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Also Releases Marty Long and Dennis Springer
After
three anxious days, the word has finally come from Central Street:
Coach Fitzgerald has fired Wildcat defensive coordinator Jim O'Neil,
defensive line coach Marty Long, and wide receiver coach Dennis
Springer. Offensive coordinator Mike Bajakian and the rest of the
assistants appear to be safe.
While some fans might argue that the housecleaning does not go far
enough, removing O'Neil was a necessary step to righting the ship.
Hopefully, with JON gone the defense can begin to regroup and heal. The
offense, however, is a bigger mystery. It might be that Fitzgerald is
giving the remaining offensive staff one more season to show
improvement.
Coach Long's firing is truly unfortunate, but understandable. Long has had a strong career at NU, and he'll be missed.
Early Tuesday afternoon, Fitzgerald released a statement that referred
to the firings: "Our entire football family is grateful for what these
three men brought to our program on and off the field. . . Ultimately,
these difficult decisions were made with the intention of putting our
team in the best position for success on gameday moving forward. The
process to fill these important roles on our staff will begin
immediately."
More to come...
Feels like an Air Willie kind of season.
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The Streak Hits Eleven;
Illinois Dumps NU
The
'Cats have lost their last eleven games, and seventeen out of their
last eighteen. 2022 was statistically the worst season for the program since the 1989 winless campaign.
Illinois,
as expected, trounced the 'Cats, burying NU 41 to 3 at Ryan Field and
keeping the Land of Lincoln Hat for another year.
Wildcat Preview and Prediction
The Lowes Line: Illinois
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Other pages updated this week (Nov. 13):
Uniform History
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Archived
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Updated 11/26/22
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Archived
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Next for the Wildcats:
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The Wildcats'
season has
concluded.
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2022 Results
(1-11; 1-8 B1G)
*Denotes B1G West Game
| W |
Nebraska* (Dublin)
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31-28
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| L |
Duke
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23-31
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L
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So. Illinois - FCS
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24-31
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| L |
Miami, O
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14-17
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| L |
Penn State
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7-17
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L
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Wisconsin* (HC)
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7-42
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| L |
Maryland
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24-31
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| L |
Iowa*
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13-33
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| L |
Ohio State
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7-21
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| L |
Minnesota*
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3-31
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| L |
Purdue*
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9-17 |
| L |
Illinois*
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3-41 |
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2021 Results
(3-9; 1-8 B1G)
| L |
Michigan St. (Fri.)
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21-38
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| W |
Indiana St.- FCS
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24-6
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L
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Duke
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23-30
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| W |
Ohio U.
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35-6
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| L |
Nebraska* |
7-56
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| W |
Rutgers (HC)
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21-7
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| L |
Michigan
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7-33
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| L |
Minnesota*
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14-41
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| L |
Iowa*
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12-17
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| L |
Wisconsin*
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7-35
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| L |
Purdue* (Wrigley)
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14-32
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| L |
Illinois* |
14-47
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"...It will always be my school, our school."
--Gary Barnett, as quoted by Teddy Greenstein
"You've got a bunch of days to be students,
why not party like a rock star on Saturdays in the fall?"
--Coach Fitzgerald, as quoted in the Daily
HTP first updated: July 12, 2000
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