Unique ‘4’ in new UM uniforms a nod to Ward, diversity
Detroit – Jim Hackett, in his last speaking engagement on his last day as Michigan interim athletic director in March in Ann Arbor, challenged the early morning breakfast business group to find the “Easter egg” in the upcoming new Nike uniforms.
Later, he told The Detroit News about the detail that he believes recognizes diversity, with the understanding his remarks would not be published until after the uniforms were publicly revealed.
“It gives me goose pimples,” Hackett said excitedly.
Nike and Michigan unveiled the Jordan Brand “Jumpman” football jerseys Tuesday at the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant with Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh and former Heisman Trophy winner Charles Woodson in attendance.
Michigan’s athletic department and teams officially moved to Nike apparel and equipment on Monday.
Hackett, who played football at Michigan, has always been moved by the famous story from the 1930s about Michigan football teammates Gerald Ford and Willis Ward, the second African-American to play on the team.
Georgia Tech refused to play Michigan on Oct. 20, 1934 because of Ward. University officials had Ward, who would become a lawyer and Wayne County judge, sit out the game and Ford, who would go on to become a U.S. president, threatened to quit the team because of the incident. Ward asked him to stay.
In a team photo, Ford and Ward are seated next to each other. The No. 4 on Ford’s jersey No. 48 is like all the other 4s on the team – the top of it extends. The way Hackett sees it, though, it’s like a “little hat” from Ford’s jersey.
When I looked at it, I go, ‘Gerald’s hat is pointing to Willis, and this is the man he quit the team for,’” Hackett told The Detroit News. “Jim’s (Harbaugh) has put the championship team pictures back up, and I was looking back in time, and there’s no black people. And Gerald Ford’s year, we still didn’t do a great job of integrating.
“I started looking at the more modern photos like in the ’70s, and you see Bo (Schembechler) was with it. Bo kind of broke the color barrier at Michigan.”
The detail on the No. 4, which will appear in all current Michigan uniforms extending to all sports, is Hackett’s tip of the hat to diversity at Michigan.
“If you think this number is kind of a hat’s off to Willis, it’s basically saying as a player you wear a number, but it’s really your hat’s off to your teammate,” Hackett said. “In this case, it’s about everybody. We really care about the diversity.
Photos, videos: New UM football uniforms revealed
“We carried this 4 – now we have a quarterback who was a 4 (Harbaugh), and it’s not because of him – but I love that the 4 has this odd thing to it. I will get criticized actually because it looks like you want to saw it off.”
Hackett was struck by the subject during a discussion with the mother of top 2016 recruit Rashan Gary, now a Michigan freshman.
“Rashan Gary’s mom came to me and asked me about diversity at Michigan, and I told her about ‘Black and Blue,’ the movie about Willis Ward,” Hackett said. “She had some really good questions about Michigan going backward in its enrollment.
“I want somebody to say, ‘Do you know why the 4 is the way it is?’ The idea is to keep a sticky thing in there. It’s Michigan.”