From Sports Illustrated: In his weekly College Football Overtime column on si.com, Stewart Mandel comes down pretty hard on Notre Dame following the Irish's home loss to Navy.
Mandel writes Northwestern and Stanford, schools with similar academic admission standards, have passed the Irish by and includes this quote from NU coach Pat Fitzgerald:
"Even though we're similar academically, we're in a little different boat as Stanford and Notre Dame. We've been consistently winning since 1995. They're still saying they can do it, but we're doing it."
Get the full story: si.com
Mandel writes Northwestern and Stanford, schools with similar academic admission standards, have passed the Irish by and includes this quote from NU coach Pat Fitzgerald:
"Even though we're similar academically, we're in a little different boat as Stanford and Notre Dame. We've been consistently winning since 1995. They're still saying they can do it, but we're doing it."
Get the full story: si.com
I'm Looking for a project to volunteer in this might not be on topic but is there anything you can recomend me? I would really apperciate it thanks!
People are missing the point. Of course NU football hasn't been better than ND football since 1995, but ND has dropped to a level that they are not really that much better than NU. True, NU might have only 6 winning seasons since 95, but they've been bowl eligible 9 out of the last 15 seasons (I am counting 2009). That's a fantastic turnaround for a program that does not have ND's illustrious past. Again, the issue is the decline of ND, and this was the spirit of Fitzgerald's comment. ND for all its talk of trying to be a BCS team is badly failing. NU is actually rising above expectations.
Whoever wrote this tripe must have gone to the same journalism school as all those reporters who kept yelping about Saddam's WMD.
Fitzgerald is either lying or just stupid, and the "journalist" who wrote the story doesn't bother to even fact-check him! So I guess we'll have to do his job for him.
In the 14 seasons that Fitzgerald claims Northwestern has been "winning consistently," they have a grand total of 5 winning seasons. Their records:
1995: 10-2
1996: 9-3
1997: 5-7
1998: 3-9
1999: 3-8
2000: 8-4
2001: 4-7
2002: 3-9
2003: 6-7
2004: 6-6
2005: 7-5
2006: 4-8
2007: 6-6
2008: 9-3
Nice job of fact-checking, Tribune. I guess anyone can spew whatever garbage they want in your paper and you just print it verbatim, without bothering to correct the lies or falsehoods? No wonder newspapers are dying. You have no credibility.
I hope the genius who said "he SPITTED on Notre Dame during his career" isn't a NorthWestern graduate.
Alumni @ NW and ND care about the same thing Bowl Games. however at ND we also care about beating three teams - USC, BC, and Navy. Coach Fitzgreald is right- NW has gone to more bowl games since 95 then ND they have more conference championships then ND since 95. Yes Notre Dame is in the same conference with Army and Navy. So in all Pat Fitzgerald is sounding off as any alumni at ND would - Bowl games, BCS, beating USC, BC, Navy and no longer having Charlie Weiss.
Pat Fitzgerald would be great to see on the side lines @ND Stadium and the echos would be stirred up agin under him
The Tribune should set the facts straight. The numbers don't support Fitzgerald's claim. My guess is the Tribune wont because it is no longer a credible paper and the Irish are an easy target these days.
Notre Dame football decline is yesterday's news. I witnessed the Navy torpedoing of Notre Dame on Saturday and I was surprised at how many ND fans are now adjusting to the new world order. I was delighted to see an increased amount of fan respect towards the Mid Shipmen vs. two years ago. There were still some delusional fans who were drunk and nostalgic for the old glory days. I think Notre Dame should join the Big Ten as it has no longer has any business playing USC on a regular basis.
this is a stupid non-story. Like matt said, there is a 19 win difference in favor of Notre Dame since 1995. There is a large difference between "winning" at Northwestern and "winning" at Notre Dame. 7-5 gets you a parade in Evanston. 7-5 gets you the door in South Bend.
Pat, like most big televen coaches, has a bad case of ND football penis envy. He needs therapy. Look at NDs record vs the Big Ten since 1995, and then throw in yearly games against Indiana, Minnesota, etc., and you get the picture. We would be a perennial conference contender in the creampuff conference.
Notre Dame is a good school, but I don't think it is at the same academic level as Stanford (and Northwestern is a tad below Stanford as well in academics). All three are great universities, but Stanford is always rated among the top 3 or 4 universities in the US (usually battling Harvard, Yale and Princeton).
northwestern? Dat amazin azian favowoot hithacock movie. Do not wecall footbar scene.amazin azian him tell twue and no rye.
coach he no dummy he say get goege branda back out of warm bath robe and stop soup commercail we no take chrance with onree two hundwed nintey twee point to spare.Amazin Asian him tell true and no lie.
How bout those wolverines and buckeyes. he har they suck only win at home no bowlie for dickrod even though he cheat like Chinese whore at cock fight. USC same boat asll talk shrinkie dinky doo. all paper espn ohoney champion. Wilt in sunlight like oj pee pee on sadie hawkin nite. ALL USC player suck eh how you say ah big donkey kong in in nfl reague. Left handed quaterback play for cardinal.Big a ball room dancer at usc he a nfl star on espn. he frow interception bears down 300 hundred points.
You Domers are missing the point. The fact that you have to defend ND against a NU comparison is too little, too late. You already lost. I gave you too much credit to get it?
@ Rick S: You talk like ND plays a tough schedule every season. If your team was in the Big 10, its record would probably be in the same ballpark as NU's over the same period.
i bet nw would win a lot of games if they could injure every teams quarterback.
Since 1995 - NorthWestern 83-85
Since 1995 - Notre Dame 102-68
Never let the facts get in the way. During the worst stretch in the program ND has 19 more wins.
Mandel went to Northwestern, so it's no surprise to see him try to compare Northwestern to Notre Dame.
As for Fitzgerald, he's just trying to make a name for himself at the expense of bad mouthing Notre Dame before he bolts for a legit program. He learned from the best under Gary Barnett.
Chris, you couldnt have said it better. Im no longer a Weis fan, and if we can get the right coach, lets get him and make the change. But where does Fitz get off thinking his team is consistently winning? I guess if winning 6 games a year, barely bowl eligible playing for bad bowl games, then cool.
If Notredame played your teams schedule they would have averaged 10 wins a season
but nobody would have cared. several weeks ago I was flipping channels and came accross
a Nortwesterwn game and the stands were half empty, Pat you ever see any empty seats at
a ND game.
What a stupid statement. Does he even know Northwestern's record the last few years? Charlie Weis has been so bad at Notre Dame he's about to be fired. Yet his record at ND is better than than Fitzgerald has had at Northwestern.
This is consistent winning?
1998: 3-9
1999: 3-8
2000: 8-4
2001: 4-7
2002: 3-9
2003: 6-7
2004: 6-6
2005: 7-5
2006: 4-8
2007: 6-6
2008: 9-4
One 9 win season? Only 3 season over .500? Talk about exceeding low expectations.