Northwestern President Michael Schill and AD Derrick Gragg addressed NU football players last night and were “asked direct questions about the change” from football coach Pat Fitzgerald being suspended for two weeks on Friday to him “ultimately being fired on Monday,” according to Matt Zenitz of ON3. Sources said that at one point during the meeting, a player asked Schill, “If you already had all the information regarding the hazing scandal, what changed between Friday and Monday aside from just public pressure with all of the hazing claim details becoming public?” Sources said that Schill’s response was that it “was a mistake to give Fitzgerald only a two-week suspension and that the decision to fire him came after rethinking things and having additional communication with people such as the former player who served as the whistleblower in this situation” (ON3, 7/11).
UNDER A MICROSCOPE: In Chicago, Brandon Dupre wrote “less than a year into his tenure,” Schill is “scrambling to contain one of the worst reputational crises in the elite school's history.” Dupre wrote Schill “needs to steer Northwestern through a widening scandal” -- reports of racism in the football program and abusive practices in the baseball program surfaced shortly after the hazing news -- that “threaten the reputation of one of Chicago's top universities while also potentially imperiling an $800 million project to build a new football stadium, a top priority for the institution.” Schill himself is “under heightened scrutiny after mishandling his initial response” to the hazing investigation report. Dupre: “Trustees, alumni, faculty, students and big donors will be watching closely as Schill works to manage the crisis.” Schill needs to “determine the scope of problems in the athletic department, impose accountability at the proper levels and come up with a credible plan to prevent future scandals.” And he “needs to do it without alienating those who support Northwestern's athletic ambitions” (CRAIN'S CHICAGO BUSINESS, 7/11).
MISSING IN ACTION: In Chicago, Julia Poe notes the turmoil around Northwestern also has “thrown a spotlight” on Gragg. An AD typically is “in charge of hiring and firing head coaches,” but Schill “has spoken for the university this last week.” Gragg has yet to make a “public statement on Fitzgerald’s status or the football hazing investigation." Several football players noted on Twitter that Gragg “delivered the news of Fitzgerald’s firing to the team through a Zoom call while he was out of town on vacation.” He was back in his on-campus office today (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 7/12). WSCR-AM’s Dan Bernstein noted Gragg was on vacation “during the biggest crisis in the history of the school.” WSCR-AM’s Laurence Holmes said, “I am all about people getting their time away from their job. It’s really, really important. But not only are you gone, but one of the associate athletic directors said, ‘Peace out, I’m leaving. I’ve had enough of this nonsense.’” Holmes was referring to NU’s Paul Kennedy leaving to join the Big Ten conference office as VP/Sports Communications on Monday prior to Fitzgerald’s firing. Holmes added, “Wherever it is you are, your ass has got to get back here. … Your athletic department is figuratively on fire, and you’ve got to come back” (“Bernstein & Holmes Show,” WSCR-AM, 7/11).
