Northwestern students react to firing of football coach Pat Fitzgerald, hazing allegations

Northwestern University students on Tuesday generally agreed with the firing of football coach Pat Fitzgerald amid hazing allegations that continue to rock the football team and campus community.

Fitzgerald was initially suspended for two weeks without pay by university President Michael Schill. After the Daily Northwestern student newspaper reported details of the alleged hazing, Schill said he ‘‘may have erred’’ with the punishment and went on to fire Fitzgerald. 

Students, meanwhile, are wondering what will happen next, how the football program and culture may be redefined and how the larger conversation surrounding hazing in college athletics might shift.

Malik Rice, 19, from Atlanta, is a rising Northwestern sophomore, studying political science and law. He believes there’s always been a culture of hazing within college athletics, notably football, so he was not too surprised by the allegations.

Alongside the hazing allegations and Fitzgerald’s firing, the Daily Northwestern on Monday published a story about three former Northwestern football players’ experiences navigating a “culture of enabling racism.” The three players, who attended the school in the late 2000s, also confirmed some of the hazing activities. 

Rice said as a Black student at a predominantly white institution, he was not surprised to hear football players experienced racism.

“I hope all those Black and non-white football players live life and get better,” Rice said. “I hope they get the healing they need.”

Ethan McAlpin, 21, a rising senior from Houston, was surprised Fitzgerald was fired after the initial announcement of a two-week suspension.

“I think there’s a history of ‘Oh, we’ll look into it,’ and then a committee is formed and then nothing happens,” said McAlpin, who studies computer science. “There’s been a couple allegations of sexual assault with a lot of the frats that I feel like the school kind of ignored or kind of pushed under the rug or not really taken direct action.”

McAlpin said firing Fitzgerald was the right move.

“I hope justice is actually sought after because I don’t think that that’s necessarily functionally what’s been done so far,” McAlpin said.

John Chen, 21, a rising senior who studies biomedical engineering, was disappointed to initially hear Fitzgerald faced only a two-week suspension. Chen said he feels hazing activities come from the “top-down,” and the university firing Fitzgerald was a step in the right direction.

“Start up top, and that’s where the solution starts,” Chen said.

Elijah Huang, 21, a rising senior who also studies biomedical engineering, said the university’s decision to fire Fitzgerald after announcing his suspension was “reactionary.” Had it not been for the Daily Northwestern’s reporting, Fitzgerald likely would have continued coaching, Huang said.

“It’s a little unfortunate that administrations — just in general, not just Northwestern — are very reactionary,” Huang said. “So if there’s no response, then nothing will change.” 

Dami ​​Akanni, 20, a rising junior from Lagos, Nigeria, was shocked to hear of the magnitude of the hazing allegations. A larger culture and mindset shift among football players is needed for tangible change and an end to hazing, Akanni said. 

“I think now that you see that no one’s safe — even the coach now — [the players] see that consequences will be taken for actions. I think that’s the first step,” Akanni said.

Maddie Kerr, 21, a rising senior studying sociology, said they recall taking an online hazing prevention course as a freshman. Kerr was aware hazing happened, but they were shocked to hear details of players’ alleged they had gone through.

“The mental damage of having to go through those things, even if you were just witnessing it, I can’t even imagine experiencing it firsthand,” Kerr said. “That’s just so horribly traumatic.”

Abbie Farley, a rising junior who has been in the Northwestern marching band since her freshman year, said she was aware of the allegations involving the baseball and football teams. The reports coming from different university sports teams warrant investigation, she said. Farley, who studies psychology and cognitive science, said she would like to see more accountability overall throughout key university activities and organizations.

“Northwestern is only one of how many D1 schools?” Farley said. “I can almost guarantee that we’re not the only ones that are having this problem. I would hope that other people, other schools feel empowered to speak up and help advocate for change and feel comfortable to do so.”