I had seen Jim Leonhard’s name in one article online about potential candidates. He is intriguing to me. Young, beloved by his players, passionate, seems to be a class act, and smart and capable. I was a fan of his when he played for my J-E-T-S. He knows the B1G from the inside as a player and as
DC (and then Interim HC) for the Badgers. The last time NU hired a DC from Madison (who also had been let go) it kinda worked out well for us.
Whether he would want to come into such a mess is a big question, but he might welcome the chance to come back to the B1G—this time as a HC. I don’t think that Wisky thought he wasn’t up to the job. I think the AD felt he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to grab Fickell.
I was kind of hoping Leonhard would be hired as the DC after the 2022 season, but I think he’d be an interesting choices for HC. You’re right that he might relish an opportunity to come back to the Big Ten as a head coach.
But the question will have to be asked of ANY potential candidate: What baggage does he have?
This ranking of the Big Ten coaches (written before the Fitz dismissal) thinks very highly of Fickell, I was kind of surprised Ohio State didn’t give him more consideration to succeed Tressel, but I guess it’s tough for a school like OSU to pass on Urban Meyer.
On XM84 college football station I forgot who besides Neuheisel was on, but he said he thought the next coach was a sacrificial lamb basically a placeholder to stabilize the program until the job got more desirable and they could hire a “real” coach.
Hire some old boring scandal free retread who is somewhat personable. Let him have a few 1-11 seasons and then some 3-9 seasons and then in 5 years hire
In best of times our coaching job isn’t desirable, but I believe we are now in a cat 5 hurricane disaster – academics, nil, transfer portal, division elimination, and scandal.
I once read that you don’t want to be the guy who follows a legend, or even the guy who follows the guy who follows a legend, you want to be the 3rd successor in the chain.
Probably applies here, though the right hire could work wonders.
Agree with Marc . PSU had great football history to be both able to attract a few good coaches and interested players NU wont be able to replicate that
I’ve always wondered how Bill O’Brien would have done if he had stayed at Penn State instead of hearing the siren call of the NFL.
He left the cupboard pretty well stocked for James Franklin, though.
Northwestern went through five coaches after Ara left (Agase, Pont, Venturi, Green, Peay) before Gary Barnett took on the task of resurrecting the football program. It wasn’t 40 years wandering in the wilderness, it just felt like it.
Remember that Murphy took a real gamble when he promoted Fitz to the HC position at NU.
At the time, I really expected one of the more senior assistants, Jerry Brown, who had filled those shoes before, to be given the interim job so they could sift through the list of candidates and announce the new hire the next December. As the publisher of the Purple Reign website, I was even quoted about that. Boy was I surprised (and pleased).
So we’re in the wind again… with a whole list of decomits (who might recommit if the right coach is chosen).
Its almost like the ghosts of 1973, when NU considered shutting down the whole athletic program, are once again walking the halls in Evanston.
