More on the Fitzgerald Hiring.
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The Ancient Enemy
- Official BleacherCoach
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- Joined: October 30th, 2004, 2:47 pm
More on the Fitzgerald Hiring.
After thinking about this some more, I dunno if I agree with Northwestern hiring Pat Fitzgerald. I would say that he is probably in the top 5-10 Big Ten defensive players in the past 15 years, but that doesn't really qualify a guy for a head coaching job. Neither does spending a year as a def. graduate assistant at Colorado and Maryland, and then a season as LB's and Special Teams coach at Idaho. After that, since 01 he was d-backs coach and then in 04 became LB's coach and recruiting coordinator. That hardly qualifies anyone for any major coordinator position (OC / DC), let alone head coach.
In 2004, NU's recruiting class boasted 2 3-star players. In 2005, they got 10 3-star players, one of which was Tyrell Sutton. The 06 class brought in 4 3-star recruits. Nothing better than that in any of the classes.
I was not able to find game stats, but since Fitzgerald took over the d-backs and then the LB's jobs, NU has given up some pretty big points against teams that from my seat seem to pass the ball more than other teams do. Northwestern's defenses have not been good in awhile, since Fitzgerald played under Barnett, but even then NU only had 2 decent seasons (10-2 and 9-3). In fact last season, NU gave up more points than they had since 2002. 52 to pass-happy Arizona State, and 50 to a pass-oriented UCLA.
Unfortunately, I was not able to find a listing of the other coaches at NU. I was curious as to who was overlooked when they made this hiring. It seems to be that with this tragic death of Randy Walker, Northwestern went the route of hiring a huge Northwestern alumnist and favorite in Pat Fitzgerald. What better way to turn people's frowns upside down than to give it to Fitzgerald, whom everyone loves? Unfortunately for NU, they really jumped the gun with this instead of giving the reigns to the O-Coor. or D-Coor. as interim coach. In this upcoming seasons recruiting war, NU right now boasts a 2-star RB and has not even made an offer to a 5 star player.
Calmer heads prevail after everything dies down. Unfortunately for NU, who is already on the verge of a down season (from 7-5 in 05) with the loss of Basanez, they will learn this lesson the hard way.
In 2004, NU's recruiting class boasted 2 3-star players. In 2005, they got 10 3-star players, one of which was Tyrell Sutton. The 06 class brought in 4 3-star recruits. Nothing better than that in any of the classes.
I was not able to find game stats, but since Fitzgerald took over the d-backs and then the LB's jobs, NU has given up some pretty big points against teams that from my seat seem to pass the ball more than other teams do. Northwestern's defenses have not been good in awhile, since Fitzgerald played under Barnett, but even then NU only had 2 decent seasons (10-2 and 9-3). In fact last season, NU gave up more points than they had since 2002. 52 to pass-happy Arizona State, and 50 to a pass-oriented UCLA.
Unfortunately, I was not able to find a listing of the other coaches at NU. I was curious as to who was overlooked when they made this hiring. It seems to be that with this tragic death of Randy Walker, Northwestern went the route of hiring a huge Northwestern alumnist and favorite in Pat Fitzgerald. What better way to turn people's frowns upside down than to give it to Fitzgerald, whom everyone loves? Unfortunately for NU, they really jumped the gun with this instead of giving the reigns to the O-Coor. or D-Coor. as interim coach. In this upcoming seasons recruiting war, NU right now boasts a 2-star RB and has not even made an offer to a 5 star player.
Calmer heads prevail after everything dies down. Unfortunately for NU, who is already on the verge of a down season (from 7-5 in 05) with the loss of Basanez, they will learn this lesson the hard way.
Last edited by The Ancient Enemy on September 20th, 2011, 12:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
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As much as I wish the best for him and congradulate him, I must go against the grain here and say it was a mistake to hire him. He basically has no real coaching experience yet. Youth is a great thing and you may look great in bigger places that get the recruits but this is NW. I fear if he doesn't do well this move may actually hurt his career in the long run. Call me an old timer but I believe you have to spend some time coaching and would like to see the coach as a coordinator as well. 5 or so years as a positional coach just doesn't cut it. He better assemble a good coaching squad to surround himself.
The schedule may help early on with: @miami(OH), NHamp, EMich, @Nev. But if he loses any of these noncon games, it will be a rough year because then @PennSt, @Wisc, Pur, MichSt. Then they end @scUM, @Iowa, OSU, IL.
I like alot of coaches but when you are talking about the man who is going to guide the whole ball of wax, I want some experience.
The schedule may help early on with: @miami(OH), NHamp, EMich, @Nev. But if he loses any of these noncon games, it will be a rough year because then @PennSt, @Wisc, Pur, MichSt. Then they end @scUM, @Iowa, OSU, IL.
I like alot of coaches but when you are talking about the man who is going to guide the whole ball of wax, I want some experience.
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