This thing is gonna drag on

[Medill '03]

Fitzgerald lawyer cites contract breach in firing

Northwestern fired coach Pat Fitzgerald for cause, his attorney told ESPN. The attorney is researching legal strategies, citing "two different major breach of contract claims" with Northwestern as well as significant reputational damage.

www.espn.com

I don't understand how anyone on the board of trustees can watch what's unfolding, in story after story, and not fire Gragg and especially Schill as soon as possible. From what I'm hearing the hazing definitely occurred. But further revelations will not make it sound worse than we've already heard. It'll be a matter of subjective judgment in terms of severity. Some (like Carl Richardson) will think it's a really big deal. Others, like many current and former players who have gone public, will not. So it's not likely NU has another bomb they can drop on Fitz to justify the escalation from two weeks without pay to termination for cause. What's in the private report is what we've now heard publicly reported. (And if they tried to drop that bomb, it would only implicate more of their players and expand the crisis.)

I don't understand how you can reach such lucrative positions and lack such basic knowledge of media dynamics in the 21st century. Schill created a long-term feeding frenzy with this approach. I'm not sure how he could have done anything worse.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Fitzgerald lawyer cites contract breach in firing

Northwestern fired coach Pat Fitzgerald for cause, his attorney told ESPN. The attorney is researching legal strategies, citing "two different major breach of contract claims" with Northwestern as well as significant reputational damage.

www.espn.com

I don't understand how anyone on the board of trustees can watch what's unfolding, in story after story, and not fire Gragg and especially Schill as soon as possible. From what I'm hearing the hazing definitely occurred. But further revelations will not make it sound worse than we've already heard. It'll be a matter of subjective judgment in terms of severity. Some (like Carl Richardson) will think it's a really big deal. Others, like many current and former players who have gone public, will not. So it's not likely NU has another bomb they can drop on Fitz to justify the escalation from two weeks without pay to termination for cause. What's in the private report is what we've now heard publicly reported. (And if they tried to drop that bomb, it would only implicate more of their players and expand the crisis.)

I don't understand how you can reach such lucrative positions and lack such basic knowledge of media dynamics in the 21st century. Schill created a long-term feeding frenzy with this approach. I'm not sure how he could have done anything worse.

When I heard Fitzgerald was suspended, I texted a few friends "I am mainly concerned that Northwestern is going to completely screw this up."

But they went beyond that.

Fitzgerald's letter didn't address anything specific, but he did write that he had "no knowledge of hazing." So that means he is going to a) deny that some of the actions the players took were hazing and b) that he didn't know about other things taking place. (my guess)