Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/727077
Dan and Susan Jones Family Head Football Coach PAT FITZGERALD 19 Year Overall .PCT Big Ten .PCT Postseason 2006 4-8 .333 2-6 .250 - 2007 6-6 .500 3-5 .375 - 2008 9-4 .692 5-3 .625 Valero Alamo Bowl 2009 8-5 .615 5-3 .625 Outback Bowl 2010 7-6 .538 3-5 .375 TicketCity Bowl 2011 6-7 .667 3-5 .375 Meineke Car Care Bowl 2012 10-3 .769 5-3 .625 TaxSlayer.Com Gator Bowl 2013 5-7 .416 1-7 .125 - 2014 5-7 .416 3-5 .375 - 2015 10-3 .769 6-2 .750 Outback Bowl 2016 0-2 .000 - - - Total 70-58 .547 36-44 .450 6 Bowl Games Year School Position 2006- Northwestern Head Coach 2004-05 Northwestern Linebackers/Recrui ng Coordinator 2002-03 Northwestern Linebackers 2001 Northwestern Defensive Backs 2000 Idaho Linebackers/Special Teams 1999 Colorado Defensive Graduate Assistant 1998 Maryland Defensive Graduate Assistant FITZGERALD COACHING CAREER 1997 Citrus Bowl. Fitzgerald's 2009 club was, perhaps, one of the most resilient teams in recent memory, overcoming a number of injuries (especially on defense) and some difficult defeats, only to finish with a "November to remember." The Wildcats opened the month by knocking off unbeaten Iowa, which at the time was ranked No. 4 in the BCS. NU then went to Illinois and defeated its instate rival before returning home to edge No. 16 (BCS) Wisconsin in the regular-season finale. The strong finish made the Wildcats a "wanted" bowl team and they landed a berth in the Outback Bowl on Jan. 1. In that game, Northwestern played with the "heart of a Wildcat," overcoming a number of double- digit deficits only to fall 38-35 in overtime to Auburn. That game was widely recognized as the best bowl game of 2009-10, and one of the all-time most exciting postseason games. In 2010, Northwestern raced to another 5-0 start before beating nationally ranked Iowa on Nov. 13 to move to 7-3 and climb back into the top-25. A season-ending injury to first-team All-Big Ten quarterback Dan Persa, however, slowed the 'Cats' ascent in the national rankings and NU closed the season with a 7-6 mark. Still, NU's third straight winning season under Fitzgerald was capped with yet another New Year's Day bowl berth, a bid to the inaugural TicketCity Bowl at the famed Cotton Bowl in Dallas. Another strong finish to the schedule (four wins in their final five games) rendered the 2011 Wildcats bowl-eligible for a fifth straight year. The stretch was highlighted by a 28-25 upset of No. 9 Nebraska in Lincoln, which helped position NU for an eventual berth in the Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas at Reliant Stadium, home of the NFL's Houston Texans. A graduate of Orland Park's (Ill.) Carl Sandburg High School and a 2003 inductee to the Northwestern Athletics Hall of Fame, Fitzgerald resides in Northfield with his wife, Stacy, and three sons, Jack, born in November 2004, Ryan, born in September 2006, and Brendan, born in February 2009