Even after back-to-back blowout losses last season, the Northwestern fan message boards remained optimistic. For five weeks fans attributed NU’s embarrassing losses to mounting injuries, bad luck and the lingering effects of Rashidi Wheeler’s death.
Like the players and coaches, NU fans were more shocked than angry. Explaining how the team morphed from 4-1 to “thanks for playing” was too painful and too puzzling for outbursts or riled rants. And hey, losing is nothing new for this program and its supporters.
A year later, things on the field are pretty much the same. A non-existent rushing defense, a constipated offense, lots of points, not many wins. The vigor heard in Randy Walker’s voice just two years ago has been drained. Defeat drapes his face these days, but the explanations continue to tumble out.
Walker looks like he needs a nap, but many NU fans are hoping he takes an extended break. Calls for Walker’s head have infiltrated the message boards. Several fans have hinted in starting a firerandywalker.com to complement existing sites such as firebobbywilliams.com. If I remember correctly, the phrase of choice has been “back to the dark ages.” Two years removed from their team’s third league title since 1995 and NU’s fans are getting tired of losing again. They are embarrassed.
And it’s about time.
To quell the fans’ frustration, NU Director of Athletics Rick Taylor sent out an e-mail to season-ticket holders pleading for patience and offering several reasons for the struggles. Taylor told the Daily that the note was a “pre-emptive strike” that didn’t spawn from panic but rather was a way to bridge communication lines between the school and its fans.
“They’re our clients,” Taylor said. “The more we communicate with them, the better.”
In organized categories Taylor does his best to break down the problem in the e-mail.
He alludes to the exodus of talent during the Barnett-Walker coaching transition, pointing out that nine players who began their careers at NU are currently starting for Division I-A teams. He then attributes NU’s lack of recruiting commits this year to its strict admissions policy, an obstacle it faces every year.
“It’s a fact of life at NU,” he said. “We never had commits years ago.”
It’s a heck of a lot easier when you have success, though.
After touching briefly on the team’s abundance of youth and injuries, Taylor explained that those pesky non-conference teams (Air Force, Texas Christian) that beat up on the Wildcats weren’t perennial bowl contenders when the games were scheduled “in the early 1990s.”
Whoops.
At the end of his note, Taylor offers hope. Youth will mature. Recruits will roll in. Remember the success of 1995, 1996 and 2000. Believe in the future. “Keep the faith.”
But don’t take the bait just yet.
Taylor’s note was well-intentioned, but NU fans ought to be smarter than that. Talk is cheap. The e-mail was concise and convincing, but it reeked of desperation.
Youth, injuries and scheduling hurt, but there’s something to be said for showing up. NU fans deserve a competitive team and right now, they don’t have one. All they’re getting is words — from Walker, from Taylor, from the players.
Air Force and Texas Christian are no longer Division-I cupcakes and, as Taylor said, the schedule is “a crap shoot.”
So what? Those teams add some semblance of legitimacy to NU’s non-conference slate, not to mention that they ease the team into Big Ten play. Playing Duke and Navy wasn’t exactly a refresher for the squad.
And fans don’t need to be reminded of the “recent” Big Ten titles. That’s exactly why they’re upset. They’ve tasted success, they’ve been spoiled, and they want it back.
Despite his customer-friendly intentions, Taylor said he “could care less about the message boards” where fans are blowing steam about the team.
I say to the fans: Keep it up. Don’t stand for losing. Sooner or later, he’ll have to notice.
Gameday co-editor Adam Rittenberg is a Medill
senior. He can be reached at [email protected].
