Bos Warriors - Excerpt 2
Roughly 75 to 80 players stayed with the team. They may have complained about some of the tactics employed by Bo, but they stayed. Along the way, one or two of them would be talked out of quitting the team-Reggie McKenzie for one. McKenzie went through a spell thinking that Bo was unfairly on his back. He was reminded by his family, “McKenzie men do not quit.” And from that point on, Reggie showed Bo his character. He told himself, “I’m not going to let Bo beat me.”

These young men became strongly motivated to contribute to the team’s welfare and advance its objectives instead of their own individual achievements. They bonded on the field and off. They roomed together, took the same classes, socialized, partied, got fixed up on dates by teammates, worked at the same places in the off-season, pledged the same fraternities, boycotted the same classes, and collectively they became inspired together. They were a part of something much larger than themselves(for one thing, University of Michigan’s gridiron history). And with the campus undergoing serious racial unrest in the 1960s, their coach,  according to Jim Brandstatter, told them, “we are one race-Michigan football. You guys are not about race. No one from the outside is going to get between us. Race is not an issue.” Mike Keller remembered. The coach putting it in some more colorful terms: “Son of a bitch, you’re not red, you’re not white, you’re not blue. You’re Michigan.” Bo also supported the Mellow Men’s (comprised of seven African-American football players) stand on boycotting the economics building during a campus demonstration.

The teams common needs for achievement, affiliation, competitiveness, recognition, insecurity were all being realized through team membership. Certainly, having the Ohio State game written in red letters on the blackboard represented a clear group goal. No one had to verbalize the importance of that Buckeyes game; it was simply understood.

Bo also understood that his team needed to gel to win. He had learned from the best, coaches like Hayes himself. Bo also surrounded himself with smart football minds and valued his assistants’ input. Serving in the U. S. military no doubt contributed to his understanding of the dynamics of groups, too. Indeed, many people compare the game of football to being in a foxhole with a buddy. Woody was a great field general and understood historical battles, and he taught his protege Bo well.

Schembechler also understood, psychology. He realized that external and situational factors play a part in group dynamics. He knew about focusing. He knew about expectations, about reward and reinforcement. He also was cognizant of the fact that reinforcement(feedback) didn’t always have to be positive. He was smart enough to realize that negative or critical feedback also influences behavior. He could recognize who could take it and who couldn’t. Some, like Brandstatter, remember comments, from the coaches, such as “You’re the worst tackle in the history of intercollegiate sports” and “We wasted a scholarship on you.” Bo called Gusich “the candy ass.”(By the way, “candy- ass co-captain Gusich was described by his teammates as “the toughest dude on the team.”). Bo also once said, according to Fritz Seyferth, that he had the 10 worst players in college football history on his squad.