As the Badger basketball season came to an end in Philadelphia last weekend, the team has officially forfeited their winter-long tenure as front-page news. The other major- revenue sport steps back into the headlines this spring with enough new faces to warrant the appropriate title of, well, news.
For the first time since 1989, Wisconsin will set sail on a season without Barry Alvarez at the helm. His replacement, Bret Bielema, has learned a lot from his predecessor, bringing a more laid-back demeanor to the sidelines but keeping as much command over his team.
Bielema's approach to practice is one of quiet observation and occasional intervention. For the most part this spring, he has evaluated his team with some objectivity, but obvious endearment towards his players and staff.
This is more evident than ever when he is asked about Randall McCray, his new defensive line coach. He is a loud, spirited coach who has provided UW with fresh-approach drills and conditioning—his creativity and vigor, as Bielema is quick to point out, are impossible to ignore.
With the defensive line returning many of its significant contributors and looking to get others back from injury (Matt Shaughnessy, Jamal Cooper) the real question is whether McCray can fill the void left by departed defensive line coach John Palermo, who spent as much time with the Badger staff as Alvarez did. But McCray, who spent the last three years coaching the defensive line at Toledo, has enough energy for the rest of the program combined.
Bielema notes that McCray is the only person he knows that mixes Mountain Dew and Red Bull and also happens to be the last person that needs that combination.\ He loses his voice within five minutes of drills, screaming his head off at guys twice as big as he is. The Badger behemoths on the line are in good hands, however; he coached his Toledo defense up to 21st overall in the country.
As Bielema calmly surveys the field, practice intensifies—the players are awarded the rare pleasure of practicing in pads and making tackles, so they are eager to absorb contact and let their bravado bubble to the surface. NCAA regulations prohibit teams from practicing exclusively in pads and allowing contact, but Monday night was a chance for Bielema and his staff to begin gauging their team's toughness.
""You have 15 practices,"" Bielema explains, ""12 of which can be in pads, only six can be tackle.""
Among the things that the coaches look for in full-contact practices are finishing ability on tackles—both for young guys who they have not seen much of, or upperclassmen who have to shake the rust off.
The coaching staff and player personnel are different, but with football slowly approaching, the questions and anticipation—as always—rapidly mount. So even with all the new faces, the obsession stays the same.
What else is new?\
