New Spartans coach Pat Fitzgerald performed miracles at Northwestern, but that seems like ages ago. In his last four seasons in Evanston, he went 14-31, including a 4-20 mark over his last two years. He also hasn't coached since 2022 when the landscape of college football was much different. And, unlike other coaches in the first year at a school, Fitzgerald did not have the benefit of a previous school from which to mine transfer talent. Though Toledo will be under a new coach also, Mike Jacobs brings several players from Mercer after taking the Bears to the FCS playoffs the last two seasons. Those include FCS defensive player of the year Andrew Zock. I don't hate a money line sprinkle on Toledo either.
