The Northwestern Wildcats have been under a ton of scrutiny following an investigation into hazing incidents going on within the football program led by head coach Pat Fitzgerald. A former player then came forward to reveal details of the disturbing hazing incidents, which led to Northwestern reconsidering its position on Fitzgerald’s job status on Monday.
The university previously issued Pat Fitzgerald a two-week suspension after the investigation was first reported. However, as more and more ugly details of the hazing emerged, it appeared very clear that they may have misjudged his sanction.
Northwestern president Michael Schill issued a statement on Saturday as more information emerged saying that he believed he may have been wrong about his initial punishment for Fitzgerald.
Even more disturbing details emerged on Monday about alleged racism that occurred under Fitzgerald’s watch, which seems like it was the final straw.
Further, he said Black players were forced to cut their hair a certain way, also noting Black coaches were forced to do the same with a threat of unemployment. https://t.co/mLjCSapfPf
— Iggy Dowling (@idowling11) July 10, 2023
Shortly following this news, Northwestern finally made the decision to relieve Fitzgerald of his duties, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
Sources: Northwestern has fired coach Pat Fitzgerald.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) July 10, 2023
Considering all that has emerged about Pitzgerald’s program as of late, many fans wholeheartedly agreed with the decision.
Every college football program in America should pay attention to what just happened to Pat Fitzgerald.
Not that every team has exactly the same stuff going on, but if the spotlight is going to get brighter, some teams aren’t gonna like what the light uncovers.
— Brandon Walker (@BFW) July 10, 2023
And with that, Pat Fitzgerald's final win at Northwestern comes vs. Scott Frost's Nebraska Cornhuskers in Ireland.
— Josh Peterson (@joshtweeterson) July 10, 2023
https://twitter.com/GabeBider/status/1678485983128612864
Wow. Northwestern fires Pat Fitzgerald.
Just 2 days ago, Northwestern suspended Fitzgerald for 2-weeks… during July which is an off-month for football coaches.
Just 48 hours later, he's fired.
A lot can change in 2 days. pic.twitter.com/o3ALPeaYqw
— Adam Breneman (@AdamBreneman81) July 10, 2023
.@thedailynu reporters broke national stories about the school’s prestigious football team, hazing, sexual assault + racism.
Head coach Pat Fitzgerald was slapped w/ a 2-wk suspension.
But after the students' stories, he’s now out.
THIS is the impact of student journalists. https://t.co/i53kUWncfm
— Stephanie Lulay (@slulay2) July 10, 2023
Fitzgerald will leave behind an extremely complicated legacy at Northwestern, excelling at times when it came to wins and losses on the field. He notably helped the program reach multiple double-digit win seasons in his tenure, which is something that the program hadn’t done since 1995.
However, if these allegations are to be believed against him, he clearly contributed to a ton of damage psychologically to some of his former players that were victims of hazing and/or racism, which is likely what he will be remembered most for.
