Ten thoughts on Tuesday's firings
The axe finally fell on Tuesday at Northwestern.
It maybe didn’t cut as deeply as many would have liked, and it didn’t strike everyone expected. But it was still a positive step in the right direction for a program in desperate need of change after a 1-11 2022 season.
Here are 10 thoughts on head coach Pat Fitzgerald's decision not to retain defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil, defensive line coach Marty Long and wide receivers coach Dennis Springer.
1. O’Neil was the one most people expected to get fired. The loss to Iowa in October may have been the last straw for Fitzgerald. The Hawkeyes, who had the nation’s worst offense at that point, went up and down the field on the Wildcats, scoring all four times they got the ball in the first half to build a 20-0 lead. It was as shocking as it was embarrassing. After the game, I asked Fitzgerald in the cramped visiting media room at Kinnick Stadium what positives he could take away from the demoralizing 31-13 loss. "None. Get home safe, that’ll be a positive. We've got Chick-Fil-A, that’s a positive." I consider myself an amateur Fitzologist, and that quote, from a coach who can find a positive in getting struck by lightning, told me that he was ready to make some changes. It might have been all over for O’Neil right then and there. I found it interesting that Fitzgerald had some flowery words for Long and Springer in the program’s release, but not for O’Neil.
2. The first time I got a strange feeling about O’Neil was at his first fall camp, when he was asked how different his defense would be than that of Mike Hankwitz, his predecessor’s. Hankwitz’s final unit, remember, just finished fifth in the country in total defense, and the Wildcats had just ridden it to a West division title, a Citrus Bowl win and a No. 10 final AP ranking. O'Neil said it would be “about 75%” new. Everyone in the media looked at each other. I thought it would be the other way around. Why would he want to fix what isn’t broken? Hankwitz’s defense was known for stopping the run and bending, but not breaking, keeping everything in front of them and not allowing the big play. O’Neil’s squad’s finished 119th and 111th in the nation in rushing defense over the last two years. And as for big plays, just roll tape on the 2021 Nebraska game for evidence.
3. Unlike a lot of critics, I don’t fault Fitzgerald for hiring O’Neil in the first place. Many think that Fitzgerald hired O’Neil just because he was a friend. First of all, Fitzgerald earned the right to hire whomever he wants; he’s the school’s all-time wins leader and the face of the program. He’s hired plenty of “friends” in the past, like Lou Ayeni, Tim McGarigle and Jeff Genyk. Fitzgerald obviously wanted to go to more of a five-DB defense – which never made sense to me in the physical, run-oriented Big Ten West. He also thought that O’Neil, some 30 years younger than Hankwitz, would be a good recruiter. He was right about that. O'Neil's NFL background played very well with recruits. Several prospects told us that the coach's film work and presentations during the recruiting process were key to their commitments. We’ll see if his dismissal creates any decommitments; with early signing day just three weeks away, we don’t expect many defections.
4. By far the biggest surprise among the three firings was Long. He’s been around since 2008. Players loved him. He developed more NFL players than anyone else in recent years, including Joe Gaziano, Ifeadi Odenigbo, Earnest Brown IV, Tyler Lancaster and Dean Lowry. He’s an outstanding recruiter who really relates well to prospects. It’s not a coincidence that two of the four four-stars in the current 2023 class are defensive linemen. At the same time, there’s no question that the defensive line has been an issue during this two-year Northwestern tailspin. Especially the defensive tackle spot, where injuries and the lack of quality depth has led to a lot of the rushing success teams have had against the Wildcats. This could have been a nudge for Long to retire, too. He has had some health issues and is nearing retirement age. He may be ready to hang up the whistle.
5. Long was one of my favorite coaches to interview. He was always very open and honest with the media. He gave you long, thoughtful answers in his deep, slow and smoky South Carolina drawl. He is a very devout man, but you wouldn’t know it by watching him on the practice field, where he could get after players with the best of them. I distinctly remember interviewing him once after practice, in the old Nicolet Center offices. It was a hot day, and Long was dripping sweat. He took his hat off and leaned against the wall. “I’m tired,” he said. He had left everything out on the practice field. He left everything in Evanston during his career, too. It might be time for him to rest.
6. Springer’s dismissal, on the other hand, was another one that was widely expected. The wide receiver position has been an issue for the Wildcats for quite some time. The group’s production has been lagging, and so has Springer’s recruiting. Northwestern has lacked playmakers on the outside who can get separation. The Cats haven’t had a dominant wide receiver since Austin Carr in 2016. Last year, grad transfer Stephon Robinson Jr. was by far the best receiver on the team, and this year, grad transfer Donny Navarro, who was an afterthought at Illinois, was the No. 2 wideout in catches. That doesn’t speak well to the talent on hand. In the last three classes, Springer signed five wide receivers; those five players combined for 10 catches this year. It was time for a change.
7. Like everyone else, I was amazed that Mike Bajakian’s name wasn’t on the release. In my eyes, the offense’s performance the last three years made him every bit of the candidate for dismissal O’Neil was – maybe more so. Bajakian’s offense has been on a downward slide since the Cats put up 43 points on Maryland in his first game as the OC in 2020. Even with the polished and efficient Peyton Ramsey at quarterback, Northwestern averaged 24.7 points per game in 2020, which ranked 93rd in the nation. In 2021, they scored 16.6 to rank 125th. This year, the average was an anemic 13.9 points per game – the lowest mark this century – to rank 128th and last among Power Five programs. He hasn’t been able to recruit or develop a bona fide Big Ten quarterback in his three years, either. At some point, I’d like to get a chance to ask Fitz about his reasons for keeping Bajakian.
8. While the three moves were not as sweeping as many were expecting – or hoping for – they still represented a positive step for a program that has had precious little to cheer about the last two seasons. Fitzgerald decided that losing 11 straight games this season and going 4-20 over the last two years required drastic change. It couldn’t have been easy firing Long and Springer, coaches who have been alongside Fitzgerald on the sidelines for 14 and 11 years, respectively. Unlike his statements to the media, which included “the program has never been stronger” and “the ship is fine,” Fitzgerald realized that things had gone off the rails and required him to make changes he certainly didn’t want to make. Credit him for doing it.
9. The changes to Fitzgerald’s coaching staff appear to be over, but there still may be more changes to come at the Walter Athletic Center. The coach could shuffle responsibilities on his staff. One thing I’d like to see is a dedicated quarterbacks coach, because the current system for recruiting and developing signal callers just doesn’t seem to be working. He could also make changes to his recruiting and strength staffs. After putting up the worst record in 33 years, everything should be on the table. Northwestern’s recruiting has been going well in terms of stars and rankings in recent years – again, except for the quarterback position – but there has been a number of “misses,” guys who didn’t perform to their capabilities. Still, if he’s able to hold onto all of his commitments, Fitzgerald will welcome the highest rated class of his career next month.
10. While many fans are understandably celebrating these moves, and some wish that Fitzgerald had gone farther, this is still a sad day for the program. It’s important to remember that the human side of these firings. These are good men who have had a lot of success in their careers to get to this point. They just lost their jobs, their livelihoods and the means by which they support their families. It's devastating, especially in such a public way. While O’Neil’s stint in Evanston didn’t go well, he was a coordinator in the NFL, the pinnacle of his profession. Long and Springer recruited, developed and led many productive players who were also outstanding young men. We wish them well, wherever they land. They will always be Wildcats.
