Aug. 1, 2013
BRISTOL, Conn. -- Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald brought his purple passion to the famous headquarters of ESPN in Bristol, Conn., Thursday, and the Worldwide Leader was more than happy to see him. Fitzgerald was put through ESPN's proverbial 'Car Wash,' a daylong series of interviews and live appearances previewing the upcoming season for the 22nd-ranked Wildcats.
Check out a recap of Fitzgerald's swing through Bristol as told through social media and video clips:
Before even touching down in Connecticut this morning, Fitzgerald phoned up one of his many fellow Northwestern alums who call ESPN their home, Mike Greenberg -- co-host of the popular "Mike & Mike In the Morning" radio show. This was not just the average catch-up conversation, though. Coach Fitz had a special offer to extend to his fellow Wildcat -- watch the clip below to see Greeny's response:
Oh boy, @coachfitz51 has just asked @Espngreeny to be an honorary captain for the @SyracuseU game. Uh oh #KOD
— Mike & Mike (@MikeAndMike) August 1, 2013
Thursday was the second of back-to-back days featuring visits by the Big Ten head coaches to ESPN, and Fitzgerald was joined by Brady Hoke (Michigan), Mark Dantonio (Michigan State), Tim Beckman (Illinois) and Kirk Ferentz (Iowa).
.@coachfitz51 joined by Coaches O'Brien, Ferentz, Dantonio and Hoke on the Bristol campus for #ESPNB1G pic.twitter.com/m13FMr0HN1
— Northwestern Sports (@NU_Sports) August 1, 2013
You never know who you may run into at ESPN HQs, and on Thursday a chance meeting brought together two Big Ten football legends in Fitzgerald and former Michigan Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard. Will Howard, now an analyst for ESPN's College Gameday, find the time to take in a Northwestern home game in person this season? Hmmmm...
.@coachfitz51 catches up w/ @DesmondHoward at #ESPNB1G. Hope to see you in Evanston on Oct. 5, Des! #B1GCats pic.twitter.com/HuemBAqfOi
— Northwestern Sports (@NU_Sports) August 1, 2013
Then again, some meetings at the Worldwide Leader are easier to predict than others. Coach Fitz was understandably excited to catch up with Northwestern alum and current SportsCenter anchor Steve Weissman -- although it's possible that Weissman's purple passion and excitement for all things NU football challenges that of even Coach Fitz:
Purple pride at ESPN today. With the best coach in CFB @coachfitz51 @NUFBFamily @nu_sports #B1GCats pic.twitter.com/hxzM2ZOq9I
— Steve Weissman (@SWeissmanESPN) August 1, 2013
Coach Fitz later had time for an in-studio radio appearance, this time with host Colin Cowherd on "The Herd:"
After that it was time for a live hit on SportsCenter, where Coach Fitz sat down to go one-on-one with Samantha Ponder. The conversation began with Northwestern's just-announced positioning as the No. 22 team in the USA Today/Coaches preseason poll - hear Fitzgerald's thoughts on that recognition and the rest of the interview below:
There aren't too many college football writers with better knowledge of the Big Ten than the two guys joining Fitzgerald in the photo below: Big Ten blogger (and Northwestern's own) Adam Rittenberg and national columnist Gene Wojciechowski.
Fitz w/ @ESPN_BigTen & @GenoESPN at #ESPNB1G, 2 guys w/ the most fashionable eyeglasses in Bristol. #B1GCats pic.twitter.com/BuSZw9ykQt
— Northwestern Sports (@NU_Sports) August 1, 2013
Safe to say that after Big Ten Football Media Day last week and today's ESPN `Car Wash,' Coach Fitz will be ready to find himself back on the gridiron coaching up the Wildcats come Monday. But Fitzgerald is always thankful for the opportunity to spend time with individuals who love college football as much as he does while spreading the word of all the great news coming out of Evanston these days. Thanks to ESPN for a great experience today and GO 'CATS!
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