The Pat Fitzgerald Bowl, this isn’t.
Fitzgerald, Michigan State’s first-year head coach, and David Braun — his successor at Northwestern — were firm on that point as the No. 25 Wildcats prepare to meet the Spartans in Big Ten Conference play in East Lansing, Mich., on Saturday afternoon.
In the big picture, this is a Northwestern team (4-1, 1-1 Big Ten) aiming to stay hot while Michigan State (2-4, 0-3) searches for its first conference win under Fitzgerald, who spent 17 seasons as head coach on his alma mater’s sideline at Northwestern before his July 2023 firing amid a hazing scandal.
“This week and this game is not about me,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s about the players on both teams. I’m very proud of my experience as a player there and the great teammates I had. Very proud of the teams and the coaches I worked with and the players I had a privilege to coach there. Very thankful for that experience.”
Fitzgerald added that “I’m a Spartan, and I’m proud to be a Spartan. I’m honored to be here.”
A victory on Saturday certainly would infuse enthusiasm into the Spartans’ fan base. After losing to Nebraska by 18 points and Wisconsin by 28 to open league play, Michigan State came up short in a 38-37 overtime loss against visiting Illinois last week.
Jaziun Patterson’s third touchdown run of the game brought the Spartans to the final margin before quarterback Alessio Milivojevic threw an incomplete pass on the would-be game-winning two-point conversion attempt.
Milivojevic, now a sophomore, split time with Aidan Chiles at QB last season. Chiles transferred to Northwestern after starting 20 games over two seasons at Michigan State following a stint as an Oregon State backup.
With the Wildcats taking a break from conference play a week ago, Chiles passed for three touchdowns for the second time this season and rushed for one score to key a 45-14 home rout of Ball State.
Chiles enters Saturday with nine touchdown passes and six scores on the ground.
Meanwhile, Braun — much like his counterpart in Fitzgerald, who hired him as defensive coordinator at Northwestern in 2023 — downplayed any personal storylines swirling around Saturday’s contest.
“This game is not about me,” Braun said. “This game is not about the fact that Coach Fitz is one of the most revered individuals to ever grace this program as a player and as a coach. And this isn’t about Aidan playing his former program. This is about this team preparing to be at our best on the road in a hostile environment.”
Northwestern is ranked in the AP Top 25 poll for the first time since the 2020 season, but players know they can’t make too much of any plaudits.
“Every week we need to be a better team because we’re not a finished product by any means, and we have a lot of work to do,” said wide receiver Griffin Wilde, who had eight catches for 144 yards and a touchdown against Ball State. “It’s just exciting that we’re playing how we are with so much work to still do.”
Michigan State leads the all-time series 40-20 and enters on a three-game winning streak against Northwestern. The schools haven’t met since the visiting Spartans won 38-21 in 2021.