilman was considered a football man ahead of his time
as far as offense was concerned, and some will say, was the architect of
today’s West Coast offense. You might be surprised to find out that his other
coach was the one and only Woody Hayes. Really, you might say, this young man
was playing for, and learning from the best of the best and he didn’t have to
travel very far from home to do it. I’ll wager that Bo learned a lot from both
of those men and his impressionable young mind was being shaped and sharpened,
especially offensive football philosophy.
After college, Bo went into the service and learned more
about discipline, giving direction, following direction, order, group cohesion
and working together for a common cause. This young military man also coached
as he was serving his country. Bo was developing even more insight into the
social psychology of human behavior and group dynamics: thank you.
Bo, after service, enrolled at Ohio State to get a Masters
degree in education and became a
graduate assistant under head football coach Woody Hayes. Bo, being
intelligent, reconnected with his mentor. Bo spent the next five years with
Woody learning more under this master coach. Bo Schembechler was paying his
dues. In fact, while being a line position coach, he coached a young man named
Gary Moeller who was a team Captain on
Woody’s undefeated 1963 team. Co-captain Gary later became Coach Gary Moeller.
Bo coached at a number of other colleges(Presbyterian,
Bowling Green, and Northwestern) before becoming the head coach at Miami of
Ohio. At Miami of Ohio University, he compiled a 40-17-3 record from 1963-1968.
During his coaching career as an
assistant , coach Schembechler learned from and with another football legend by
the name of Ara Parseghian. Mr. Parseghian reached fame and legendary status as
the head coach at Notre Dame. By now, it must be clear, to you, that Bo was
being trained by not only the best minds in football, he’s been given the
opportunity to implement what he has learned. Up to this point, he’s moving
rapidly up the coaching ladder with determined motivation. Can you predict at
this point, how high he will climb and what he will become?
Introduction to be continued
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