THE STORY OF JOHN GAGLIARDI
A LEGACY
UNRIVALED
BOZ BOSTROM
FOREWORD BY LOU HOLTZ
© 2016 by Warren “Boz” Bostrom. Other materials © 2016 by the Minnesota Historical Society. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, write to the Minnesota Historical Society Press, 345 Kellogg Blvd. W., St. Paul, MN 55102–1906.
The Minnesota Historical Society Press is a member of the Association of American University Presses.
Manufactured in the United States of America
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Cover photo by Dawid Chabowski, 2009
International Standard Book Number
ISBN: 978-1-68134-016-6 (paperback)
ISBN: 978-1-68134-017-3 (e-book)
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Bostrom, Boz.
Title: A legacy unrivaled : the story of John Gagliardi / Boz Bostrom; foreword by Lou Holtz.
Description: Saint Paul, MN : Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2016.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016018158 | ISBN 9781681340166 (paperback) | ISBN 9781681340173 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Gagliardi, John. | Football coaches—United States—Biography. | St. John’s University (Collegeville, Minn.)—Football. | BISAC: BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Sports. | SPORTS & RECREATION / Coaching / Football.
Classification: LCC GV939.G28 B67 2016 | DDC 796.332092 [B]—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016018158
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FOREWORD
LOU HOLTZ
Lots of people can get into business, be successful, and make a lot of money. But when they die, their contribution ends. To have a significant, lasting impact, the key is to help other people be successful. Then your contribution lasts many a lifetime. Woody Hayes passed away about twenty years ago, but he still lives on because of the values and virtues he instilled in his players and coaches, including me.
When I was a junior in high school, floundering in the lower half of my class, my coach told my parents I should go to college and be a coach. I had worked to save my money to buy a 1949 Chevrolet. My parents said I would use that money to go to college. I said no, my parents said yes, and so we compromised and I went to college. It was the wisest decision I ever made. Coaching can be a demanding profession, but it’s also one of the most rewarding.
Early in my career, I studied why certain coaches were so successful in not only winning but also in influencing young people to be successful. Some coaches I studied were Bear Bryant (Alabama), Darrell Royal (Texas), Frank Broyles (Arkansas), Rip Engle (Penn State), Forest Evashevski (Iowa), John McKay (Southern Cal), and Ara Parseghian (Notre Dame). But the one name that kept coming up in conversations on great coaches was John Gagliardi from Saint John’s, a little school in Minnesota.
When I studied his record, I was amazed at the success he achieved year after year. It was difficult to learn a great deal about him because he wasn’t in the national news on a daily basis. What I have found since I entered coaching is that it is just as difficult to achieve success at Saint John’s as it is at Alabama, Notre Dame, or any other major school. And this is why Coach John Gagliardi’s success caught my imagination.
It wasn’t until I was named the head coach at the University of Minnesota in 1984 that I got the chance to spend some personal time with John. It didn’t take me long to realize he was a national treasure. Yes, I heard many positive things about him from his former players, the media, and people on the street, but they didn’t talk about his amazing win-loss record and the numerous championships he had won. Instead they talked about his leadership, his morale, his values, and the impact he had on players, students, faculty, and virtually everyone who knew him.
I never passed up the chance to spend time with John at the various events we both attended. His philosophy was different. He didn’t scrimmage, he seldom practiced his team in pads—yet he won. There are many different ways to win, and John exemplified this. He is a legend not because of his win-loss record, but because of his values. The coaching class he teaches—which is just as much about winning in life as it is about winning in football—is the most popular course on campus.
John Gagliardi is a person we can all learn from. Not only will you enjoy reading this book, you will be a better person for having done so. John is a person I admire and respect as much as the great coaches I mentioned earlier. I’m thankful I got to know him personally, and I’ve certainly benefited from our relationship.
To know a person’s true value, ask these questions: If they didn’t show up, who would miss them and why? There aren’t many people we would miss more than John had he not shown up. As you read his story in A Legacy Unrivaled, you will soon realize why I admire and respect him so much.
INTRODUCTION
The date was November 19, 2012. It was an unseasonably warm late-fall morning when I arrived on campus. It was pretty much like any other Monday, with students and professors alike walking to their classrooms. As I pulled into the parking lot next to the Palaestra, the university’s athletic facility, I noticed that the blue ’01 Cadillac was in its usual place, parked next to the building as it always was.
I walked in the side door of the Palaestra and ascended the stairs. As I walked down the drab hallway, I found it to be oddly quiet. Several coaches were already in their offices, but they were keeping to themselves, almost deliberately so. As I approached the final office on the right, I saw that the door was open, as it usually was.
I gently knocked twice and, much more softly than usual, announced my presence. “Good morning, John. How are you?”
I was met with a tired expression and a soft voice. “I’m okay.”
“Did you talk to Frank yet?” I inquired.
“Yeah. I just sent him an e-mail.”
I hesitated and then asked, “Did you tell him your decision?”
The decision. It was one that all coaches face at some point: retire or come back to coach another year. But with John Gagliardi, the stakes were even higher.
He had been a head football coach for seventy years. For the last 64 of them, he had coached at the collegiate level, 638 college games in all. His 489 victories were an incredible 80 more than any other college coach, ever, regardless of division. His teams had earned 30 conference championships and four national championships. His players had earned 114 All-American awards, and along with Florida State’s Bobby Bowden, John was the first active coach to be enshrined in the College Football Hall of