In the aftermath of a dreadful first season with Jim O’Neil at the helm, Pat Fitzgerald sought out some additional help on defense to coach the secondary, a unit that struggled for the ‘Cats in 2021 after excelling in 2020. The lengthy search concluded with the addition of Ryan Smith, who was previously the cornerbacks coach at Virginia Tech, to the coaching staff.
Smith was originally thought by most to be returning to Blacksburg, but the firing of Head Coach Justin Fuente, who hired Smith in 2020, led to his departure after two seasons. Now, Northwestern looks toward the young coach to significantly improve its secondary that allowed the highest completion percentage in the Big Ten at 67.