Northwestern has fired coach Pat Fitzgerald
- Status
IlliniTarHeel
- Topsail, NC
Why would any school reach out to the players about transferring unless it was a freshman. The upper class players either participated in the hazing or were silent about the fact that it was happening. Either way you can't bring those players into your program in my opinion.
I remember that well with Simon- there were a lot of Illini alums who tried raking him over the coals for lying or exaggerating or sour grapes and whatnot. Sadly, there always are people like that when things like this come up. Defensive of their program to the point where they turn on anyone who complains. And this is especially true in cases with sexual assault, as people tend to be so appalled by what is being said they can't believe the program they cheer for would be associated with it. And yet... For anything regarding allegations of this type I think we as a society need to be receptive to what the person making allegations is saying and believe them, while at the same time allow for a full investigation into it until there is enough evidence brought out to prove either guilt, innocence, or not enough information ("not guilty but also not necessarily innocent") prior to full condemnation of any party.
The Beckman stuff, I never had much of any doubt that he was capable of the gross level of incompetence, negligence, lack of player safety, rule breaking, indifference, and idiocy that Simon accused him of doing as quite frankly, that was his entire tenure here both on and off the field. The question was always whether what he alleged did indeed happen or not. And after investigation, unsurprisingly it did.
For Fitzgerald, before the whiteboard in the locker room evidence came out, I'd have had a very difficult time believing he would know about the depravity of the hazing going on in his locker room. I could believe he knew of hazing going on and that it would be possible that he even signaled to team leaders to "give a freshman the business" to "learn accountability" if they were dogging it at practice or on film during a game. A physical altercation or a get a freshman out of bed at midnight to run sprints in front of his team sort of hazing. But hazing of a sexual nature? Fitzgerald always struck me as the type of guy who if he even heard a whiff of that would kick those kids off the team, and go in front of the media to bite the bullet talking about how destructive actions like those are and how he has no tolerance for that, and anyone engaging in that sort of behavior won't be on the team and will no longer be enrolled at Northwestern. Always seemed like that sort of straight-shooter. That whiteboard is absolutely damning in conjunction to what prior staff members have said.
It is truly sad this not only went on but that the evidence now points as well to the staff allowing it to go on. Just disgusting stuff. Northwestern needs to clean house. Fire the entire coaching staff, and any player implicated in this by multiple people needs to be dropped from the team. Awful situation. Just awful.
Be careful what you call evidence these days. But I'm guessing it will get corroborated and Fitz is gone
band camp
- STL City
In the last NU official statement, paraphrasing, due to new evidence/details. How are these details new to the administration? The six month investigation did not reveal these details?
When the article in the NU paper dropped on Friday afternoon, I wondered how much steam would build over the weekend, and he we are. I agree with a lot of you, smells like pedu.
And Fitzgerald seems like just the guy who would condone this culture.
When the article in the NU paper dropped on Friday afternoon, I wondered how much steam would build over the weekend, and he we are. I agree with a lot of you, smells like pedu.
And Fitzgerald seems like just the guy who would condone this culture.
One way to look at it.
If I'm an alum or donor who cares about the program I want shovels in the ground while I'm hiring the next coach.
Interestingly there are really no players that committed to Northwestern that we have shown much interest in. At least according to 247. A terrible Northwestern is really good for Illinois, but this isn’t the way it should have happened.
Maybe this is a reflection of my pessimistic side, but how likely is it NU is the only football program in which this was occurring? Is this the football equivalent of the “me too” movement, in which disclosures empower individuals to come forward with their own stories? I hope this is limited to NU, but somehow I think there will be disclosures at other football programs.
There's no comparison to Penn State. No little boys or rape involved. And at risk kids at that. It's an absurd comparison.
These are adults that all have high intelligence.
It appears some took, whatever specifically they were doing, too far for a few. I don't understand the naked part, quite weird, but I can tell you that football locker rooms get weird. There is a pecking order in every locker room, like it or not.
Lots of players have come and gone through Northwestern w/out issue. There are far too many people involved for this to be some deep dark illegal activity taking place like what happened at Penn State. Dry humping and naked slingshots are a far cry from actions that potentially could get you the death penalty.
Yes this is weird. How a whole group of guys were insistent on seeing their teammates naked is odd. That team is a little too close.
From what I can Google up, both Bill and Ryan Cubit are available . . . just dial 1-800-hireme.
Agreed with respect to criminality, but what’s acceptable in 2023 is another matter. Optics matter too. They’ve created a culture that signals to potential recruits it’s a risky program, particularly combined with a losing record. It’s not like their warped antics produce results. It makes them look like a bunch of losers.
So why commit? Does this smell like a place with potential, a pending turnaround, a program that could coach players into draft contention? It’s still a great place to get an education of course, so there’s value in scholarships. However, athletically speaking it exudes an odor of program desperation and death. Clean house and start over.
well I personally have no problem with hazing, within reason. I see nothing wrong with making the new guys pay their dues. It tends to end up bonding people together. That is a big part of basic training, put a group of people through torture together to bond them (yes I know there is more to it from a military perspective). And I think basic training type of hazing is more or less fine.
It's the naked crap that gets me. Ok maybe you have one thing that embarrasses the guys like they've got to streak the quad or something. But there are a heck of a lot of naked hazing activities there at Northwestern. I would assume that has to be relatively rare. In my experience, guys aren't too fond of being naked around each other. Which is what makes this so weird. Streaking the quad funny, dry humping your teammate wtf?
lstewart53x3
- Scottsdale, Arizona
It’s sexual assault. End of story.
Quite a bit actually. Bernstein and Holmes spent a segment talking about it shortly after the suspension announcement came down on Friday. I was listening to ESPN 1000 on the way home from my trip to Chicago today and Meller and Hanley had Adam Rittenberg on to discuss the scandal as well.
I know this is a bush league comment at this time, but, I never thought Fitzgerald was the squeaky clean, all-american that most did. I'm a pretty good judge of character.
What I don’t get about this situation is NU hired an outside firm to get the facts of what was alleged last fall
They must have interviewed multiple current and former players to figure out if there was hazing and to what extent it went on
Questions I have is why did the university think a 2 week suspension was the right punishment if they knew what the media has reported. Or did the investigation discount those claims for whatever reason. If there was hazing that occurred on multiple instances for possibly years it is hard to think that no one on staff knew about it especially if they had former players become grad assistants
For the former players who claimed they were hazed will they take any legal actions either criminally or civil
They must have interviewed multiple current and former players to figure out if there was hazing and to what extent it went on
Questions I have is why did the university think a 2 week suspension was the right punishment if they knew what the media has reported. Or did the investigation discount those claims for whatever reason. If there was hazing that occurred on multiple instances for possibly years it is hard to think that no one on staff knew about it especially if they had former players become grad assistants
For the former players who claimed they were hazed will they take any legal actions either criminally or civil
You have to remember that when companies (or in this case a university) hire outside law firms to investigate, it’s an investigation in name only. It’s a crisis management situation where the “investigators” find out what they can, then present said findings to those who hired them. They have no further power. From there, the hiring entity decides what to do with the information it received. Based on the initial suspension and the President’s near immediate follow up…
Acquiescing to a large, in every sense of the word, group in the guise of “initiation” does not constitute consent.
Also, I learned to swim at a Y in the 1950s in which the all male swimming lessons were naked. There was no sexual connotation that I can recall. Conflating the 1950s Y situation with what apparently was going on in the Northwestern locker room is rationalization and deflection in the extreme.
Also, I learned to swim at a Y in the 1950s in which the all male swimming lessons were naked. There was no sexual connotation that I can recall. Conflating the 1950s Y situation with what apparently was going on in the Northwestern locker room is rationalization and deflection in the extreme.
If reporters are able to get more “facts” about the story than the law firm than whoever hired that law firm should be firedYou have to remember that when companies (or in this case a university) hire outside law firms to investigate, it’s an investigation in name only. It’s a crisis management situation where the “investigators” find out what they can, then present said findings to those who hired them. They have no further power. From there, the hiring entity decides what to do with the information it received. Based on the initial suspension and the President’s near immediate follow up…
In order to manage a crisis you need to know what you are dealing with. Is it a situation no one will care about or is it serious. Any case of hazing nowadays has to be taken seriously. You need to know was it a culture or a one time thing
- Status