SAN ANTONIO – This wasn’t the plan.
When the 2008 season began, few people in college football planned to see Northwestern win nine games and reach the Alamo Bowl.
Check.
When the bowls were announced, few Missouri Tigers planned to see their season end with NU on the other sideline.
Check.
When the Cats were announced as a 14-point underdog, few expected them to play a quality football game and have a chance to win.
Check.
When the ball was kicked off, few seated in the Alamodome expected the Cats to fall to the Tigers, 30-23, in a cataclysmic three hour and 54 minute contest that needed overtime to name a victor.
The prognosticators swallowed their August picks. The Big 12 North champions and BCS-bowl candidates got a run for their money. And the bettors – many of them lost their money.
For those of you new to NU football, this program makes its strongest statements when things aren’t planned.
When coach Pat Fitzgerald took the podium in 2006, his emotions were rightfully mixed. His opportunity to coach at his alma mater at age 31 came only because of the tragic death of his beloved mentor, Randy Walker.
“This wasn’t in the plan,” he said on the day of his hiring. “But I have a call to duty and the coaching staff has a call to duty and the players have a call to duty to continue the legacy that Randy built. And that is consistent success. My goal will be to take the next step and have consistent championships.”
Walker had to be smiling Monday. Fitzgerald, his players, and his staff brought 13 games of consistent success to the program this season.
The only thing missing in San Antonio was a win, and the 34-year-old coach is confident his team took another step towards vanquishing its 60-year bowl drought.
“We just have to find a way to get the job done,” Fitzgerald said. “I know we will.”
Fitzgerald is the only coach in NU history to improve the Cats’ record over each of his first three seasons – four wins in 2006, six in 2007, and nine in 2008.
“I wish he was older – fate intervened – but he’s ready,” former Athletic Director Mark Murphy said of Fitzgerald’s hiring in 2006.
Much of Fitzgerald’s progress can be attributed to the 23 seniors who led NU to its largest single-season win total since the 1996 Rose Bowl season. Those seniors were recruited by Walker, and blossomed under Fitzgerald.
Fighting off the sadness of a loss in his final collegiate game, senior quarterback C.J. Bachér was greeted by his field rival, Missouri quarterback Chase Daniel, as he talked to reporters after the game. Bachér outplayed the 2007 Heisman Trophy finalist, registering 304 passing yards and three touchdowns.
Daniel grasped Bachér’s left shoulder and said: “Hey, hell of a game, baby. Hell of a game.”
The quest to playing that “hell of a game” was far from easy because no outsider to this program ever gives it the respect it deserves. The media can receive a bulk of the blame for sending questionable messages.
Six days before kickoff, an Associated Press story previewing the Alamo Bowl from the Northwestern side read: “Wildcasts gear up for Missouri.” That headline appeared on every news source subscribing to the wire service. Google it and have a field day.
During the morning edition of ESPN’s SportsCenter on Dec. 29, anchor Linda Cohn made the classic mistake of letting the national audience know that “C.J. Bocker” was ready to play. It was almost as bad as the network choosing to cut to a commercial to the tune of Hava Nagila during Sunday’s Independence Bowl.
While my water bottle read Deja Blue (only Texas’ finest water since 1997), NU had no reason to feel that way. More success is just around the corner because this program is learning how to compete on the national stage, from recruiting to winning.
“I hope that we’ve left the legacy of just being able to compete with anybody,” Bachér said. “If you put us on the same field with Oklahoma or Florida, you’d know that even if we don’t come out with the victory, we’re going to be playing our butts off and we’re going to have confidence in ourselves.”
Honestly, what better plan is there than that?
