Northwestern Athletic Director Talks Recent Coach Contract Extensions

Chris Collins and Tracey Fuchs both received extensions from the school this spring.

Northwestern Wildcats head coach Chris Collins yells to players on the court Thursday, March 13, 2025, during the second round of the men's Big Ten tournament at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Wisconsin Badgers defeated the Northwestern Wildcats, 70-63. | Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

On April 4, Northwestern extended head basketball coach Chris Collins' contract through 2030. A few days later, on April 8, head field hockey coach Tracey Fuchs got a long-term extension of her own.

Yesterday, athletic director Mark Jackson sat down with Northwestern News Network's Matt Saperstein on its SportsNight program. The two discussed a multitude of subjects including the extensions given to the two coaches.

Matt Saperstein joins Northwestern Athletic Director @MarkJackson_NU just eight months into his tenure to discuss contract extensions for Chris Collins and Tracey Fuchs, his work with admissions to bring in top transfers, the impact of NIL, and more. pic.twitter.com/BzNUaV6NTK

— SportsNight (@NNNSports) May 9, 2025

Jackson had nothing but praise for Collins and Fuchs and said he's leaned on both of them in adapting to Northwestern since he was hired last summer. The relatively new AD, formerly at Villanova, had a lot of nice things to say about Northwestern's culture and credited both coaches for their hand in shaping it.

Collins received his extension after his first season without an NCAA Tournament birth in three years, but Jackson said the decision to extend him was not difficult.

"In a lot of ways, I felt it was Chris’s best season of coaching, the way he maintained our competitiveness and the way we stayed relevant throughout the season. I give him and his staff a ton of credit for that," Jackson said.

Jackson also seemed optimistic about the future of the school's men's basketball program.

"[Chris] wants to have a consistent NCAA Tournament team, and I think we have all the right ingredients to do that, so I can’t wait to partner with him and continue to have success,” Jackson said.

Fuchs is a living legend in field hockey. Northwestern's coach is known as possibily the greatest player ever, and she's been a pretty darn good coach as well. The 'Cats have won two of the last four National Championships during her tenure including the most recent one in 2024.

"[Tracy is] the best of the best. As great as she is on the field and coaching, it’s really who she is as a person.... You won't find a person, a student athlete, anybody, that just doesn’t adore Tracey Fuchs,” Jackson said.

Keeping both coaches in Evanston was a major success for Jackson, and he seems thrilled to have secured the extensions. The future of both programs remains bright as long as Collins and Fuchs are at the helm.