Longtime Michigan athletics counselor Greg Harden, known as 'secret weapon,' dies at age 75

Greg Harden, the longtime University of Michigan athletics counselor and life coach who worked with thousands of student-athletes across four decades and is most notably credited for Tom Brady's emergence, has died, the university announced Friday morning.

Harden went into the hospital for a procedure Monday but there were complications that ultimately led to his death. He was 75.

"There is no one better than Greg Harden and we are devastated as a Michigan family by this news," U-M athletic director Warde Manuel said in a statement. "Greg has positively impacted the lives of so many student-athletes, coaches, and staff at Michigan. He made an unbelievable impact on my life.  I am grateful and lucky to have had him in my life for the past 40 years.

"I will be forever indebted to Greg for all that he did to help shape me into the person that I am today."

Harden was a U-M employee for 34 years, from 1986-2019; he began his stint at U-M on Bo Schembechler's staff as a student-athlete counselor before working his way up to associate athletic director and director of athletic counseling. Though he stepped away from full-time work in 2019, he took on an advisory role in the athletic department.

He also spent the past three years with the Toronto Maple Leafs as their "peak performance coach."

While former strength and conditioning coach Ben Herbert was dubbed the Michigan football team’s “x-factor” during its march to the 2023 College Football Playoff championship, others inside the program referred to Harden as the program’s “secret weapon" for helping the team's mental strength as scandal and investigations swirled about.

It's a phrase long used to describe Michigan’s mindset guru, dating back to 2014 when a CBS "60 Minutes" special announced him as the program's "secret weapon" for his ability to work with athletes of all kinds.

“Long-time University of Michigan Administrator Greg Harden, best known as the mental coach for thousands of student-athletes who competed for the university ... has passed away after complications from surgery,” the athletic department posted on social media. “He is survived by his wife Shelia, three adult children — Brian Victor and Olivia — and his sister Lynette.

"The family appreciates the thoughts and prayers but they ask that you grant them some privacy as they deal with the loss of their loved one. In the future, they look forward to celebrating Greg's life with many who were blessed to know him.”

Last year, Harden wrote a book titled, "Stay Sane In An Insane World: How to Control the Controllables and Thrive." Not only did Brady write the foreword for it, but the book debuted at No. 1 on Amazon, and went on to become a bestseller on the New York Times, USA TODAY, Wall Street Journal, and Publishers Weekly lists.

"You have inspired me by your ability to unconditionally love everyone and everything," wrote former U-M quarterback J.J. McCarthy. "No matter how big or small, how significant or insignificant. You inspired me to seek the truth about who I really am, why I am the way I am, and lifting the veil of my limitless potential. Showing me what true freedom feels like as you assisted me in my escape from the cage within my mind. But, most importantly, you told me the things that my ego did not want to hear. Always guiding me to the places within myself that I did not want to confront.

"Your timeless wisdom, omnipresent sense of humor, and genuine authenticity left lasting impressions on so many hearts that we will carry with us for the rest of our lives. Especially mine. I am not the person I am today without you, G."

Harden helped the absolute best of the best get to their top potential. Former Michigan wide receiver Desmond Howard said, "I don't win the Heisman" if not for Harden, while Bob Bowman, Michael Phelps' swim coach, credited Harden with helping him take things to the next level to coach the most decorated male swimmer in Olympic history.

“He’s a miracle worker," Bowman said on Harden's website. "He made me a better coach and a better person.”

The outpouring of support from current and former Michigan athletics figures was overflowing in the hours since the announcement of Harden's passing.

Football head coach Sherrone Moore said he was "more than a friend ... (but a) mentor, confidant and a big brother."

Brady said in a statement, "He meant the world to me and I could never have had the success I had without the time, energy, love and support he had given me."

Then there's Michelle McMahon, who played volleyball for the Wolverines from 2008-12 who said "he took my broken spirit and my lost soul and helped me become whole again. ... Greg was a guardian angel placed on my path, as he was for countless others."

Before his career, Harden was an all-city and all-state track athlete at Detroit Southwestern High School.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Longtime Michigan athletics counselor Greg Harden, known as 'secret weapon,' dies at age 75