If you’re 30 years old or younger, your perception of Northwestern football is pretty favorable. You know the Pat Fitzgerald era of five straight bowl games. You also know what NSFW means. If you’re over 50, you have a a very different, much less favorable view of Northwestern football. Also, you maybe don’t know that NSFW stands for “Not Safe For Work.”
That means naughty language and/or pictures of a person’s naughty bits. This post has some of the former, but sadly, none of the latter.
Since ESPN College Gameday came to visit Evanston last October, NU is 1-9. The only win Pat Fitzgerald earned in the past ten games came over the Illini; who are a miserable 5-18 versus FBS teams in the Tim Beckman era. Heading into that ESPN Gameday Saturday, Fitzgerald was 14-3 in his previous 17 games.
As we chronicled Saturday, Northwestern is a program in crisis right now, and that Gameday appearance was everything did a 180.
In 2014, Pat Fitzgerald has lost his first two games rather decisively, and to inferior opponents. NIU is a mid-major, and Cal was 1-11 last year. Hence Fitz told the media this yesterday:
We’re not successful now and to continue to do the [same] things and expect a different outcome would be the definition of insanity.”
“The person I’m mad at the most is myself. I’m the leader of the ship, and I’m the one who will get it fixed. I played on two championship teams here because we had a hard edge and we were tough. I’ve coached five bowl teams here in a row and coached multiple guys who have played at an All-Big Ten level and they were tough. Right now our football team is not very tough, and that’s an embarrassment from my standpoint.”
When asked about fans’ being upset with the team’s start, he said, “No shit. We’re an embarrassment to anyone who’s ever put on the purple and white.” {ESPN}
Good. I applaud that tough talk. Time to get a fire lit. FOOTBALL! RAWR RAWR RAWR!
More NSFW? Maybe Not Safe For Work? language in the Chicago Tribune:
Fitzgerald called the dropped passes “inexcusable” and said of the veterans: “Our former players are calling our guys and challenging their ass. That’s what needs to be done.”
Again, it’s time to be held accountable. These Pat Fitzgerald soundbites evoke memories of his “I don’t give a shit who plays” soundbite in 2009. That was in response to the offensive line’s pathetic run-blocking in the midst of the 2009 campaign.
Paul M. Banks owns, edits and manages The Sports Bank.net, which is partners with Fox Sports and Yahoo. Read his feature stories in the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. Listen to him Tuesdays on KOZN 1620 The Zone. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)