Bill O'Brien opens up on son Jack's brain disorder

There are numerous factors that go into a decision to take or not take a job. For new Boston College head coach Bill O’Brien, being close to family and medical treatment for his son, Jack, is a vital factor and helped make Boston College a good choice for him.

While speaking to Pete Thamel for the College GameDay Podcast, O’Brien opened up about his son Jack and his brain disorder.

“So, Jack’s 21 years old, primarily because he has a great mom in Colleen that takes great care of him,” Bill O’Brien said. “My in-laws are a huge part of that too. He was, he was dealt a bad hand in life. When he was born, I was actually at the University of Maryland and that’s where he was diagnosed at Johns Hopkins.”

The disorder that Jack has is called Lissencephaly. Basically, it comes down to the brain not developing properly during pregnancy and it can cause developmental delays.

A native of Massachusetts who has spent multiple stints as an assistant with the New England Patriots, Bill O’Brien and his family have ties to the Boston area. It’s also a region known for having excellent medical care, which is obviously important to the O’Briens.

“As we moved, over time, especially in Houston and Massachusetts, some of the best people we ever met are the doctors, the nurses, the physical therapists, the occupational therapists that have been involved with taking care of Jack,” O’Brien said.

“And really, to be back here where a lot of those people were here when he was younger when I was with the Patriots before, that was a really meaningful time in our life and that was meaningful for Jack. So, that’s been a really added, obviously huge part of this too. To be able to be here and be reunited with those people.”

Bill O’Brien reflects on what his time at Penn State did for him

Boston College will be Bill O’Brien’s second stint as a college head coach. He also previously led the Penn State program, which was a time he recently reflected on.

“Penn State meant a lot to me. When we went to Penn State, it was a terrible time. We don’t need to revisit that. But, we were probably the first team that really had to experience ‘the portal.’ Because when the sanctions came out, the guys at Penn State, they could go and go anywhere they wanted. That team that was taking them could go above 85 just to make room for them. So we had to recruit our own team. And I’ll never forget that,” O’Brien said.

“And I think, at the end of the day, what I learned about that place was how important the team was. Some guys left, but the guys that stayed were very much into the team aspect of things, they were good kids, they loved to practice and they were proud to play for their institution. And that’s the same thing relative to what we have here at Boston College.”