It is actually quite possible that Pat Fitzgerald does not coach a single Northwestern football game ever again. That idea would have sounded impossible as recently as Thursday, but now the scandalous situation in Evanston is escalating rapidly.
Honestly, I have no idea if he was aware or not of the deplorable incidents that were alleged to have occurred on his watch. I’ll let the investigations and fact-finding missions run their course before making any kind of judgment about who he is or what he stands for.
An investigation into hazing allegations in the Northwestern football program resulted in a suspension for head coach Pat Fitzgerald.
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More on the release of the results of the investigation on “Campus Check-In” on #WGNNewsNow from @WGNNews here: https://t.co/dVvZ7hB1Pp pic.twitter.com/UtnixcVJ7C— Larry Hawley (@HawleySports) July 7, 2023
In the tweet above, you get a good concise synopsis of the hazing accusations, alleged to have transpired within the Northwestern football program.
For full detailing of the allegations, read the original source article in the Daily Northwestern. Although we do warn you that it is all very perverse, dark and disturbing.
For Fitzgerald, his track record, up to this point, provides him the benefit of the doubt. He is still innocent until proven guilty. Other than some of the things he said publicly, back in 2014 when the Northwestern football team was attempting to unionize, he’s been a model college football coach.
Up until now, there have been no black eyes to his image. And his media skills, again other than during the union movement, have been second to none.
However, the optics on this current situation are awful. Additionally, when you have the right-hand man to Barack Obama, the greatest President of our generation, not just weighing in, but doing so in an unflattering manner, well, you now have a full blown crisis on your hands.
David Axelrod provides an excellent, bottom line, cut-straight-to-the-chase-assessment below:
Either @Northwestern coach Fitzgerald didn’t know what was going on in his locker room, which is bad, or he did and allowed the egregious hazing to continue, which is worse. As much as I’ve admired him as a player & coach, a 2-week suspension is a joke. https://t.co/VYnDMXqWvB
— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) July 9, 2023
He’s right- a two week suspension, at this time of the offseason when it is not even a recruiting period, is a farce. Basically, Northwestern football head coach Pat Fitzgerald was fined two weeks pay, by the school, and that was his only punishment. It’s a fine of about $200,000 when you consider that he makes about $5,400,000 per year.
Plenty of Fitzgerald’s former and current players have come out and publicly supported him, and vouched for his character.
Wildcat Report‘s Louie Vaccher has retweeted some of them. However, the statement released on behalf of the entire Northwestern football team did Fitz more harm than help.
Take a look at all of its contradictions.
Statement from Northwestern’s entire team pushing back against the allegations of hazing, which they call “exaggerated and twisted.” They also say coach Pat Fitzgerald had no knowledge or involvement in the allegations. pic.twitter.com/lMOAgCe0EB
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) July 9, 2023
First off, a statement on behalf of all 100+ players within the Northwestern football program? Really? Every single player is in complete agreement on all of these talking points?
You have had time, in the last 48 hours, to get the feedback, on these very complicated issues, from every single player? Whatever lawyer or public relations professional or so-called damage control expert or wrote this thing truly botched it.
If it was a team effort in writing this it’s even worse. They rushed it out too fast and same several errors, which almost make it sounds like something close to an admission of guilt.
“Exaggerated and “twisted”? So basically you’re saying hazing did happen, but it wasn’t quite THAT bad? Or is it “we didn’t haze, but if we did haze, then it wasn’t that as bad as the reports you’re hearing claim it was.”
It is also saying that nothing happened, but if it did actually happen, then Fitz didn’t know about it.
Basically, they pretty much wrote:
Pat Fitzgerald had absolutely no knowledge of events that definitely did not happen, and even if he did, you can’t prove a negative,
Sincerely,
The Entire Northwestern football team who reached a consensus on what exactly to say two days after very disturbing allegations came to light, via an investigation that we ourselves believe is credible.
Ok, sure, got it. Yeah, right. And since everything in life has a Simpsons reference- Principal Skinner was only at the burlesque house, in order to get directions on how to get away from the burlesque house.
Again this so-called players statement made things much worse, not better.
And now, it appears, ESPN may have the smoking gun, which if legit, is especially damning.
The former Northwestern player sent ESPN a screenshot of a whiteboard, which he says was in the middle of the locker room. Image is headlined “SHREK’S LIST” and includes a list of players’ names and several bulleted items, including “naked slingshot” and “naked bear crawls.”
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) July 9, 2023
Where do we go from here? Axelrod is right- Pat Fitzgerald either knew and condoned, or didn’t know and was thus, incompetent in leading his program. They’ll need a real investigation now, instead of one conducted by someone who was hired by the school. That’s never a legit situation.
I have no idea what is going to happen, but I am nearly certain that Northwestern football will send someone else to Big Ten Media Days in a couple weeks. Then, I’m just guessing here, but a one year suspension, with a deep re-assessment of the situation in 2024.
His contract runs all the way until 2030, so if there is going to be a separation between the parties down the line, how does that actually work out in real life?
You can, without hyperbole, call him the greatest player and coach in the history of Northwestern football. He’s the main reason that state of the art facilities were built/are going to be built in Evanston.
These facts takes an already complicated situation and makes it even more unprecedented.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now. Follow the website on Twitter and Instagram.