On Friday, Northwestern Wildcats head football coach Pat Fitzgerald was given a two-week suspension after an investigation revealed hazing incidents throughout the football program. But after some horrible details of those hazing incidents emerged, it sounds like that suspension is being reconsidered.
In a statement released on Saturday evening, Northwestern president Michael Schill said “I believe I may have erred in weighing the appropriate sanction.”
Schill claims that he “focused too much on what the report concluded he didn’t know and not enough on what he should have known.”
As a result of the horrible details, it sounds like Schill is considering additional punishment for Fitzgerald.
“Upon receiving an anonymous complaint from a student-athlete in November 2022, the University acted prudently to immediately engage an independent investigator to perform a comprehensive review of the complaint, including outreach to current and former student-athletes. After reviewing the report, I assessed a two-week suspension for Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald, which went into effect immediately. However, upon reflection, I believe I may have erred in weighing the appropriate sanction for Coach Fitzgerald,” Schill said in a statement.
“The confidential report concluded that while there was corroborating evidence that hazing had occurred, there was no direct evidence that Coach Fitzgerald was aware of the hazing. In determining an appropriate penalty for the head coach, I focused too much on what the report concluded he didn’t know and not enough on what he should have known. As the head coach of one of our athletics programs, Coach Fitzgerald is not only responsible for what happens within the program but also must take great care to uphold our institutional commitment to the student experience and our priority to ensure all students — undergraduate and graduate — can thrive during their time at Northwestern. Clearly, he failed to uphold that commitment, and I failed to sufficiently consider that failure in levying a sanction.”
Schill said that he will “engage with University leadership, including the Board of Trustees as well as the leadership of the Faculty Senate” as he considers the next steps in the situation.
