BEST MOMENTS1. BURISH (2x)
Both the men's and women's hockey teams won the 2005-2006 national championship, and there is no better moment to tie these two remarkable feats together than perhaps the only simultaneous one—when senior captain Nikki Burish took the ice to congratulate her older brother, Adam (also a senior captain), on his team's ultimate victory which came just weeks after hers. Adam, one year her senior, knew if he couldn't lead the male Badgers to victory, his little sister would always be able to hold her team's championship over his head if he couldn't achieve the same success at Wisconsin. Their potential sibling rivalry, however, became what was a common headline following the Frozen Four: Sibling Revelry.\
2. BYE-BYE, BARRY
Brian Calhoun must have gotten awfully close to head coach Barry Alvarez in his one year on Wisconsin's active roster, because he gave his coach a wonderful going-away present. Alvarez's final game at the helm was expected to be a third-straight rout courtesy of an SEC opponent, but Calhoun rushed for 213 yards and a touchdown as the Badgers upset Auburn 24-10, giving Alvarez one of his most memorable victories and, with his coaching career coming to an end, certainly one of the most satisfying. John Stocco threw for over 300 yards in a game that was the perfect bookend for the new athletic director's bookshelf of big wins and a lasting legacy.
3. JUST LIKE THEY DREW IT UP
Quarterback John Stocco provided the single most exciting moment of the Badger football season when he called his own number—down four to Michigan, with 24 seconds remaining—for a QB draw and scampered in for the win. Wide receivers coach Henry Mason deserves the assist (or perhaps the bucket), since he made the play call after noticing that Wolverine linebackers were vacating the middle once Stocco dropped back. Some excellent coaching and improbable execution made for the third-best Badger sports moment of the year.
4. KICKING AND SCREAMING WAY TO TOP
For the first time since 1994, the Wisconsin women's soccer team won the Big Ten tournament to receive the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Badgers ended the 12-year drought with a 3-1 win in the conference championship game over Michigan, in which it was clear that experience and tenacity prevailed. UW senior Amy Vermeulen scored two goals ,and fellow senior Katy Lindenmuth added the third as the relentless offensive attack gave Wisconsin the victory and manifested itself in a staggering box score; the Badgers out-shot Michigan 25 to six.
5. WACK ATTACK
Jocelyn Wack—while a standout on the volleyball team—did very little standing in order to earn her esteem. Wack broke the NCAA record for consecutive double-digit digs matches with 64. Ten times or more, each and every match, for 64 straight matches, she laid out like a centerfielder after a sinking line drive and successfully kept the ball alive to give her team a chance at the point. She hasn't joined the ranks of Ripken and DiMaggio yet, but there is still time; this past season she was only a sophomore.
Honorable Mention: CASILLAS' PLAY; THAT WAS THE REAL KICKER
Three points and 38 seconds stood between Wisconsin and rightful ownership of Paul Bunyan's Axe before freshman Jonatahan Casillas blocked Justin Kucek's fateful punt and sophomore Ben Strickland pounced on the ball in the endzone for the game-winning score.
—Ben HubnerWORST MOMENTS1. BADGERS BEHIND BARS
First, junior wide receiver Marcus Randle El was arrested on Dec. 16 after allegedly fighting with a former teammate, Nick Sutton. Randle El recently reached an 18-month probation plea agreement. Five days later, tailback Booker Stanley, since kicked off the team, was arrested for allegedly fighting with his ex-girlfriend. Stanley was charged with three felonies, including second-degree sexual assault. The next month, in January, defensive backs Antonio Freeman, a freshman, and sophomore Jameson Davis were arrested in Jefferson County after being pulled over in a speeding car driven by Davis. Marijuana was found in the car. Davis has been practicing with the team, while Freeman is eyeing a transfer to Whitewater.
2. THE BIG MAN GOES DOWN
It was really the only mishap of the 2006 Capital One Bowl for the Badgers. Junior offensive tackle Joe Thomas, widely regarded as an NFL prospect, tore his ACL while, oddly enough, playing defense in the third quarter of the 24-10 win over Auburn. Currently rehabbing, Thomas may be able to get work in at the Badgers' summer conditioning program. It is completely within the realm of possibility that Thomas will be ready to go for the Badgers opener Sept. 2.
3. KOHL CENTER SHOCKER
North Dakota State coach Tim Miles said it best after this shocker: ""Today was our day."" The Bison stunned the Badgers, 62-55, at the Kohl Center, ending UW's 27-game home winning streak against non-conference opponents. The Bison, playing their third game in five days, showed no signs of fatigue, shooting 50 percent to the Badgers' unsightly 22.2 percent. It was so bad that, at one point, Wisconsin trailed by 18 points on the home floor. Juniors Kammron Taylor and Alando Tucker combined to shoot an abysmal 8 of 42 from the floor.
4. BOBBY PULLS A BOOKER
Things are looking a lot better now for senior cross country runner Bobby Lockhart than they were in November when battery charges were filed against the All-American after he allegedly shoved an ex-girlfriend and threw a wine glass at her Nov. 23. On March 23, those charges were reduced from a felony to a misdemeanor, and Lockhart now has the chance to wipe the slate clean by completing a defender's program.
5. KESSEL SILENCES NATIVE STATE
Madison-native Phil Kessel, who chose Minnesota over UW, returned to the city in a big way during the series between the two hockey teams in late January, which Minnesota swept. In the second game, Kessel iced a Gopher victory when he beat freshman goaltender Shane Connelly with a low shot from the left wing. Afterwards, Kessel, booed heartily all weekend, put his hand to his ear in a clear shot at the crowd. Said Kessel of his decision to go to school in Minneapolis: ""I made a decision that was best for me. Hopefully they respect that.""
Honorable Mention: WILD EXIT
It was expected that Arizona would pose a challenge to the Badgers in the first round of the 2006 NCAA basketball tournament. But hardly anyone predicted that the Badgers would lay an egg in the match-up. The Wildcats made 15 of their first 20 shots and jumped to a 35-11 lead. For the game, Arizona shot 59 percent, the highest percentage against UW during the season. It was an unfortunate end to the season for UW, who early on was off to its best start since 1929-'30, winning 14 of the first 16 games and started the Big Ten season 4-0, best since 1961-'62.
—Jon Bortin\
