Congrats on an amazing season and such a wonderful accomplishment. Let’s finish in Orlando. Nothing more I’d like see to than Hank being carried off after win #400!
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Fitz is the DODD Trophy Coach of the Year
- Thread starter CoralSpringsCat
- Start date
Way to go Fitz!!! Bring home a Victory!!! 400 for Hank!!!
This is obviously well-deserved. The award goes to the coach who "best embodies the three pillars of success: scholarship, leadership and integrity."
Unfortunate that the Broyles Award goes to whichever assistant coach best embodies the sensibilities of the good ol' boys club of the south.
Unfortunate that the Broyles Award goes to whichever assistant coach best embodies the sensibilities of the good ol' boys club of the south.
Sir, this is the Northwestern Rivals board.
If I were an AP voter, I'd rank Northwestern #1 every week.
Fitz meets the criteria for this award and I'm quite happy that he's taking it home.
Tom Allen should have been AP coach of the year, for what it's worth.
I think both would be deserving. I see that Allen is winning some of these, so that’s good. Fitz winning this one also feels right.
Here’s the release...
ATLANTA (Dec. 31, 2020) - Officials from the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl today announced that Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald has been named the winner of the 2020 Dodd Trophy.
Presented annually by the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, The Dodd Trophy, college football’s most coveted coaching award, honors the head football coach whose program embodies the award’s three pillars of scholarship, leadership and integrity, while also having success on the playing field throughout the season. Winners of the award from the previous two years and first-year coaches at an institution are not eligible to win the award.
Fitzgerald led the Wildcats to the program’s second Big Ten West Division title and berth in the Big Ten Championship game earlier this year. With 15 seasons at the helm at Northwestern, Pat Fitzgerald is now the second-longest tenured head coach in the Big Ten. Earlier this season, he surpassed 100 career victories as head coach of the Wildcats. His 105 career victories are the 23rd most by an active FBS coach. All 105 wins have come as the head coach of the Wildcats, which places him sixth on the list of active FBS coaches who have collected their wins at the same school. Fitzgerald is one of eight active coaches to be the all-time winningest coach at their current school and ranks fourth on that list. As a program, Northwestern has appeared in 16 bowl games, 10 of which have come with Fitzgerald as the head coach. The Chicago, Illinois, native has coached his alma mater to four of the five bowl victories in program history, including a current run of three consecutive bowl championships.
“Coach Dodd is a legendary figure of our game and it is an absolute honor to win the award that bears his name,” said Fitzgerald. “This is a program award and I am privileged to be the head coach of the best student-athletes in the country alongside a staff that is second-to-none. Coach Dodd's pillars of scholarship, leadership and integrity are the foundation of a Wildcat. Our young men strive to excel in every facet of their college experience, whether that be earning the highest graduation rate success rate in the country, giving back in the community or consistently competing for championships. On behalf of our entire Northwestern Football Family, I am proud to accept this prestigious award.”
Northwestern has also excelled academically under Fitzgerald. Off the football field, Fitzgerald's players have achieved at the highest levels in the classroom, with a program-record 69 players earning Academic All-Big Ten honors in 2020. For the fourth consecutive year, Northwestern football earned the highest Graduation Success Rate, GSR, among all FBS programs, posting a 97 percent mark. The Wildcats have ranked first or second in the country for GSR among FBS football programs for 10 straight years. In 2019, Northwestern football also became the first Power Five team ever to post a perfect GSR score. Northwestern has earned an FBS-best 10 AFCA Academic Achievement Awards since 1998. Additionally, Fitzgerald's program has ranked in the top three among all FBS programs in the multi-year Academic Progress Rating (APR) for 10 consecutive years and has posted a score of 995-or-better in the measure of player retention and eligibility four straight years. The Wildcats were the lone Big Ten football program to earn an APR Public Recognition Award from the NCAA in 2020, which is given to programs that rank in the top 10 percent of their sport.
“Coach Fitzgerald truly embodies everything that The Dodd Trophy stands for,” said Jim Terry, chairman of the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation. “He’s built the Northwestern program into a perennial contender in the Big Ten, while also achieving new milestones in the classroom and making a positive impact in his community. Coach Dodd would be honored to have someone win the award who carries on his legacy in the modern era of the sport.”
In the community, Fitzgerald, his family and his players participate in several charitable events including: Northwestern Dance Marathon, Special Olympics, Misericordia and Uplifting Athletes. The team also makes weekly school and children’s hospital visits, along with contributing to dozens of other organizations. In recognition of his work off of the football field, Fitzgerald was named honorary coach of the 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team for demonstrating a unique dedication to community service and desire to make a positive impact on the lives of others.
“Coach Fitzgerald has taken the Northwestern football program to new heights on the gridiron and in the classroom,” said Gary Stokan, CEO and president of Peach Bowl, Inc. “The Dodd Trophy is the most coveted coach of the year award because it honors those coaches who leave a lasting legacy both on and off the football field. He epitomizes everything coaches in our sport should aspire to be and is the perfect selection to be this year’s recipient.”
Five of the nation’s top head coaches (Tom Allen, Matt Campbell, Luke Fickell, Pat Fitzgerald and Brian Kelly) were named finalists for this year’s award by a panel consisting of all previous winners, national media, a member of the Dodd family and a College Football Hall of Fame member. Coach Fitzgerald was selected as this year’s recipient by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation.
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ATLANTA (Dec. 31, 2020) - Officials from the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl today announced that Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald has been named the winner of the 2020 Dodd Trophy.
Presented annually by the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, The Dodd Trophy, college football’s most coveted coaching award, honors the head football coach whose program embodies the award’s three pillars of scholarship, leadership and integrity, while also having success on the playing field throughout the season. Winners of the award from the previous two years and first-year coaches at an institution are not eligible to win the award.
Fitzgerald led the Wildcats to the program’s second Big Ten West Division title and berth in the Big Ten Championship game earlier this year. With 15 seasons at the helm at Northwestern, Pat Fitzgerald is now the second-longest tenured head coach in the Big Ten. Earlier this season, he surpassed 100 career victories as head coach of the Wildcats. His 105 career victories are the 23rd most by an active FBS coach. All 105 wins have come as the head coach of the Wildcats, which places him sixth on the list of active FBS coaches who have collected their wins at the same school. Fitzgerald is one of eight active coaches to be the all-time winningest coach at their current school and ranks fourth on that list. As a program, Northwestern has appeared in 16 bowl games, 10 of which have come with Fitzgerald as the head coach. The Chicago, Illinois, native has coached his alma mater to four of the five bowl victories in program history, including a current run of three consecutive bowl championships.
“Coach Dodd is a legendary figure of our game and it is an absolute honor to win the award that bears his name,” said Fitzgerald. “This is a program award and I am privileged to be the head coach of the best student-athletes in the country alongside a staff that is second-to-none. Coach Dodd's pillars of scholarship, leadership and integrity are the foundation of a Wildcat. Our young men strive to excel in every facet of their college experience, whether that be earning the highest graduation rate success rate in the country, giving back in the community or consistently competing for championships. On behalf of our entire Northwestern Football Family, I am proud to accept this prestigious award.”
Northwestern has also excelled academically under Fitzgerald. Off the football field, Fitzgerald's players have achieved at the highest levels in the classroom, with a program-record 69 players earning Academic All-Big Ten honors in 2020. For the fourth consecutive year, Northwestern football earned the highest Graduation Success Rate, GSR, among all FBS programs, posting a 97 percent mark. The Wildcats have ranked first or second in the country for GSR among FBS football programs for 10 straight years. In 2019, Northwestern football also became the first Power Five team ever to post a perfect GSR score. Northwestern has earned an FBS-best 10 AFCA Academic Achievement Awards since 1998. Additionally, Fitzgerald's program has ranked in the top three among all FBS programs in the multi-year Academic Progress Rating (APR) for 10 consecutive years and has posted a score of 995-or-better in the measure of player retention and eligibility four straight years. The Wildcats were the lone Big Ten football program to earn an APR Public Recognition Award from the NCAA in 2020, which is given to programs that rank in the top 10 percent of their sport.
“Coach Fitzgerald truly embodies everything that The Dodd Trophy stands for,” said Jim Terry, chairman of the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation. “He’s built the Northwestern program into a perennial contender in the Big Ten, while also achieving new milestones in the classroom and making a positive impact in his community. Coach Dodd would be honored to have someone win the award who carries on his legacy in the modern era of the sport.”
In the community, Fitzgerald, his family and his players participate in several charitable events including: Northwestern Dance Marathon, Special Olympics, Misericordia and Uplifting Athletes. The team also makes weekly school and children’s hospital visits, along with contributing to dozens of other organizations. In recognition of his work off of the football field, Fitzgerald was named honorary coach of the 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team for demonstrating a unique dedication to community service and desire to make a positive impact on the lives of others.
“Coach Fitzgerald has taken the Northwestern football program to new heights on the gridiron and in the classroom,” said Gary Stokan, CEO and president of Peach Bowl, Inc. “The Dodd Trophy is the most coveted coach of the year award because it honors those coaches who leave a lasting legacy both on and off the football field. He epitomizes everything coaches in our sport should aspire to be and is the perfect selection to be this year’s recipient.”
Five of the nation’s top head coaches (Tom Allen, Matt Campbell, Luke Fickell, Pat Fitzgerald and Brian Kelly) were named finalists for this year’s award by a panel consisting of all previous winners, national media, a member of the Dodd family and a College Football Hall of Fame member. Coach Fitzgerald was selected as this year’s recipient by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation.
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Yes.
I like Tom Allen a lot but it's not even close. When Tom gets to his 10th bowl game while leading the nation in graduation rates over 15 years, then I'd consider him.
https://theathletic.com/2263748/2020/12/16/pat-fitzgerald-northwestern-recruiting/
Yes, no question about it. The dramatic turnaround achieved relative to last year is the most obvious tie breaking factor in the coaching job that was done this year.
I'll give Allen a pat on the back, a Bundt cake, and extra tickets to the ball.
Based on the scholarship and integrity criteria, yes. Allen had a great season and is doing amazing things at Indy. I look forward to both NU and IU continuing to close the gap with OSU. It's a shame NU and IU didn't play this year. It would have been a great game.
Hell yes. Big Ten E
I certainly would have chosen Fitz. Next year in the B1G East IU could easily slip back to mediocrity. Fitz has three 10 win seasons to go along with this year.
Don't mean to keep harping on the same point, but Fitz still sounds like he's out the door....
What???? How does "Just the beginning" translate to good bye? I never thought that he'd leave, he's a lifer at NU.
Yeh, in a thread about PF leaving I posted another quote from Fitz (after B1G CG): "If you were surprised to see us this time, don’t be next time!"
Tom who? Maybe you meant Tim.
Best of luck on the dual personality TV show.
Multiple Personality Allen
I think Allen was deserving as well, but in my mind, how Coach Fitz (and the rest of the NU football program) handled COVID-19 was the clincher. The pillars of the Dodd Trophy are scholarship, leadership, and integrity. Fitz could always be a nominee based on the first pillar. How our team handled COVID-19, especially compared to just about every other major program, is a testament to leadership and integrity.
Congrats, Fitz!
Congrats, Fitz!
Yes, The turnaround from last year was much more dramatic that what was done at Indiana and we actually won the division. Though if only one coach was to get the top spot this year, I would rather it had been Hank (don't figure you are going to get both) . 51 years of consistently being one of the top guys and never being the flavor of the month. Sorry but that is a crime
Have to point out that the Only reason for your "dramatic turnaround" this year was an INDIANA Grad Transfer QB named Ramsey... That FACT, along with the nearly mass exodus of your current crop of players is hardly a ringing endorsement of Fitz's "Coach of the Year" attributes...
No worries though..., and Congrats to you and Fitz... Just another log for the 2021 fire...
Most of those leaving NU have their degrees and are looking for more playing time.
Damn, all it took was two above average years and a bowl loss for Indiana fans to get really annoying.
I would have, yes. It wouldn't be a slam dunk, easy choice. And it's weird to have the top two choices - in my mind, anyway - from the same conference. I really appreciate what Coach Allen has done at Indiana. For so many years, these were the bottom two programs in the B1G and in 2020 they were they only two that could even challenge Ohio State.
If I'm going to stay true to the scholarship part of the award's ideals, then that's the final edge in my mind. If you're going to say my Purple-colored glasses give me a different view than your Crimson-colored glasses ..... completely understood.
Obviously our defense had nothing to do with our 6 wins, as well as holding OSU to 22 points, and 13 through 3 quarters.
Head to Head when we had Ramsey and you didn't:
11/02/2019
INDIANA 34 - Northwestern 3
Yeah, I'm certain your D without a decent QB on the other side of the ball would have made a major difference... After having a guy run for over 300 on you in the Championship game I don't think going out of your way to crow about your D is a great strategy...
Okay..., it's your board and I respect Northwestern so this is my last post over here for at least a few months...
Good Luck in your Bowl game and for gosh sakes don't pull a purdue 🙄 and embarrass the entire Big Ten...
