ESPN Playbook investigates controversial UM-OSU pizza connection with help from 'Living the Faith'
There are few things Michigan students love more than coach Bo Schembechler and pizza. But many fans -- of both the Wolverines and of the occasional (ahem, frequent) extra-cheesy slice -- don't know that the two share something (or someone) in common: Tom Monaghan.
A recent post by ESPN Playbook investigating the validity of the sports myth "Did Bo Schembechler own a Domino's Pizza franchise in Columbus, Ohio?" described the saucy history between Schembechler and Monaghan, the entrepreneurial genius who built Domino's Pizza from a hole-in-the-wall pizzeria in Michigan into an American brand as recognizable as Ford or Coke. Quoting James Leonard's recently released biography of Monaghan, Living the Faith: A Life of Tom Monaghan, the Playbook article explains Monaghan's decision to try to entice Schembechler to remain in Michigan back in 1982: "'Bo had once mentioned casually that he'd like to own a Domino's store. We had two corporate stores in Columbus, and in a flash of inspiration, I decided I'd give one of those stores to Bo,' Monaghan told Leonard ... 'As it turned out, he had already made up his mind to stay in Michigan, but I gave him the store anyhow.'"
As Playbook says, "And that's how OSU students ended up paying their nemesis for pizza in the very heart of anti-Schembechler country."
To read the entire ESPN Playbook post, click here. For more details on Living the Faith, click here.
