ADVERTISEMENT

The big one: Who was the best Northwestern head coach over the last 25 years?

Who was the best Northwestern head coach over the last 25 years?

  • Gary Barnett

    Votes: 48 36.6%
  • Randy Walker

    Votes: 5 3.8%
  • Pat Fitzgerald

    Votes: 78 59.5%

  • Total voters
    131
  • Poll closed .

lou v

Moderator
Moderator
Aug 27, 2004
39,015
25,594
113
We took a break from the Best in 25 Years Series for the football season, but now we're back at it. We only have one spot left, and it's going to be the toughest pick of all.

You know the drill. First, read the WildcatReport story to refresh your memory about the careers of Gary Barnett, Randy Walker and Pat Fitzgerald: Who was the best Northwestern head coach over the last 25 years?

Then vote for your choice for the title of best Wildcat head coach over the last quarter century.

The poll will close Saturday at noon, so vote NOW!
 
I see Barnett as like Moses, leading us out of bondage. Walker is like John the Baptist, and...you know the rest. How this isn't unanimous is beyond me.

Barney's accomplishments are beyond belief, and I wonder how he would have done in divisional era, vs relying on an annual John Cooper dik trip game

Barnett had a coach on the field named Fitz, which muddles things a bit. Barnett's singular achievement of turning around NU football is among the greatest in college football history. But who would I choose as my coach if I were hiring one of these 3 to lead NU, would be Fitz by a mile. He runs the best all around program in the country when you consider player experience, graduation, on-field success, fundraising and facilities, character, resilience and player development etc...
 
Barnett had a coach on the field named Fitz, which muddles things a bit. Barnett's singular achievement of turning around NU football is among the greatest in college football history. But who would I choose as my coach if I were hiring one of these 3 to lead NU, would be Fitz by a mile. He runs the best all around program in the country when you consider player experience, graduation, on-field success, fundraising and facilities, character, resilience and player development etc...

Good points all around. However, we were at our apex in recruiting, in titles, and in ranking under Barnett. He brought in multiple top 25 or 30 classes, and we haven't sniffed one since. His recruits won us 3 titles, and he recruited 3 Heisman finalists to NU (counting Chris Brown). We were ranked #3 going into the Bowl Season. Think about what that means for a moment. He would have had us in the CFP.

I could turn it around and say without Barnett, there would be no Fitz. Sure, I might even pick Fitz to lead our program today, but back when we fired Peay? What Barnett accomplished was ridiculous when you consider he did it all with the worst facilities, zero track record, and a poisoned locker room.

Everyone, especially those who weren't NU fans during Barnett's day, should read Chappy's book and then vote from an informed perspective. I'm not saying there isn't an argument for Fitz, but I think there's going to be a little bit of recency bias in this tally.
 
Last edited:
It's hard to really compare the three given how different the program was in each's hands, but at this time it should be 1) Fitz, 2) Barnett, 3) Walk.

Fitz has incredible longevity and success over a long period of time. He's become a great coach in his own right. Early on it felt like the team didn't have the talent to match up to how he wanted it to play. But the flashes were there, we took big leads against solid teams early on and then just wore down at times. But now we have the talent to generally compete with and beat anybody outside of Ohio State, and we even give OSU tough games.

Barnett obviously for what he did in starting the dramatic turnaround after decades in the wilderness has an important place not just in the history of our program but arguably across college football history given the subsequent successes under Walk and Fitz. The achievements of the 1995/1996 squads and players speak for themselves.

Walker is tough to really judge here; he was here at a key inflection point in two respects, 1) proving that the success under Barnett wasn't just a flash in the pan and that we could continually compete in the Big Ten, and 2) the innovation of spread offense coming here and to cfb generally. And he did earn a share of the Big Ten title in 2000, which was important for making 1995-1996 not seen as just a fluke; also gave us our only win against Ohio State in decades.

As others have said, there's 2 completely scenarios when you talk about Fitz and Barnett. Fitz as head of the program for decades is a completely different story from Barnett's job of turning the program around and jump starting what would follow.


I do think after 15 years and especially the success of the last couple of years, Fitz has probably displaced Barnett in this type of ranking. Hard to argue with Fitz now having 2 division titles, 100+ wins here, 5 bowl wins in 10 appearances, 5 top 25 finishes, and a lot of big wins.
 
Randy Walker is certainly the most underrated and underappreciated. Probably deserves the vote despite the stats. But I voted Fitz, because I know he would have wanted it that way.
 
Randy Walker is certainly the most underrated and underappreciated. Probably deserves the vote despite the stats. But I voted Fitz, because I know he would have wanted it that way.

Deserves the vote? For what? I'm really curious to hear from the Walker voters their argument. It's just mind boggling to me.

I get Fitz. I don't agree with it, but I get it. Walker? C'mon.
 
Good points all around. However, we were at our apex in recruiting, in titles, and in ranking under Barnett. He brought in multiple top 25 or 30 classes, and we haven't sniffed one since. His recruits won us 3 titles, and he recruited 3 Heisman finalists to NU (counting Chris Brown). We were ranked #3 going into the Bowl Season. Think about what that means for a moment. He would have had us in the CFP.

I could turn it around and say without Barnett, there would be no Fitz. Sure, I might even pick Fitz to lead our program today, but back when we fired Peay? What Barnett accomplished was ridiculous when you consider he did it all with the worst facilities, zero track record, and a poisoned locker room.

Everyone, especially those who weren't NU fans during Barnett's day, should read Chappy's book and then vote from an informed perspective. I'm not saying there isn't an argument for Fitz, but I think there's going to be a little bit of recency bias in this tally.
All that's fair, I mean we're comparing longevity with absolute peak.

We haven't had a year like 1995 under Fitz yet. Obviously we hope it happens, but it hasn't.

I'd argue this 2020 campaign roughly matches the 1996 campaign in terms of achievement/quality of team, and then beyond that Fitz has filled the bucket with a laundry list of achievements (lots of wins including against top 25 teams, bowl wins, final ranked teams, etc.).

Does all that longevity match the absolute peak under Barnett? It's hard to say; obviously as an alum, I'm happy knowing we're likely to have a solid program into the future.

Just curious, is there a point at which you'd put Fitz above Barnett? Does it require a year that matches or surpasses 1995? Winning the Big Ten championship game and/or Rose Bowl? Or does a lot more longevity count? i.e. reaching 10 bowl wins and 10 top 25 seasons under Fitz along with a couple more division titles?
 
Barnett pretty much did the impossible, or what I was thought was not possible at NU.

Recruiting today is very different than under Barnett. Fitz has done well enough. He clearly has great organizational skills. Barnett may have told us the time, but Fitz is a clock builder.

But without Barnett, there is no Fitz.

Nod to Barnett.
 
Love all three. I'll abstain from picking one over the other over the other.
 
Good points all around. However, we were at our apex in recruiting, in titles, and in ranking under Barnett. He brought in multiple top 25 or 30 classes, and we haven't sniffed one since. His recruits won us 3 titles, and he recruited 3 Heisman finalists to NU (counting Chris Brown). We were ranked #3 going into the Bowl Season. Think about what that means for a moment. He would have had us in the CFP.

I could turn it around and say without Barnett, there would be no Fitz. Sure, I might even pick Fitz to lead our program today, but back when we fired Peay? What Barnett accomplished was ridiculous when you consider he did it all with the worst facilities, zero track record, and a poisoned locker room.

Everyone, especially those who weren't NU fans during Barnett's day, should read Chappy's book and then vote from an informed perspective. I'm not saying there isn't an argument for Fitz, but I think there's going to be a little bit of recency bias in this tally.
To me, Barnett did the impossible, yes, but then pulled a CCC. So it depends on what you want, several crap years, two great years, several crap years, like Men's BB, or sustained success.

In addition to on field success, Barnett's off field program, while good, did not seem as squeaky clean as Fitz's. That's important, to me anyway. However, that should be confirmed by someone like MRCat, I am speculating based on Lundy and on Barney's constant flirtation with other programs
 
All that's fair, I mean we're comparing longevity with absolute peak.

We haven't had a year like 1995 under Fitz yet. Obviously we hope it happens, but it hasn't.

I'd argue this 2020 campaign roughly matches the 1996 campaign in terms of achievement/quality of team, and then beyond that Fitz has filled the bucket with a laundry list of achievements (lots of wins including against top 25 teams, bowl wins, final ranked teams, etc.).

Does all that longevity match the absolute peak under Barnett? It's hard to say; obviously as an alum, I'm happy knowing we're likely to have a solid program into the future.

Just curious, is there a point at which you'd put Fitz above Barnett? Does it require a year that matches or surpasses 1995? Winning the Big Ten championship game and/or Rose Bowl? Or does a lot more longevity count? i.e. reaching 10 bowl wins and 10 top 25 seasons under Fitz along with a couple more division titles?

If he wins a B1G title and gets us to the CFP then he's definitely above Barnett.

If he wins a couple titles without getting us to the CFP, I'd consider putting him there.

Longevity doesn't count so much for me as it may for you and others though. For me, it's how high up the mountain did he get us too. Where did the bar get set. It's like max weight in a lift. I don't feel like we have been able to reach that bar set in 1995, which is why I voted for Barnett.
 
  • Like
Reactions: rogerkim
Wrestling fans will appreciate this as a Stone Cold vs. Hogan argument. Anyone? Anyone?

highest peak (Barnett) vs. sustained success (Fitz). I choose Fitz.
 
If he wins a B1G title and gets us to the CFP then he's definitely above Barnett.

If he wins a couple titles without getting us to the CFP, I'd consider putting him there.

Longevity doesn't count so much for me as it may for you and others though. For me, it's how high up the mountain did he get us too. Where did the bar get set. It's like max weight in a lift. I don't feel like we have been able to reach that bar set in 1995, which is why I voted for Barnett.
GB has 2 titles, but never beat Ohio State to do it. Was 95 better than 2020? Yes, in my book, but it is close. If Fitz gets a single B1G title in the expanded conference he would be the clear #1.
 
Barnett had a coach on the field named Fitz, which muddles things a bit. Barnett's singular achievement of turning around NU football is among the greatest in college football history. But who would I choose as my coach if I were hiring one of these 3 to lead NU, would be Fitz by a mile. He runs the best all around program in the country when you consider player experience, graduation, on-field success, fundraising and facilities, character, resilience and player development etc...
Barnett was the most important coach (without him the rest never happens but Fitz is the best for NU leading to consistency that others could not match. Walker turned out to be more of a placeholder. He might have had serious consideration if tragedy had not struck but....
 
Randy Walker is certainly the most underrated and underappreciated. Probably deserves the vote despite the stats. But I voted Fitz, because I know he would have wanted it that way.

And I’ll bet dollars to donuts that both of them would want you to vote Barnett! 😁
 
I see Barnett as like Moses, leading us out of bondage. Walker is like John the Baptist, and...you know the rest. How this isn't unanimous is beyond me.

Barney's accomplishments are beyond belief, and I wonder how he would have done in divisional era, vs relying on an annual John Cooper dik trip game
Completely agree with Phat. Without Barnett there is no Walker. And Fitz would have been playing-and maybe later coaching- someplace else.
 
To me, Barnett did the impossible, yes, but then pulled a CCC. So it depends on what you want, several crap years, two great years, several crap years, like Men's BB, or sustained success.

In addition to on field success, Barnett's off field program, while good, did not seem as squeaky clean as Fitz's. That's important, to me anyway. However, that should be confirmed by someone like MRCat, I am speculating based on Lundy and on Barney's constant flirtation with other programs

Lundy was not a Barnett recruit. None of the players implicated in the gambling scandal were recruited by Barnett.
 
GB has 2 titles, but never beat Ohio State to do it. Was 95 better than 2020? Yes, in my book, but it is close. If Fitz gets a single B1G title in the expanded conference he would be the clear #1.

Yeah, I'm move on this a little - if Fitz got one title, especially if he beat dOSU over the season or for the championship game, then yeah, I would put him #1.
 
  • Like
Reactions: NUThump
Lundy was not a Barnett recruit. None of the players implicated in the gambling scandal were recruited by Barnett.

Which underscores the job Barnett did - he had to do it with a poisoned locker room and the influence of those whose attitudes were a constant counterforce to what he was preaching. Had to graduate the Peay players before his magic could happen, and that's exactly what happened.
 
  • Like
Reactions: CoralSpringsCat
I love that there are only three choices for this poll. Think about it: we’ve had 3 coaches since 1992 (Barnett’s first season). The Bears have had 7 (including Ditka, since 1992 was his last year). I just love the stability that we’ve enjoyed and I think it’s been a large part of why we’ve come out of the dark ages to the time of success we’re in now.

As far as my choice, since I was a student during Barnett’s era and since my sister and brother-in-law were there during the pre-Barnett years, there is no way I could pick anyone else. Love Fitz, but as others have pointed out, Gary did what everyone had thought was impossible. I do agree with others, though, if and when Fitz leads us to a Big Ten title, my vote will switch.

And I was a huge Walker fan. Without him, I think we might have sunk back into the dark ages. So I love all three of these choices. But for me, it’s Barnett, Fitz a close second, then Walker.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Alaskawildkat
Pitcher Denny McLain once won 31 games, only guy to do that in the last 90ish years. Also won 24 the next.
Way better pitcher than Nolan Ryan, Roger Clemens, et al. They never got close to 30...
One year does not a career make, no matter how grand.
 
Wow, we had 3 great ones. Tough to day but I would have voted for Walker based on the peak when we won a big ten championship, then beat OSU. And along the way we went to bowls every year and might have won a division with a few of his good teams. His recruiting was solid, especially QB's and their development. Same with RBs.

He had the same negative as Fitz though, he would keep around terribly awful coaches that would blow up all the hard work of the players and other contributors. Coach Colby cost us so many games, it was amazing that Walker won as much as he did. In fact, that is a big difference between nice programs like ours and championship programs. They hold coaches accountable instead of claiming "Family" . LSU cut loose Pellini after one season, as well it should. If Walker cut loose Colby or if Fitz cut loose the incredibly stinky McCall, we might have advanced so much further.

Barnett did the impossible but wasn't doggedly determined to stay here so he could never build anything of substance.

Fitz knows how to win bowl games. Won two divisions. And we are in great shape with him moving forward.
Better recruiting and maybe we can get back to being BigTen Champs again! More importantly, is that Fitz has displayed the sorta passion for NU Football AND COMMITTMENT that Walker never did. Walker was a sorta Carmody as far as not putting in any additional energy on recruits.
 
Last edited:
Deserves the vote? For what? I'm really curious to hear from the Walker voters their argument. It's just mind boggling to me.

I get Fitz. I don't agree with it, but I get it. Walker? C'mon.
In less than 10 years:
1. Big Ten Trophy
2. Beat #5 OSU
3. Brought consistent competitiveness, might have been division champs a few times under him.

I know that sounds like a Michigan fan who would value a OSU victory, but that victory was very important to me.
I'd rather beat OSU in the regular season than see them in the BTC and become 20 pt dogs and get a spanking with half their team out sick, and breakring Archie Griffin rushing records.
 
Pitcher Denny McLain once won 31 games, only guy to do that in the last 90ish years. Also won 24 the next.
Way better pitcher than Nolan Ryan, Roger Clemens, et al. They never got close to 30...
One year does not a career make, no matter how grand.
What about Shilling? lol
 
Good points all around. However, we were at our apex in recruiting, in titles, and in ranking under Barnett. He brought in multiple top 25 or 30 classes, and we haven't sniffed one since. His recruits won us 3 titles, and he recruited 3 Heisman finalists to NU (counting Chris Brown). We were ranked #3 going into the Bowl Season. Think about what that means for a moment. He would have had us in the CFP.

I could turn it around and say without Barnett, there would be no Fitz. Sure, I might even pick Fitz to lead our program today, but back when we fired Peay? What Barnett accomplished was ridiculous when you consider he did it all with the worst facilities, zero track record, and a poisoned locker room.

Everyone, especially those who weren't NU fans during Barnett's day, should read Chappy's book and then vote from an informed perspective. I'm not saying there isn't an argument for Fitz, but I think there's going to be a little bit of recency bias in this tally.
Speaking of Heisman, maybe the biggest Heisman push by NU admin wasn't for DA1 or DA2 but for Dan Persa. I think Persa might have been first or second team all big ten but he was coming into the year with a heel issue which he ruptured again unfortunately. I still have the "Persa Strong" dumbells.
 
I see Barnett as like Moses, leading us out of bondage. Walker is like John the Baptist, and...you know the rest. How this isn't unanimous is beyond me.

Barney's accomplishments are beyond belief, and I wonder how he would have done in divisional era, vs relying on an annual John Cooper dik trip game
You trying to say that Fitz is the one? Neo? Our own personal savior? lol. I get it! I think he knows that too and that's why he isn't going anywhere.
 
Pitcher Denny McLain once won 31 games, only guy to do that in the last 90ish years. Also won 24 the next.
Way better pitcher than Nolan Ryan, Roger Clemens, et al. They never got close to 30...
One year does not a career make, no matter how grand.

Absurd analogy. What Barnett did was so much more than one season. He forever changed the trajectory of Northwestern football. I shudder to think what would have happened if Earl Bruce would have been hired. I can’t even imagine.
 
Absurd analogy. What Barnett did was so much more than one season. He forever changed the trajectory of Northwestern football. I shudder to think what would have happened if Earl Bruce would have been hired. I can’t even imagine.
I wasn't a fan back then but I often wonder how did he get a top 25 class prior to us winning the big ten? What sold, a dream?
 
Gary Barnett's tenure; especially 1995-1996, was the sparkplug that revived Northwestern football. But the reason I'd vote for Fitz is this:

It's worth considering just how difficult football outside of the recruiting hotbeds of the South has gotten over the past 15-20 years as the SEC has gotten so much more spotlight since their big run of NCs started in the 2000's... A much greater proportion of the top 300-500 players were available to northern programs prior to the past 15-20 years.

Best example of modern difficulty for a northern program is to just look at Nebraska. Nebraska won the NC 1994/1995/1997, right at the same time Barnett put Northwestern on the map. They were literally at the very top (for a variety of reasons, but they got a ton of spotlight/focus for a while thereafter).

And yet look at Nebraska right now..., the program has completely fallen off the map the past 10 years for the most part.

They've been in the Big Ten for 10 years now, and they've won 1 division title and 2 bowl games. 3 ranked finishes all in the 20s. That's it.

If there is a lesson there, it's that you can't sell mid-90s success forever. The mid-90s happened well before every current player was born. You still need coaches to keep building and keep working at it. And that's what Fitz has done here. Of course, Fitz wouldn't be possible without GB; even he would say that.

But Northwestern's program was very fragile in the mid-2000s after Walk passed. Yes we had 3 Big Ten titles in recent memory, but we could have easily just slipped away like Nebraska did and been like Syracuse or BC or name any similar size private school program that nobody thinks about as a good program these days... in that case the mid-90s to 2000 would just be viewed as a historical blip of success. For Fitz to stabilize the program and continue to build it to this point in 2021 is why I think he's probably passed GB in this kind of question.

Fitz's tenure is the reason that decade of success turned into 25+ years of success.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: MotownMedilldo
I wasn't a fan back then but I often wonder how did he get a top 25 class prior to us winning the big ten? What sold, a dream?

Read Chapman's book.

This is what I'm talking about. None of the people who weren't fans when Barnett coached are really qualified to vote. You people have no clue what happened, and you're the same ones who think Fitz's recruiting is all that. That's pretty much the majority of the field.
 
  • Like
Reactions: drewjin
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest posts

ADVERTISEMENT