The Michigan football community got some terribly sad news on Friday morning.
In a press release from the Michigan athletic department, longtime University of Michigan Administrator Greg Harden, best known as the mental coach for thousands of student-athletes who competed for the university and countless others around the world, has passed away after complications from surgery. During his time at Michigan, Harden became known in many circles as the school’s “Secret Weapon” for his work behind the scenes helping Wolverine athletes achieve peak performance.
On Monday, the news broke that Harden went into the hospital for a procedure on Monday and has remained there due to complications.
The Michigan football team and athletic department released a statement earlier this week. “Please keep Greg and his family in your thought and prayers and we ask that all respect their need for privacy at this time,”
Harden has spent the better part of five-plus decades as a life coach, motivational speaker, executive consultant, and social worker. Harden had retired from full-time service as Associate Athletic Director and Director of Athletic Counseling for Michigan Athletics (1986-2020) but continued to work with athletes and teams at Michigan to this day. Harden also spent the past three seasons working with the Toronto Maple Leafs organization as their peak performance coach.
Greg Harden Worked With Nearly Every Michigan Football Athlete Over The Last Few Decades
Greg described his work in the following manner: “My real obsession is to convince an individual that they must determine for themselves what sort of man, what sort of woman they want to be. The goal is to make people experts on themselves.”
He worked with thousands of Michigan student-athletes during his career, including Desmond Howard, J.J. McCarthy, Tom Brady, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard and Olympians Emily Brunemann and Jeff Porter, as well as Michael Phelps. Harden specialized as a mental coach for athletes, coaches, university personnel, executives, and others on the world’s biggest stages. That he maintained close personal relationships with so many, even decades after their competitive or working days had ended, reflects the enormous impact of his work on their performance and lives.
As a member of the Wolverines athletic department, Harden was instrumental in the design and implementation of Michigan football student-athlete and staff development strategies. His collaborative style and efforts helped to strengthen the athletic department’s connection with the larger university community.
He started his affiliation with the U-M Athletic Department in 1986 when hall of fame coach Bo Schembechler hired Harden as a staff consultant and student-athlete personal development program counselor.
He started his affiliation with the U-M Athletic Department in 1986 when hall of fame coach Bo Schembechler hired Harden as a staff consultant and student-athlete personal development program counselor.
Harden was President of Power One Performance, Inc. providing performance coaching to corporate executives, professional athletes, and community leaders. He was President of Unlimited Access Educational Services (UAES), a non-profit organization. Harden has also served as Senior Vice President of Associated Consultation and Training, Inc. (ACT) and Executive Director of Leaders in Prevention.
A Detroit native and graduate of Southwestern High School, Harden received both his BGS and master’s degrees from the University of Michigan. He published his first book in 2023, Stay Sane in an Insane World: How to Control the Controllables and Thrive. The book debuted at #1 on all of Amazon and became a bestseller on the New York Times list.
He is survived by his wife Shelia, three adult children – Brian, Victor and Olivia – and his sister, Lynette. Harden was preceded in death by his mother, Kathryn, and father, Cyrus.
It’s obvious Harden had a massive impact on the success of the Michigan football team and he will be missed.
