At least Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema isn't quite as stressed as UW hockey head man Mike Eaves this past offseason.
Still, Bielema and the Badgers have significant areas to address in the approaching months due to graduations, early draft entries and coaching changes. Turnover is inevitable at the college level, but the 2011 football team retains plenty of talent and could compete for a second straight Big Ten Title if the moves Wisconsin makes in the coming months pan out.
Replacing departing senior quarterback Scott Tolzien and junior defensive end J.J. Watt will likely garner the most public attention, but replacing two AP All-Americans on the left side of the offensive line, in John Moffitt and Gabe Carimi, will be equally important.
Carimi's spot at left tackle will be filled by current sophomore right tackle Ricky Wagner. Wagner battled senior tackle Josh Oglesby for the job on the right side through the early season this past year, and ultimately took over after Oglesby struggled with procedure penalties and then suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Oglesby, if healthy, should compete with redshirt freshman Casey Dehn for the right tackle job.
Moffitt's spot is a bit more up in the air, but sophomore Travis Frederick, who redshirted this season after starting four games—two at center, two at guard—in 2009, should have the inside track to take over.
Wisconsin's offensive line put together a dominating season and Moffitt and Carimi provided stellar work, but offensive line coach Bob Bostad has an embarrassment of riches at his disposal and a track record of pushing the right buttons for his unit.
The quarterback position is a different story.
Redshirt freshman John Budmayr served as the backup to Tolzien for the entire season and should be given a chance to win the job next year. His competition will likely come from freshman Joe Brennan, a native of Audubon, N.J. who ran the scout team for the Badgers this year.
The Badgers are also reportedly still in the hunt to land Jacoby Brissett, a dual-threat recruit from West Palm Beach, Fla. who earned a four-star ranking from Rivals.com and recently competed in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. It remains to be seen though if Brissett would compete for the starting job in the event he decides to play for Wisconsin.
The production of Watt will not be completely replaced along the defensive line, but having a healthy Chris Borland at linebacker in 2011 would certainly add a playmaker to the UW front seven.
Along with the loss of several playmakers, Bielema will also have to find a new defensive coordinator, as Dave Doeren accepted an offer to become the head coach at Northern Illinois in December. Bielema has options to fill the position from within, including defensive line coach Charlie Partridge and defensive backs coach Chris Ash.
On the offensive side, speculation ran far and wide that offensive coordinator Paul Chryst would move on from UW as well. Rumors included head coaching jobs at Indiana, Minnesota and Pittsburgh and coordinator duties in Texas, both with the Longhorns and the Dallas Cowboys.
Most of that talk has died down, and it appears likely that Chryst will call plays for Wisconsin again in 2011.
There is plenty to keep track of this offseason personnel wise, but the Badgers return a talented corps of players and coaches that should make more noise come September.
