Pat Fitzgerald, the head coach of the Northwestern Wildcats football team, was relieved of his duties on Monday. The decision was made days following an investigation of multiple hazing accusations made by players within the program.
The current members reported their information to The Daily Northwestern, the proud student newspaper who broke the original story.
The hazing that went on at Northwestern, like other common cases, was focused on team newcomers, leaving the freshmen class the most vulnerable to the activity. Players were given sexual punishments by teammates for mistakes made in practice. According to a current member, the retribution was to be “dry humped” by unclothed teammates in a dark room. As sickening to write as it is to read.
What began as a two week suspension for Fitzgerald by the University, quickly escalated into the 17 year head coach losing his job. The newspaper’s social media sites uploaded the articles to their pages, and the public backlash made Athletic Director Derrick Gragg’s seat feel awfully warm. The strength of the internet really has this power in 2023.
The firing of Pat Fitzgerald by Gragg has faced a variety of opinionated responses by people around the University. Many former and current Wildcat players have even taken to social media to defend Fitzgerald amidst the investigation.
In his near 20 years at the helm of the Northwestern football program, Fitzgerald was the school’s winningest coach. The 2018 Big Ten Coach of the Year coached two consensus All Americans and captured two Big Ten West titles in his career, along with five additional bowl wins.
I’ve loved following college sports my entire life, but I grew a new appreciation for the NCAA when I became a college athlete myself four years ago. We all may play different sports, but we still share a common desire for what we expect in our team environment. And this isn’t that.
It’s probably the reason why this story saddens me a little extra, because I was once an athlete beginning college for the first time too. Athletes don’t sign their name on that scholarship letter to be treated in such a gruesome way. We deserve better. Not as athletes, just as human beings.
In terms of what’s still assembled of the Wildcats football team, it’s difficult to imagine any worse of a time to lose the leader of their program. We are just less than two months away from opening kickoff, finishing up what was already a tough offseason pill to endure in Evanston, IL.
The 2022 Northwestern Wildcats finished with a record of 1-11.
And just to make matters even worse, Fitzgerald has a son on the team. Jack, the freshman tight end, had only committed to the Wildcats last June. So just when you thought the Fitzgerald name would be completely scrubbed from the school, it just created a whole ‘nother predicament to the situation.
It goes without saying, there are very few less desirable Power 5 coaching jobs right now than Northwestern. The search for the team’s next coach by the University should begin immediately, a job with a few attractions to it that could maybe be seen by the right eyes.
Northwestern being an active member of the Big Ten Conference is a major financial advantage in their favor. In the 2022 fiscal year, the Big Ten led all Power 5 conferences in revenue with $845.6 million. 11 out of the 14 conference schools, including Northwestern, received an equal share of $58 million.
On top, NU has agreed to the construction plan of a brand new football stadium that will cost the school $800 million, which is hoped to be ready for the beginning of the 2026 season. The new state of the art complex and facilities can be an attractive recruiting tactic for future prospects.
Gragg’s next assignment of finding the team’s next head coach will be emphasized to get done quickly given the current timeline. Amongst the first couple of rumored names that ‘should’ receive phone calls include Michigan offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore and Ohio State offensive coordinator Brian Hartline.
While I don’t see either of these candidates leaving their positions for this particular job, it can’t hurt for Northwestern to go ahead and pick up the phone. For the right price, any highly coveted coach around the country will have to at least think about it.
There’s much to credit The Daily Northwestern for their reporting over the last week. As professional as it gets from a student newspaper, it’s these journalists who put their University on notice. Just another reminder of the importance of student journalism.
