[NU Sports] Penn State and Bowl hopes

[Jonathan Hodges]

>
> Don't even think about it.  He's not had enough time to turn the program
> around.  No less than five years and probably more is necessary.


I agree, anyone even thinking of firing Fitz at this point is nuts, and
thankfully the NU administration would never consider such a move.  He's in
the midst of his fourth season at NU and has a 24-21 record (12-16 Big Ten
record) with one bowl berth and one year of bowl eligibility with no berth
so far.

He knows the right way to do things, he's an energetic, and he's shown he
can recruit the types of student-athletes that NU wants.  Yes, he's taken
his lumps, particularly over his first two years when he was basically
thrown into the fire with a coaching staff that wasn't fully his, but he's
also learning and improving.

Thankfully the NU administration (now, at least) has its head on straight
and is doing things for the long-term.  Attendance may still be an ongoing
issue, but they have found the right guy to lead the football program and
have scheduling set up to allow NU to stay competitive.

Regarding scheduling, NU is doing the right thing by scheduling an FCS/I-AA
team, 2 "mid-majors", and a "peer" (i.e. BCS conference academic-focused
school) each season in nonconference play.  Yes, playing the traditional
powers brings some excitement and can help fill the stands, but the fact is
that most don't want to play NU in a home-and-home series since they can now
just bring in a lower level team who they can pay off for a home game.  This
means that if NU wanted to play a schedule that some here are calling for,
they'd be playing top teams on the road every year and have just 4 or 5 home
games, which won't work to keep the athletic department afloat.

The scheduling philosophy NU is using now allows them to get 7 home games
per year, which brings in the revenue needed to keep NU athletics going.  It
also allows NU to get to a bowl, which means more money, attention,
recruiting advantages, and the extra 20 practices after the season.

Hopefully Fitz can lead NU to a second straight bowl berth (for only the
second time ever) and win one (for only the second time ever) which will
hopefully quiet any rumblings going on.

Jonathan