Pat Fitzgerald issued his first in-depth public comments in the wake of his firing as head coach of the Northwestern football team following a hazing investigation into the program.
Fitzgerald, 48, was first suspended for two weeks on Friday following the publication of a months-long investigation into hazing allegations.
The school changed course Monday after a report over the weekend detailed some explicit information about the hazing that took place.
“Attorney Maggie Hickey conducted a thorough investigation spanning several months into the allegations that led to my termination,” Fitzgerald said in a statement to ESPN. “Her investigation reaffirmed what I have always maintained – that I had no knowledge whatsoever of any form of hazing within the Northwestern Football Program.
“Last Friday, Northwester and I came to a mutual agreement regarding the appropriate resolution following the thorough investigation conducted by Ms. Hickey. This agreement stipulated a two-week suspension. Therefore I was surprised when I learned that the president of Northwestern unilaterally revoked our agreement without any prior notification and subsequently terminated my employment.”
The statement ended with Fitzgerald saying that he has hired legal counsel Dan Webb “to take the necessary steps to protect my rights in accordance with the law.”
Fitzgerald had been the head coach of the football team for 17 years and had amassed a record of 110-101.
The Wildcats had been coming off a down season in 2022, where they went 1-11.
The investigation into hazing allegations, which were first made in November, found evidence that “largely supported” those claims, but it never found any evidence that Fitzgerald knew it was going on.
In a statement on Monday, university president Michael Schill said that hazing included “forced participation, nudity and sexualized acts of a degrading nature, in clear violation of Northwestern policies and values.”
“While some student-athletes believed the hazing was in jest and not harmful, others viewed it as causing significant harm with long-term consequences,” Schill later said in the statement.
Pressure had been mounting for the university to take strong action after a more troublesome report was published by The Daily Northwestern, the school’s student newspaper, about the alleged hazing that took place.
A report by the student newspaper on Monday also painted a picture of a program that had a “culture of enabling racism.”
While the dust settled on the news Monday night, several current Northwestern football players took to Twitter to show support for their ousted coach and take shots at the administration for their decision.
“Dr. Gragg and President Schill- Hope vacation is treating you well. Next time you fire a head coach, make an effort for at least ONE of you to be there. Goes a long way,” freshman lineman Peyton Warford wrote on Twitter.
“Michael Schill and Derrick Gragg didn’t even have the balls to show up in person to tell the team. Too busy on vacation to even care. Embarrassing administration,” junior tight end Marshall Long wrote.
The school said on Monday that they would name new leadership for the football team in the coming days.
Northwestern is scheduled to open the 2023 season on Sept. 3 at Rutgers.