PF Status
- Thread starter IGNORE2
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Never met Fitz! But he ain’t the problem! He is top ten college football coach!
And they want me to pay for it when we on the free board get superior polling?
I think not.
Even in victory, this team is so hard to watch. Combine that with the arrogance of Fitz and it's especially tough to take. In the wake of Hankwitz' departure, I've come to see Fitz's response 'we have to look at the tape' to mean 'I have no clue what is happening or how to fix it.' I was at the Duke game and JON looked shockingly bewildered on the sideline. He had no idea what to do. I've been a huge fan of Fitz since the mid-90s, but the schtick is getting old.
Looking at the early results is much more telling than that paid board poll. What I see is a palatable percentage ready to part company with PF - doesn't need to happen - but ok with it. I see the largest percentage willing to give him a little more rope while the clique crew shrinks. And that says to me that if no coordinator change and another crap start next season, this place will be lit up with cries for his firing. I doubt that does anything. But if this serves as a barometer, then it also means those tailgating lots will be mostly visitors with some family and diehards peppered in. The color throughout the stadium will be anything but purple. All non-B1G TV revenue will slow to a trickle. And as a measuring stick of a successful AD - this won't look good.
I bet by mid year next season - if the cats aren't good - the relationship between PF and the new AD hoping to build his own reputation will begin to sour. Not sure where the new Prez or Ryan will fall, but that relationship alone will surely make for some uncomfortable meetings. Compared to JP, PF is not gonna have that warm & fuzzy 'the AD has my back' feeling - it will be time to watch his back. Wonder if that results in a snarkier PF, or one that finally learns humility before losing is super cush job and reputation.
I bet by mid year next season - if the cats aren't good - the relationship between PF and the new AD hoping to build his own reputation will begin to sour. Not sure where the new Prez or Ryan will fall, but that relationship alone will surely make for some uncomfortable meetings. Compared to JP, PF is not gonna have that warm & fuzzy 'the AD has my back' feeling - it will be time to watch his back. Wonder if that results in a snarkier PF, or one that finally learns humility before losing is super cush job and reputation.
Yeah, that feedback would not be pretty. Team throwing in the towel at Wisconsin, the NEB game, the first half of the Duke game, and being called out by a FR RB for not wanting to tackle. That's your 2022 NU DC folks!
Rebel_ might take you up on that. (But anybody who randomly drops stories about conversations with Bear Bryant is allowed to have any opinion he might wish, uncontested, in my book.) People can root for friends and acquaintances to succeed. That is natural.
That was my point, get the support or lack of it on record for all to see. You think someone in the football program is not watching this site? They need to know how we feel about this catastrophe. As I recently posted, Ara Parseghian's record at Notre Dame was 95-17-4. No matter how you look at it, this is great coaching, although some credit goes to ND's support of Ara, but based on my knowledge most of it was Ara. Parseghian's record at NU was 36-35-1 whereas Fitz's record is 109-90. Close percentage wise, however much of Fitz's success has been due to Hank. Without Hank, Fitz's record would have been half of what it is, considering the majority of games won by the defense. This is why what has happened this year is potentially devastating to the program. If Fitz was a good enough coach to hire Hank, he is good enough to reverse his recent hire. If not, he is done. It all hinges on JON, and thus on Fitz..
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I think Hank fell in his lap. Otherwise who knows if he would still be at NU.
Now there are two of those people… coral and corbi? Nope - they can’t even see this poll. Wonder who they are…
Our fanbase is pretty rational, even among this group.
I would say, there has to be positive signs/results in the next two years.
Most of us expect a poor year next year; let's just be blunt, another <5 win season is likely. But we have to start seeing improvements at some point, and coaches on the team will likely have to start being replaced if we start to look like a program that's falling into a rut.
JON and Bajakian, both and pretty much everyone else is going to be on the hot seat over the next year.
The Illinois and Nebraska games were the two that showcased that we appear to be far behind the average Big Ten team.
I would say, there has to be positive signs/results in the next two years.
Most of us expect a poor year next year; let's just be blunt, another <5 win season is likely. But we have to start seeing improvements at some point, and coaches on the team will likely have to start being replaced if we start to look like a program that's falling into a rut.
JON and Bajakian, both and pretty much everyone else is going to be on the hot seat over the next year.
The Illinois and Nebraska games were the two that showcased that we appear to be far behind the average Big Ten team.
Trying to remember him… been awhile since he matriculated, I think…well, as long as we sport a top 5 defense, we will be able to survive. Powering running football behind our great line is the ticket.
I would be more supportive if he had shown the accountability and the balls to fire his coordinators. Instead he's like an ostrich sticking his head in the sand. For all the good that he does the program (and that is not inconsiderable), it's hard to see where the program can go with these chump coordinators and an offense that cannot score and a defense that can't keep opponents from scoring.
I haven't changed my vote from the "wavering but still on the PF train".
But if JON doesn't get fired in the next 3 months, then yes I will have serious issues with Fitz remaining as HC.
Stubbornness isn't a per se problem, but being unable or unwilling to realize that his coordinators are the biggest problem with the team would be a real red flag for his tenure.
I would reluctantly support a change. So much of what he accomplished was with Hank's support. He has clearly lost his way, and is to stubborn to admit it.
That poll on the Rock was truly surprising.
Fitz has always made the proper public statements in defense of his players and staff, calling for the blame to land upon himself. But that has never really meant anything.
For all of the rest of us, thumb pointing in front of our bosses or our customers might very well be followed by the loss of our job. But Fitz doesn’t fear that, at all. So it is an empty gesture on his part.
The thumb pointing can and should continue, but maybe some folks higher up his food chain need to privately express that they agree with him.
Fitz has always made the proper public statements in defense of his players and staff, calling for the blame to land upon himself. But that has never really meant anything.
For all of the rest of us, thumb pointing in front of our bosses or our customers might very well be followed by the loss of our job. But Fitz doesn’t fear that, at all. So it is an empty gesture on his part.
The thumb pointing can and should continue, but maybe some folks higher up his food chain need to privately express that they agree with him.
Thumb pointing at himself is better than the usual thumb up his ass
I can't comment on our DC because my son never played for him. McGargle is an upgrade from Bate as far as coaching goes. I don't know how he is at recruiting or seeing talent that can be developed into D1 talent. You can go all thru my past posts under my different accounts and see I said the team would drop off when Hanks left. I said it long before Hanks was talking about leaving. Nobody can replace Coach Hanks, he was the best DC in college football. He made everyone better. I see a large drop In talent, I don't know how it happened or who is responsible. If we don't recruit better it won't matter who coaches our team. I am sure Coach Fitz is aware of what he needs to do and will do what he needs to. He has brought great success to Northwestern, and he will again. Relax my Wildcat friends and give Fitz a chance to get us back to where we all know we can be. He has earned our support and trust
“I take total responsibility” is an empty statement if nothing is done to fix it.
And this NU team was worse yesterday than the week before.
CC, I think most of us would grumble and just write off this year, but the fall has been precipitous. We are one bonehead Scott Frost move away from an 0-12 season, against largely mediocre to poor opposition. Other than the Penn State game played in a quagmire (giggidy), our 4 toughest opponents remain.
This is a weak B1G, yet we are going to lose 11 in a row. This drop-off is inexcusable, even in the absence of Hank
This is a weak B1G, yet we are going to lose 11 in a row. This drop-off is inexcusable, even in the absence of Hank
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