Here are the mentions from Bo's Lasting Lessons:
There's a mention regarding football coaching principles being applicable elsewhere in life. As evidence Bo points to: "Guys like Jimmy Hackett, the CEO of Steelcase, and Dave Brandon, the CEO of Domino's Pizza, both tops in their fields."
The big excerpt is with regard to the 1975 Little Brown Jug. I'll paraphrase and put quotes where I actually go word for word or this post will be 2 miles long. Michigan was ranked 7th in the nation. Hackett was a junior. His dad was an All-American at OSU in the '40's. His brother played for OSU too, but OSU didn't offer Jimmy anything. "But I liked his attitude, so we gave him a full scholarship to come to Michigan."
Jimmy was too small to play linebacker and slower than all the other linebackers and Michigan was loaded at linebacker anyway. He never missed a practice, but by his junior year, it was looking like he'd never make the field. So he came to the office on a Tuesday, when all the coaches were watching film and arguing, and asked to speak with Bo. Hackett made his case. He'd never missed a practice. He had improved. He'd be a starter on any other Big Ten team that year.
"Now, when a guy like Hackett screws up his courage like that just to talk to you, you listen intently. You never look at your watch, or gaze out the window, or glance back at the meeting room to see what's going on. You listen. You LISTEN!"
Bo then explained that he knew how Hackett felt because he had been there. But he owned Hackett the truth and no bull. It was size and speed and the incredible competition he faced keeping him from playing. But he said that everybody knew he had never missed a practice and they respected him for it."And most important, he was the best demo team center in the nation. I wasn't kidding. No one did a better job of getting our defense ready for the next game than Jimmy Hackett. And that was the truth."
Bo says Hackett wasn't despondent. That he needed to see what his contribution to the team was and have his value confirmed.
Years later, Hacket told Bo that he had learned a lot from that meeting and that he had the same policy regarding being able to meet with the CEO at Steelcase. Then there's some talk about not walling yourself off from the rank & file. ...and a mention of Dave Brandon doing the same thing at Domino's. "You send him an e-mail at midnight, you're likely to have your answer before you wake up the next day." (HA!)
There's a mention of Hackett testifying on Mike Smith's (a teammate) behalf that he would hire him when he got out of prison for drug charges in an effort that ultimately got him a pardon from the Governor.
At the end of the book, there are reflections from people mentioned in the book. Jim Hackett wrote:
I talked to Bo two days before he died. He wasn't telling me about his operation to implant a new pacemaker three weeks earlier. He was telling me how disappointed he was that he couldn't do more to help Tom Slade find a bone marrow donor before Tom died that week.
Hollywood is adept at fashioning stories of imaginary heroes. I was lucky to know a real one.
