Northwestern has fired coach Pat Fitzgerald
- Status
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Northwestern has messed this up in a big way.
I'm enjoying the schadenfreude.
I mean Fitzy was the pure football guy right? Turned down the NFL, wants to coach his kids at NU and all of it.
Maybe just a glorified highschool goof that found some success.
I'm enjoying the schadenfreude.
I mean Fitzy was the pure football guy right? Turned down the NFL, wants to coach his kids at NU and all of it.
Maybe just a glorified highschool goof that found some success.
altgeld88
- Arlington, Virginia
I never meant to cause you any sorrow
I never meant to cause you any pain...
Wow what a mess!
Illini2010-11
- Sugar Grove
Unsurprising. This is a natural fight over his contractual buyout. This was bound to occur pre or post dismissal, even if Fitz was dismissed for cause. It appears it will be post dismissal, as I previously thought.
Given his hefty 10 year contract, his buyout could be up to $50 million (probably in $30-40 million range right now). My guess is that there will be an eventual settlement, like Illini had with Beckman, but the extent will depend on the strength of evidence Northwestern has for the "with cause firing". If it is a slam dunk case, then Fitz could be SOL. This contract is very hefty though, so this could get very drawn out.
What is Pat Fitzgerald's Buyout if Northwestern Fire Head Coach?
Explore the Northwestern hazing scandal alongside Pat Fitzgerald's contract, buyout, and salary. Can the Wildcats fire their head coach?
thesportsdaily.com
I think it's obvious Fitz knew what was going on, and I think it's clear that he largely supported it. He likely justified it as "team initiation", "the vets leading the rookies", and "locker room culture". The worst part is, Fitz knows he can't get involved directly, so he deputizes some of his trusty players to enforce his punishment. Which is also something that isn't being talked about...of course there are several victims that have come forward, but from their accounts, there are probably 3-5 times as many perpetrators. These aggressors may have been indoctrinated by Fitz, but they were still willing participants in the debauchery...I mean c'mon, Purge masks, are you serious?
Not to be too eager is the key. If the kid decommits, sure. He's going to go somewhere. I'll trust Bret on this one.
Schill and Gragg could have told the team in person, but in their defense, they probably didn’t want to get run through that naked car wash.
illiniswish09
- Northwest Suburbs
Give me all the Fitzee tears!!! Coward
Yikes very poor leadership. AD on vacation having fun while there are two scandals going on and on fire!
They've got a 50 million dollar problem. I understand why they're being quiet.
Love seeing them in trouble, but this whole thing is weird. First, kept quiet for years. Second, the investigation showed a different result than these players are saying. Then you've got the circle the wagons from all the current players.
It's not adding up.
I don't know if we have any spots available for a DL, but this kid from Joliet Catholic looks decent.
Dillan Johnson, Joliet Catholic Academy , Defensive Line
Dillan Johnson is a 6-2, 270-pound Defensive Line from Joliet, IL.
247sports.com
Cult of personality head coach and a new president from a fairly corrupt program (Oregon). Seems to add up fine to me. From the minute they rushed the “full review and 2 week suspension” out the door I knew this was going to get bigger.
Champaign Toast
Fan since Kiwane Garris
Wonder who the next head coach will be? Former Illini DC Tim Beck... Former Wisconsin DC Jim Leonhard...?
Light the pitchforks?
DeonThomas
- South Carolina
While I certainly don't want a repeat of Beckman/PSU, will we be doing any scavenging up in the northern part of the state later this summer and early fall?
Always question the results of a purchased investigation. Many times the final chapter is the first written.
I am surprised that there is no mention of assistant coaches or staff being thrown under the bus. Because if Fitz barricaded the door of his office when the players were in the locker room, there had to be at least one assistant coach around to hear the roar of the upper classmen getting their delights from their actions. So the assistant coachs, managers, trainers etc. never said a word to Fitz as to how well all this was going?
Throw in Dantonio as well. The big comeback game with Josh I and Peters seemed to put finality that it was his last year.
It had to be common knowledge. If nobody under Fitz is accountable, what’s to prevent them (or peers in other programs) from looking the other way in the future? It seems like the entire chain of command should be held accountable, if only to deter future silence at NU and elsewhere. You don’t need to fire them all, but administer some sort of punishment such as unpaid time off and selected firings. Some “public hangings” would provide deterrence and a signal the University Is doing more than just the very minimum required to placate public outrage. They already signaled their reluctance to act with the two week wrist slap. Offset that by acting decisively and broadly now. Clean house without ambiguity.
The question is why? What adult mindset is required to think this kind of behavior is acceptable in any environment? "Team Building" by humiliating people will collapse in failure and disgrace every time. NW, Vandy, BC, Duke, Wake are very hard places to win at and nearly impossible to win at with any level of long term consistency. And Fitz did it. Not every year but he got the kitties to a level of success they had never had. If you are smart enough to do that how can you be stupid enough to think this kind of behavior would not cause massive problems at some point? Arrogance? Depravity? I'm not smart enough to know but I am always amazed at some of the decisions that successful people make that are bound to cause their destruction.
- Status