Three more former N’western players file lawsuits
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Adam Rittenberg, ESPN Senior Writer
Three former Northwestern players have filed lawsuits against the school and former coach Pat Fitzgerald, alleging hazing and mistreatment within the football program, including the initial whistleblower who sparked an investigation into the claims.
Former linebacker Nathan Fox, who played for Northwestern from 2015 to 2019, and two men identified as John Doe filed the lawsuits in Cook County circuit court this week. Both Fox and the whistleblower, identified as John Doe 22, spoke with attorney Maggie Hickey, whom Northwestern hired to investigate John Doe 22’s allegations after they were first brought forward in late 2022.
Hickey’s investigation found that the player’s hazing allegations could largely be corroborated but that there was no evidence Fitzgerald and other coaches and staff members had knowledge of the incidents. After Hickey’s investigation concluded, Northwestern suspended Fitzgerald for two weeks without pay. The whistleblower then went public with his allegations in the Daily Northwestern campus newspaper, and Northwestern president Michael Schill fired Fitzgerald two days later.
Fitzgerald in October filed a $130 million wrongful termination lawsuit against Schill and the school. His case is set for trial in 2025. A total of 25 former players have filed lawsuits against Northwestern, alleging hazing and other mistreatment.
Fox’s lawsuit outlines many of the hazing allegations from previous filings, including “running” and other sexualized acts, many of which allegedly took place during the team’s preseason training camp in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He said he reported his experiences to six Northwestern staff members, including a therapist in 2018 who had him sign an agreement allowing her to share his allegations with the athletic training staff. Fox said that shortly after, Fitzgerald chastised him in a team meeting for complaining of unfair treatment. Fox said an athletic trainer also called him out.
The lawsuit also states another Northwestern psychologist, upon hearing of Fox’s hazing allegations, told him they weren’t real and stemmed from a diagnosis of bipolar disorder that Fox has never received. Fox said the psychologist prescribed him medication that led to him contemplating suicide.
According to the lawsuit, he did not report the allegations directly to the coaching staff because of fear of retaliation, and went to Hickey upon learning of the hazing investigation into Northwestern football.
The plaintiffs are seeking damages in excess of $50,000. Northwestern is not commenting on pending litigation against the school.
“It is abundantly clear to us that numerous staff members knew about the violent sexual hazing and emotional abuse that was occurring under Northwestern’s watch,” attorney Margaret Battersby Black, whose firm is representing several plaintiffs, said in a statement. “Employees were told about the abusive hazing by some of the players including Nathan Fox, who brought the abuse to their attention years before the Maggie Hickey investigation. Instead of doing the right thing and reporting the abuse or taking steps to stop it, those who knew either ignored it or retaliated against those who came forward.”
More lawsuits from former players are expected to be filed against Northwestern in the coming days.
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — A Maryland board approved a $14.3 million contract on Wednesday to begin the demolition and rebuilding of Baltimore’s storied but antiquated Pimlico Race Course, home to the second jewel of the Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes.
The vote by the three-member Board of Public Works, which includes Gov. Wes Moore, was made 10 days before the 150th Preakness Stakes, which is scheduled for May 17. It will be the last time the annual horse race will be held with the existing structures in place before the track is rebuilt on the same site. The demolition will begin shortly after this year’s race.
“There cannot be a better time to announce the beginning of a transformation that will allow Pimlico to become a year-round hub for economic activity within the Park Heights community,” Moore said of the Baltimore neighborhood and longtime home of the race.
Under the plan, the Preakness will take place in Laurel Park, located just southwest of Baltimore, in 2026 while the new facility is built, before returning to Pimlico in time for the 2027 race.
Craig Thompson, the chair of the Maryland Stadium Authority which is overseeing the design of the new track, said the plan is to make Pimlico the home of Maryland thoroughbred racing. The track will go from hosting about 15 races a year to well over 100, Thompson said.
“This is more than just about a racetrack, as historic and important as it is,” Thompson said. “This is about bringing hundreds of millions of dollars in state investments to Park Heights.”
Thompson also shared a preview of the design plans. They include a new clubhouse with architecture inspired by the Rawlings Conservatory in Baltimore’s Druid Hill park and the original Pimlico Clubhouse, which included a colonnade and rooftop balconies, Thompson said.
Last year, the board approved a deal to transfer ownership of Pimlico from The Stronach Group to the State of Maryland in order to ensure the Preakness remains in Baltimore.
The state has been wrestling with what to do to restore the old racetrack for decades. Aptly nicknamed Old Hilltop, the track opened in 1870. It’s where Man o’ War, Seabiscuit, Secretariat and many others pranced to the winner’s circle.
But its age has long been a concern. In 2019, the Maryland Jockey Club closed off nearly 7,000 grandstand seats, citing the “safety and security of all guests and employees.”
The horse racing industry and other equine industries have been a cornerstone of Maryland agriculture, as well as an integral part of preserving green space.
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