I’ve been talking to several sources this week, and today I got to talk to a few more. (That’s the real value of big press conferences like this for us.)
Anyway, here are a few things I’ve learned:
- Northwestern’s head coaching search committee was made up of five trustees, a search firm and Dr. Gragg. They reached out and talked to several candidates. I’m not at liberty to discuss names, but they were many of the people you’d expect. They were talking to the right people. Some of them were head coaches, some were coordinators. A few said they weren’t interested, but multiple coaches were, as Gragg said today at the podium. With the Big Ten, the facilities, the new stadium and the location – along with the fact that expectations and pressure are relatively low – Northwestern is still a plum job.
- Patrick Ryan and the Ryan family are very much on board with Braun. I imagine that they weren’t happy with the way the Fitz firing went down, but they have pledged to continue to support the school and the program. The stadium is expected to move forward as planned.
- Regarding where they will play the next couple years while Ryan Field is being rebuilt, I heard a lot of the same things that have been posted on the board. We know they’ll play at Wrigley once the baseball season is over – and Braun loved playing at Wrigley, by the way. While the initial plan was to play at Soldier Field before that, it appears that the Bears can deny a team from playing there a certain number of days before they do, which could make it untenable. I’m not sure where that stands. We may hear something shortly, after the stadium plans are approved by the Evanston City Council.
- It appears as though Braun, like Fitz, will focus NIL money on retaining talent, rather than attracting it. He talked at length today on the podium about finding players that value Northwestern and have the character they look for, and that they will continue to be a development program. So, they will continue to recruit the same kind of prospects, for the most part. The plan ensures that when those prospects develop into impact players, they want to have the NIL money there to keep them at Northwestern when other schools try to poach them – like they did with Boo Buie this year.
- The program seems to be making an effort to work with admissions and increase the pool of potential transfers. As you know, most players who transfer into Northwestern are graduates. They’d really like to increase the number of freshmen and sophomores.
- Northwestern’s 2024 class is almost full. They have 10 commits, a couple silent commits we know about (Oke and Strong), and I think they’ll likely land both official visitors this weekend (Green and Eligon). Now that Braun has been officially hired, we heard that the program is getting calls from prospects who passed on them earlier to see if they still have a spot for them. I don’t have any names, but that’s encouraging, and a sign of how much prospects like Braun.
- You’ve no doubt noticed the startlingly low attendance at Ryan Field this season. A lot of that is a protest from fans who are pissed off that Fitz was fired first and foremost, but also those that are angry about how NU handled the firing, and the hazing scandal itself. Fundraising has also taken a big hit. TrueNU’s goal was to raise $3 million for the year; they are currently at $1.9 million. They hope that Braun’s hiring will bring fans and donors back into the fold.
- Here’s a sobering number for you: attendance at the Maryland game – not tickets, but people through the turnstiles – was 6,500. Yikes.
Questions? Ask away.
Anyway, here are a few things I’ve learned:
- Northwestern’s head coaching search committee was made up of five trustees, a search firm and Dr. Gragg. They reached out and talked to several candidates. I’m not at liberty to discuss names, but they were many of the people you’d expect. They were talking to the right people. Some of them were head coaches, some were coordinators. A few said they weren’t interested, but multiple coaches were, as Gragg said today at the podium. With the Big Ten, the facilities, the new stadium and the location – along with the fact that expectations and pressure are relatively low – Northwestern is still a plum job.
- Patrick Ryan and the Ryan family are very much on board with Braun. I imagine that they weren’t happy with the way the Fitz firing went down, but they have pledged to continue to support the school and the program. The stadium is expected to move forward as planned.
- Regarding where they will play the next couple years while Ryan Field is being rebuilt, I heard a lot of the same things that have been posted on the board. We know they’ll play at Wrigley once the baseball season is over – and Braun loved playing at Wrigley, by the way. While the initial plan was to play at Soldier Field before that, it appears that the Bears can deny a team from playing there a certain number of days before they do, which could make it untenable. I’m not sure where that stands. We may hear something shortly, after the stadium plans are approved by the Evanston City Council.
- It appears as though Braun, like Fitz, will focus NIL money on retaining talent, rather than attracting it. He talked at length today on the podium about finding players that value Northwestern and have the character they look for, and that they will continue to be a development program. So, they will continue to recruit the same kind of prospects, for the most part. The plan ensures that when those prospects develop into impact players, they want to have the NIL money there to keep them at Northwestern when other schools try to poach them – like they did with Boo Buie this year.
- The program seems to be making an effort to work with admissions and increase the pool of potential transfers. As you know, most players who transfer into Northwestern are graduates. They’d really like to increase the number of freshmen and sophomores.
- Northwestern’s 2024 class is almost full. They have 10 commits, a couple silent commits we know about (Oke and Strong), and I think they’ll likely land both official visitors this weekend (Green and Eligon). Now that Braun has been officially hired, we heard that the program is getting calls from prospects who passed on them earlier to see if they still have a spot for them. I don’t have any names, but that’s encouraging, and a sign of how much prospects like Braun.
- You’ve no doubt noticed the startlingly low attendance at Ryan Field this season. A lot of that is a protest from fans who are pissed off that Fitz was fired first and foremost, but also those that are angry about how NU handled the firing, and the hazing scandal itself. Fundraising has also taken a big hit. TrueNU’s goal was to raise $3 million for the year; they are currently at $1.9 million. They hope that Braun’s hiring will bring fans and donors back into the fold.
- Here’s a sobering number for you: attendance at the Maryland game – not tickets, but people through the turnstiles – was 6,500. Yikes.
Questions? Ask away.
