Update: Pat Fitzgerald was fired by Northwestern on Monday, three days after the initial two-week suspension, after additional details surrounding the hazing allegations were made public. Northwestern president Michael Schill said in a statement that “the decision comes after a difficult and complex evaluation of my original discipline decision imposed last week on Coach Fitzgerald for his failure to know and prevent significant hazing in the football program.”
Pat Fitzgerald will serve a two-week, unpaid suspension beginning on Friday following an investigation into incidents of hazing in the Northwestern football program.
According to a report by ESPN's Adam Rittenberg, the university investigation didn't find sufficient evidence that the Wildcat coaching staff knew about the issues, but concluded that there were "significant opportunities to discover and report" the conduct.
#Northwestern has concluded its investigation of alleged hazing within the football program and found the claims to be credible. While there wasn't sufficient evidence coaches knew about the conduct, there were "significant opportunities to discover and report" what happened.
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) July 7, 2023
Further punitive measures include barring the team from holding off-campus practices in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
"I was very disappointed when I heard about the allegations of hazing on our football team," Fitzgerald said in a statement. "Although I was not aware of the alleged incidents, I have spoken to University officials, and they informed me of a two-week suspension, effective immediately.
"Northwestern football prides itself on producing not just athletes, but fine young men with character befitting the program and University. We hold our student-athletes and our program to the highest standards; we will continue to work to exceed those standards moving forward."
