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Sully: The Epic Life & Football Legend of Coach Bob Sullivan
232 pages, Hardcover
Published July 25, 2025
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About the author
Jeff Appelquist
10 booksJEFF APPELQUIST is the founder and president of Blue Knight Leadership, LLC. Jeff is a former college athlete, U.S. Marine Corps infantry officer, practicing attorney, and corporate executive. He has more than twenty years experience both as an entrepreneur and small business owner and as a leader in Fortune 100 companies. He is an award-winning author, dynamic speaker, and nationally-recognized leadership expert. He is also an avid sportsman who hunts, fishes, sails, and scuba dives.
Jeff's first two books, Sacred Ground: Leadership Lessons from Gettysburg & the Little Big Horn and Wisdom Is Not Enough: Reflections on Leadership & Teams, won a dozen literary awards between them, including multiple first place prizes in the Writer's Digest International, National Indie Excellence, and Midwest Book Awards.
The Great Wild West, Jeff's debut novel, is an epic tale of war and peace, love and loss, man versus nature, and the American dream.
Jeff's first two books, Sacred Ground: Leadership Lessons from Gettysburg & the Little Big Horn and Wisdom Is Not Enough: Reflections on Leadership & Teams, won a dozen literary awards between them, including multiple first place prizes in the Writer's Digest International, National Indie Excellence, and Midwest Book Awards.
The Great Wild West, Jeff's debut novel, is an epic tale of war and peace, love and loss, man versus nature, and the American dream.
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October 11, 2025
How is one football coach’s life more different or influential than the approximately 50,000 other high school and college coaches nationwide? Jeff Appelquist, a former player on Coach Sullivan’s (or Sully’s) first team at Carleton College in 1979, brings firsthand insight to the question. Football is not what one would immediately associate with Carleton, an excellent small liberal arts college in Minnesota. Appelquist’s biography, Sully: The Epic Life & Football Legend of Coach Bob Sullivan, tells the story of Sully’s transformative 21-year era at Carleton, showing how he developed as an exceptional coach and shaped the values of his players. Breaking the stereotype of a militaristic, hard-driving football coach, the heartfelt biography reveals a different kind of leader entirely.
An experienced writer, Appelquist begins with a biographical background, laying the groundwork for what made Sully an exceptional coach. The reader is introduced to how immigrant roots and their influence on work ethic were carried through to their descendant, Sully. Sully grew up in modest surroundings with a Catholic upbringing and education. Like most American boys in midcentury US, sport participation began with Little League. “Never a big kid,” nevertheless, Sully played football and basketball in high school. His love of football was planted as a boy watching newsreels of Notre Dame football.
His choice of college was St. John’s. Despite the confidence of a successful high school athlete, Sully’s life took an unexpected direction when the legendary coach “Gags” (John Gagliardi) recognized his enthusiasm and football knowledge, but refused to let him play due to his size. The rejection shaped Sully’s future. Becoming an assistant coach under Gags’ tutelage was the greatest educational opportunity.
The journey of a football coach rarely follows a straight path. While Appelquist leads the reader on Sully’s coaching jobs and experiences, the biography is interspersed with a comprehensive history of football. Two coaches who influence the style of Sully— Lou Holtz and Bill Walsh—are profiled. An advantage of Appelquist’s biography is that Sully is alive to reflect on his experiences, providing primary insights into his philosophy. History proves that the game evolved and evolves. Sully observed that great football coaches “reinforced the need for reinvention.”
Appelquist details Sully’s teams and major career highlights at Carleton College. While seasons were punctuated with losses, it was Sully’s positive coaching and values that impacted his decades of players. This biographical portrait is supported by the testimonies of former players and their achievements. Many people and coaches love football. But Sully was “in love with football.”
Appelquist has declared the book was written “pro bono,” suggesting this was a labor of love and tribute rather than a commercial venture. The final chapters shift focus from football history, constructing a biography of the subject and coaching philosophy, to anecdotes and profiles of former players. While Appelquist references “barroom debates” about player rankings, readers without a connection to Carleton football may find these sections less compelling than the earlier coaching and football insights.
The biography, Sully, succeeds on two levels. For coaches and football enthusiasts seeking leadership insights, Appelquist’s biography serves as a valuable resource for understanding positive leadership in football through its early chapters on philosophy and history. For Carleton fans and alumni, the book offers a complete portrait of Sully—the coach and the man—through personal testimonies and player profiles.
An experienced writer, Appelquist begins with a biographical background, laying the groundwork for what made Sully an exceptional coach. The reader is introduced to how immigrant roots and their influence on work ethic were carried through to their descendant, Sully. Sully grew up in modest surroundings with a Catholic upbringing and education. Like most American boys in midcentury US, sport participation began with Little League. “Never a big kid,” nevertheless, Sully played football and basketball in high school. His love of football was planted as a boy watching newsreels of Notre Dame football.
His choice of college was St. John’s. Despite the confidence of a successful high school athlete, Sully’s life took an unexpected direction when the legendary coach “Gags” (John Gagliardi) recognized his enthusiasm and football knowledge, but refused to let him play due to his size. The rejection shaped Sully’s future. Becoming an assistant coach under Gags’ tutelage was the greatest educational opportunity.
The journey of a football coach rarely follows a straight path. While Appelquist leads the reader on Sully’s coaching jobs and experiences, the biography is interspersed with a comprehensive history of football. Two coaches who influence the style of Sully— Lou Holtz and Bill Walsh—are profiled. An advantage of Appelquist’s biography is that Sully is alive to reflect on his experiences, providing primary insights into his philosophy. History proves that the game evolved and evolves. Sully observed that great football coaches “reinforced the need for reinvention.”
Appelquist details Sully’s teams and major career highlights at Carleton College. While seasons were punctuated with losses, it was Sully’s positive coaching and values that impacted his decades of players. This biographical portrait is supported by the testimonies of former players and their achievements. Many people and coaches love football. But Sully was “in love with football.”
Appelquist has declared the book was written “pro bono,” suggesting this was a labor of love and tribute rather than a commercial venture. The final chapters shift focus from football history, constructing a biography of the subject and coaching philosophy, to anecdotes and profiles of former players. While Appelquist references “barroom debates” about player rankings, readers without a connection to Carleton football may find these sections less compelling than the earlier coaching and football insights.
The biography, Sully, succeeds on two levels. For coaches and football enthusiasts seeking leadership insights, Appelquist’s biography serves as a valuable resource for understanding positive leadership in football through its early chapters on philosophy and history. For Carleton fans and alumni, the book offers a complete portrait of Sully—the coach and the man—through personal testimonies and player profiles.
Displaying 1 of 1 review