72 hours till opening kickoff and here’s where I’m at:
These past eight weeks have been hell for NU fans. Many in my friend group are split between being disgusted at some of the reported behavior from a program that was held in high regard and feeling like Fitz was unfairly scapegoated, leaving NU without its longtime leader and severely damaging its brand.
But the fact of the matter is: NU will make changes internally to help prevent any of this stupidity to take hold again. NU is also — for now — in the coveted Big Ten Conference and will still be a desirable landing spot for many academically minded recruits.
So, for this year: JUST W.I.N. Tread water as a program. Erase that 11-game losing streak, show a fighting spirit and maybe surprise a team or two. Reel in a recruiting class that is at least on par with the lower tier of the Big Ten.
I do not know if Braun is the long-term solution as head coach. But hell, over the past two seasons, I wasn’t sure Fitz was either. Yes, he was as close to being “the program” as a coach can get, but at a certain point if you’re both boring and bad you cannot stay. His hires of Jake and JON were almost fireable offenses themselves, and has been discussed at length here, hindsight makes it look like Hank’s brilliance masked a lot of Fitz’s weaknesses.
I want to continue to root for Northwestern. It will be painful to do if we’re back in the Dark Ages — to say nothing of the risk that poses to being booted from the Big Ten.
So while I might not be wearing ~quite~ as much purple and boasting about how NU does things “the right way” this football season, I will definitely be quietly rooting for the team’s success. The future of the program could depend on it. 6-6 would be a minor miracle.
These past eight weeks have been hell for NU fans. Many in my friend group are split between being disgusted at some of the reported behavior from a program that was held in high regard and feeling like Fitz was unfairly scapegoated, leaving NU without its longtime leader and severely damaging its brand.
But the fact of the matter is: NU will make changes internally to help prevent any of this stupidity to take hold again. NU is also — for now — in the coveted Big Ten Conference and will still be a desirable landing spot for many academically minded recruits.
So, for this year: JUST W.I.N. Tread water as a program. Erase that 11-game losing streak, show a fighting spirit and maybe surprise a team or two. Reel in a recruiting class that is at least on par with the lower tier of the Big Ten.
I do not know if Braun is the long-term solution as head coach. But hell, over the past two seasons, I wasn’t sure Fitz was either. Yes, he was as close to being “the program” as a coach can get, but at a certain point if you’re both boring and bad you cannot stay. His hires of Jake and JON were almost fireable offenses themselves, and has been discussed at length here, hindsight makes it look like Hank’s brilliance masked a lot of Fitz’s weaknesses.
I want to continue to root for Northwestern. It will be painful to do if we’re back in the Dark Ages — to say nothing of the risk that poses to being booted from the Big Ten.
So while I might not be wearing ~quite~ as much purple and boasting about how NU does things “the right way” this football season, I will definitely be quietly rooting for the team’s success. The future of the program could depend on it. 6-6 would be a minor miracle.
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