Northwestern University has settled the 34 remaining lawsuits filed against it by former football players over allegations of hazing within the Wildcats’ program, according to court records obtained by USA TODAY Sports.
A judge in Cook County, Illinois formally closed the cases on May 6 and approved the creation of a settlement fund to distribute funds to the plaintiffs, but the details of the arrangement − including financial terms − are confidential. Many of the lawsuits had sought financial judgments of $100,000 or more apiece.
Spokespeople for the university and the plaintiffs’ attorneys involved in the lawsuits either declined to comment on the settlement or did not respond to messages.
Northwestern had signaled in a court filing last month that it was working to finalize a settlement with the former football players, ostensibly because such a resolution would pave the way for those players to serve as witnesses in the university’s other legal fight: A $130-million wrongful termination lawsuit filed by former football coach Pat Fitzgerald. That case is due to go to trial November 3.
‘The student plaintiffs and other former players who have information about hazing are crucial to Northwestern’s defense of Fitzgerald’s claims,’ the university’s lawyers wrote in a court filing last month. ‘And Northwestern is working hard to gather relevant evidence from them.’
Fitzgerald, who was fired for cause in 2023, has denied having any knowledge of hazing within the Wildcats’ football program.
The ex-players’ settlement comes nearly two years after the first plaintiff, identified only as ‘John Doe 1,’ sued Northwestern in July 2023 over allegations of hazing within the football program. At least 39 other football players subsequently filed their own lawsuits against the school and, in many cases, some of its current and former officials − including Fitzgerald.
Though the specifics differed from one lawsuit to the next, the general allegations were the same. The former football players alleged that incidents of hazing − including forced nudity and sexualized acts − took place during their time on the team and that members of the coaching staff, including Fitzgerald, knew about them.
‘It’s like a brainwashing culture, that was just so normalized,’ former Northwestern quarterback and wide receiver Lloyd Yates said in a 2023 news conference after filing his lawsuit. ‘And it’s just wild to think back, and look at the complaint, to look at what we put up with and what we had to go through, and just how it was so normal.’
A baseball player and volleyball player also later filed lawsuits against Northwestern alleging wrongdoing within those sports. The baseball player’s lawsuit was dismissed in December, while the volleyball player settled May 8.
Contact Tom Schad at tschad@usatoday.com or on social media @tomschad.bsky.social.
