Charlie Healy

Wisconsin hockey -- both the men and the women -- have comfortable homes at the top of this week's Power Rankings.

The sixth edition of the Big Ten Hockey Power Rankings sees no change in order from last week. Every conference team except the Minnesota and Ohio State men split their weekend series. The three women’s teams begin the WCHA Tournament this weekend while the three CCHA men’s teams play their final regular season series. The Wisconsin and Minnesota men have two weekends remaining before the WCHA playoffs begin.

Disagree with my assessment of your favorite team? Post your own rankings in the comment section and explain where I went wrong.

1 (1) – Wisconsin Men (19-8-4)

#3 Wisconsin split their two-game series with #4 St. Cloud State in the final regular-season home series of the year. The Badgers look to have a better weekend as they travel to Michigan Tech this weekend in the second to last series of the season.

2 (2) – Minnesota Women (22-7-5)

Minnesota avoided a third straight sweep with a come-from-behind win over Wisconsin Saturday night after falling in overtime Friday. The #3 Golden Gophers finish the season with 43 points, sharing the WCHA title with Minnesota Duluth. Minnesota hosts Minnesota State this weekend in the first round of the WCHA playoffs.

3 (3) – Wisconsin Women (18-13-3)

Wisconsin narrowly pulled off a sweep of WCHA Co-Champion Minnesota. The #9 Badgers won in overtime on Friday before falling late Saturday. Wisconsin hosts Ohio State in the first round of the WCHA Tournament in their final push to make the NCAA Tournament.

4 (4) – Michigan State Men (18-11-5)

Michigan State split a home-and-home series with Ferris State, both teams winning at home. The #10 Spartans have a home-and-home with Bowling Green this weekend in the final series of the year before the CCHA tournament begins, lasting three weekends.

5 (5) – Michigan Men (18-16-1)

The Wolverines split their series with Northern Michigan at home last weekend. Michigan, ranked #25 nationally and virtually out of the NCAA Tournament race has a home-and-home with Notre Dame this weekend before beginning the CCHA Tournament.

6 (6) – Ohio State Women (15-14-5)

The Lady Buckeyes lost and won in a shootout against St Cloud State in the final regular season series of the year. Ohio State, ranked #18 in the country travels to Wisconsin for the first round of the WCHA Women’s Tournament.

7 (7) – Minnesota Men (15-15-2)

The Minnesota Men swept Colorado College last weekend at home. The #24 Golden Gophers are on the outside of the NCAA Tournament picture as they travel to Minnesota-Duluth this weekend. A WCHA Tournament title is virtually the only chance Minnesota has of gaining entry into the field of 16.

8 (8) – Ohio State Men (12-15-5)

The Buckeyes swept Western Michigan with a win and shootout win. Ohio State has a home-and-home with #1 Miami this weekend before beginning the CCHA Tournament. Ohio State is the only Big Ten team with a losing record and not ranked nationally.

Hockey

Camp Randall will play host to both the Wisconsin Men's and Women's Ice Hockey teams on Saturday

This Saturday another chapter is written in the historic books of Camp Randall Stadium and Wisconsin Hockey. The Big Ten’s oldest football stadium will host two outdoor hockey games featuring the Men and Women Badger Hockey teams.

The puck drops at 2:00 pm as the Wisconsin Women face off against WCHA rival Bemidji State. This will be the second women’s NCAA hockey game played outdoors after Northeastern and New Hampshire skated at Fenway Park in January.

At 5:00 the Wisconsin Men battle under the lights against Big Ten rival Michigan. This will be the second outdoor game for both teams. Michigan played at Michigan State in 2001 in the “Cold War” and Wisconsin hosted Ohio State in the “Frozen Tundra Hockey Classic” at Lambeau Field in 2006.

While hockey outdoors is a concept that dates back to the first days of hockey, playing regulation game outside in an outdoor venue is a new concept. The first outdoor game was held in 1991 in Las Vegas between the Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers. Michigan State hosted the next game ten years later. In 2003 the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Montreal Canadians followed by Wisconsin in 2006.

Blackhawks vs. Wings, Wrigley Field

In 2008 the National Hockey League started a tradition by hosting the “Winter Classic” on New Year’s Day outdoors. The first contest saw the Buffalo Sabres hosting the Pittsburgh Penguins. In 2009 the Chicago Blackhawks faced their Original Six Rival the Detroit Red Wings at historic Wrigley Field. The famous baseball stadium proved to be a perfect site for hockey as the NHL went to Fenway Park on January 1 2010 when the Boston Bruins hosted the Philadelphia Flyers. The Fenway ice was also used for two college games, the latter featuring Boston U. and Boston College.

While the sightlines might not be great, and it may be cold, the opportunity to see outdoor hockey is something that shouldn’t be missed. There is a special vibe in the air as the players and fans know they are witnessing something special. It is not just another series against a conference rival. It isn’t even at the level of an NCAA tournament game. Even as outdoor hockey is increasing in popularity among NHL and college teams, the event is still something that has a “once in a lifetime” feel. There have been countless football games held at Camp Randall. The ice gets one chance to steal the spotlight, it would be a shame if someone missed it.

Hockey

The OSU women's hockey team was the only team to move up the rankings (from 7 to 6) this week.

The second edition of the Big Ten Power Rankings presents very little change from last week. Every team except the Minnesota Men recorded a victory, and the Minnesota Women and Wisconsin Men escaped the weekend without a loss.

Disagree with my assessment of your favorite team? Post your own rankings in the comment section and explain where I went wrong.

1 (Prev: 1) – Minnesota Women (19-3-4)

The Golden Gopher women swept North Dakota at home yet is no longer #1 in the nation after being overtaken by Mercyhurst.

2 (2) – Wisconsin Men (14-6-4)

The #3 Badger Men proved they can skate with any team in the country, taking three of four points at home against #1 Denver with a tie and a win. Mike Eave’s squad faces another tough test this weekend at Minnesota-Duluth.

3 (3) – Wisconsin Women (14-9-3)

The Wisconsin women fell to #9 nationally after splitting their series with St Cloud State. To make the NCAA Tournament the Badgers need to find a way to get back in the top eight.

4 (4) – Michigan State Men (16-8-4)

#13 Michigan State split their series with Ohio State at home. They face CCHA and Big Ten rival Michigan next weekend.

5 (5) – Michigan Men (14-11-1)

The #17 Wolverines split their weekend series and are making a push to make it into the NCAA Tournament field.

6 (7) – Ohio State Women (12-10-4)

The 12^th ranked Buckeye women split their series with Bemidji State, earning a trip up in the Big Ten Power Rankings, jumping the Minnesota Men.

7 (6) – Minnesota Men (12-12-2)

It was a disappointing weekend for the Minnesota Men as they were swept by St. Cloud State. They were the only Big Ten team not to record a win on the weekend.

8 (8) – Ohio State Men (10-13-1)

One of the few bright spots this year for Ohio State occurred last weekend when they split their series with rival Michigan State.

Click Here To Read Last Week’s Rankings

QB Scott Tolzien was a pleasant surprise for the Badgers in 2009

Charlie Healy

Football

After a lackluster 7-6 2008 season, the Wisconsin Football team was looking to turn things around in 2009. Head Coach Bret Bielema later said one of the season goals was to “re-establish Wisconsin Football”. In August, most fans would have been very happy with a 9-3 season and a win over a ranked opponent in a bowl game. However, it’s those three losses and the location of the bowl game that has Badger fans and players desiring more.

A second-half collapse against Ohio State and Iowa along with a heart-breaking loss at Northwestern sent Wisconsin to Orlando for the fourth time in five seasons. Those are the negatives.

A 4-0 record in non-conference play, winning the axe for the sixth straight year against Minnesota in the first Big Ten game in their new outdoor stadium, upsetting #14 Miami in the Champs Sports Bowl, winning ten games for just the sixth time in school history. These are just a few of the positives.

The emergence of junior quarterback Scott Tolzien and sophomore running back John Clay as offensive weapons made many people take notice of a powerful Wisconsin offense that struggled the year before. Clay went on to earn the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year award after leading the Big Ten in rushing with 111.3 yards per game.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Wisconsin defense proved its dominance by holding ten teams, including all eight Big Ten opponents to less than 100 yards rushing. Linebacker Chris Borland was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year while leading the team with 46 tackles.

While the three losses hurt, the season was undoubtedly a success. The Badgers final tally on the 2009 season is a record of 10-3 and ranked #16 nationally. In a season that began with so many questions, the only question being asked today is what can this team do for an encore in 2010?

Football

Chris Maragos and a host of 21 other Seniors went out in style against Michigan in their last game in front of the Camp Randall faithful.

On Saturday 22 members of the Wisconsin Football team performed at Camp Randall Stadium for the final time as students. Those seniors went out in style, beating Michigan 45-24. In honor of the 18 players, 3 student managers, and 1 student assistant, here are 22 bits from the win, one for each senior. (Please note, the facts do not relate to the player or their performance on the field)

-Tyler Guetschow (student manager): Quarterback Scott Tolzien passed for four touchdowns and ran for one touchdown.

-Thomas Cassini (student manager): Sophomore running back John Clay rushed for 151 yards and a touchdown, passing the 1,000-yard mark on the season.

-Ben Swanson (student manager): Freshman running back Montee Ball added 62 rushing yards helping the Wisconsin offense accumulate 229 rushing yards.

-Terrance Jamison (student assistant): Tolzien was 16-24 passing on the day for 240 yards.

-Dan Cascone: Wide receiver Nick Toon caught five passes for 98 yards, two for touchdowns.

-Nate Emanuel: Freshman Chris Borland led the team with 11 tackles, setting a career high.

-Garrett Graham: Head Coach Bret Bielema is 26-0 when the offense scores 30 or more points and Wisconsin has won 30 straight contests when scoring 30 or more points.

-Will Hartmann: Garrett Graham had a touchdown reception for 22 yards for Wisconsin’s first score.

-Jordan Hein: Wisconsin was in the red zone six times on Saturday and converted on all attempts scoring five touchdowns and a field goal.

-Tyler Holland: Wisconsin and Michigan first met in 1892 yet the 45 points scored is the most the Badgers have ever scored in 73 meetings with the Wolverines.

-Richard Kirtley: The Wisconsin defense held Michigan to just 71 rushing yards. Coming into the game the Wolverines averaged over 200 rushing yards per game.

-Chris Maragos: Lance Kendricks caught one pass from Tolzien, for a touchdown in the 3^rd quarter.

-Jaevery McFadden: Graham had 5 catches for 62 yards, the longest for 23 yards.

-Prince Moody: Isaac Anderson caught 4 passes for 65 yards, the longest for 27 yards.

-Dan Moore: Wisconsin punted just once. Brad Nortman kicked it 34 yards in the first quarter. Nortman punted again in the second quarter but a personal foul against Michigan kept the Wisconsin drive alive resulting in the second Badger touchdown.

-Erik Prather: Wisconsin finished with 469 yards of total offense

-O’Brien Schofield: Wisconsin fumbled twice, losing one. Michigan fumbled once but retained possession.

-Dustin Sherer: Michigan and Wisconsin each threw one interception

-Jeff Stehle: Wisconsin won the time of possession 34:49 – 24:11 thanks to keeping the ball for 10 and 12 minutes in the third and fourth quarter respectively.

-T.J. Theus: Wisconsin was 6-11 on third down and 1-1 on fourth down. Michigan was 6-15 and 1-3.

-Mickey Turner: Philip Welch kicked a 28 yard field goal and was 6-6 on PATs.

-Drew Woodward: A 19-yard field goal attempt by Michigan was blocked by JJ Watt in the first period.

Football

Ready or not, the conference season is here. After 3 wins against non-BCS opponents, the Badgers are set to open the Big Ten season against Michigan State on Saturday at Camp Randall Stadium. The Badgers are 3-0 while the Spartans are 1-2 in non-conference play.

After opening the season with a win over Montana State, Michigan State lost two close games to Central Michigan and Notre Dame. One different play in each of those defeats could have turned their record to 3-0. Instead, the Spartans come into Madison looking to turn things around. They may be 1-2 overall, but like everyone else, they are 0-0 in conference play. They know a win on Saturday puts them at the top half of the conference standings despite the poor non-conference performance.

Wisconsin opened the season with two hard fought, close victories over Northern Illinois and Fresno State before soundly defeating FCS opponent Wofford 44-14 last week. Junior quarterback Scott Tolzien has emerged as the offensive leader and ranks second in the Big Ten in completion percentage with 69.1% and pass efficiency at 161.8. The running game will be lead by Zach Brown, who started the first two games of the season. After starting against Wofford, John Clay is being moved back 2^nd string after fumbling on three of his twelve carries.

What can fans expect? Aside from heavy rains in the forecast, fans should expect a hard fought game from each side. Despite the difference in records, Wisconsin and Michigan State are very evenly matched. The Spartans were picked to finish 3^rd in the conference, so they will come out with something to prove. The Badgers meanwhile will be looking to start the season 4-0 and prevent Michigan State from solving their problems until next weekend. This will be a close game, which very well could be decided on a late 4^th quarter drive.

Football

After defeating Northern Illinois to open the 2009 season, the Wisconsin Badgers had an extra opponent to defeat before playing Fresno State the following Saturday. No, this was not on the schedule, and it doesn’t count in the standings. The Badgers were battling a nasty case of the flu. Whether or not it was the Swine Flu, as many as 40 players missed practice last week.

Despite many players missing practice time and suffering from side effects of the flu most of the week, Wisconsin was able to pull out a victory over Fresno State 34-31 in double overtime. Down 21-7, the Badgers were able to battle back before sending it to overtime tied at 24. After trading touchdowns in the first overtime, Fresno State was on offense first in the second OT. On Fresno State’s first play, Chris Maragos intercepted Fresno State quarterback Ryan Colburn. The Badgers were then given their opportunity on offense, needing any type of score to earn the win. After John Clay ran several plays, Phillip Welch drilled a 22-yard field goal to give the Badgers the win, making them 2-0 on the season.

Up next for the Badgers is Wofford. While many disagree with the scheduling of an FCS opponent, this gives Bret Bielema and his team one last chance to fine tune things before the conference season begins next weekend. An FCS team is no sure-win, as Cal Poly proved last year. With the memory of that overtime win still in the players’ heads, they surely will be ready to play and win sure handedly.

Football

Classes at the University of Wisconsin started on Wednesday. After a summer break that never seems to be long enough, the start of school signals the start of another season of athletic competition. While Wisconsin Soccer and Volleyball started competing last weekend, the big kickoff is Saturday when Northern Illinois comes to Camp Randall Stadium for the first football game of the year.

Under the direction of fourth-year head coach Bret Bielema, the Badgers have a lot to prove this year. Who will step up as the starting quarterback? Will the quarterback split between junior Scott Tolzien and red-shirt freshman Curt Philips last more than one or two games, or will one player emerge as the better player? Can the running back tandem of Zach Brown and John Clay complement the quarterback duo?

What about the defense? The defense can’t afford to give up more than 25 points in a game, as it did 6 times last year. If the defense can step up and limit opponent’s opportunities, the chances of victory will increase dramatically given the potential of the offense. Don’t expect the offense to score a lot, but expect the offense to score if given the chance by strong defensive stops.

If each player and each part of the team compete and execute as they are capable of, this Badger team could be a team that will make noise in the Big Ten. It may not be enough to catch Ohio State and Penn State at the top of the conference, but it certainly could be enough to earn a trip to a bowl game on January 1^st.

Charlie Healy

Who would've thought U-Dub's most exciting win would be over Cal Poly?

As the 2008-2009 season comes to a close, it’s time to take a look back at the year that was. Of the over fifty games that I attended this year, the following is what I will take away from this season.

Most exciting win:

Overtime, cold football weather, back-and-forth action, each team matching the other’s punch. That’s everything you want in an exciting college football game, which is what we got on November 22. Well, we got everything except the enticing opponent. Not even Cal Poly could prevent it from being the most exciting game of the season though. In a season full of crushing defeats and underachieving performances, everyone seemed to forget that we were playing a member of the Football Championship Subdivision. It wasn’t Minnesota or Ohio State, but that didn’t matter. We were fighting for our season, and it was an exciting game. While this isn’t a game many people will remember, I’ll remember it for the fact it symbolized the end of a hard-fought, grueling season. Plus, who doesn’t like a few snowflakes falling towards the end of the game?

Most exciting road trip:

It was supposed to be a 2-day, 2-game trip, but it turned into 4 days and 3 games. The women’s basketball team went into the Big Ten Tournament as the 7th seed, playing Northwestern. As expected, they won. Surprisingly, they beat 2nd seed Michigan State in one of the most exciting games of the year. The win gave us an unexpected 3rd game against 3rd seeded Purdue. Unfortunately, Wisconsin lost, but those extra few days in Indianapolis is what made the trip so much fun. Coming off of the excitement from the upset of Michigan State, we had nearly two full days to spend touring the city, seeing everything that it had to offer. From the Capital building to the Civil War Monument, we saw it all. It was a trip where we learned to expect the unexpected, and one that I’ll never forget.

Most embarrassing defeat:

A 42-13 loss to Florida State in the Champs Sports Bowl was possibly worse than the other 6 losses combined. A virtual home game for the Seminoles, the Badgers were outplayed, outclassed, and outdone by a Florida State team that wasn’t that much better than Wisconsin in the regular season. Wisconsin simply didn’t show up. Sure, the trip was fun, and it was nice to get away from the frigid Wisconsin winter for a few days, but it almost would’ve been better if we skipped the game altogether. If nothing else, we would have saved ourselves from hearing the FSU War chant five hundred times.

Full day of basketball:

On February 14, ESPN aired their College Gameday preview show from the Kohl Center. The nationally-broadcast show was open to the public, and a good number of Badger fans attended the live broadcast. The show was the start of what would be an exciting day of basketball. That night, the Badgers faced Ohio State, pulling out a 55-50 win in one of the most exciting games of the year. It was a fitting end to an exciting day. Badger fans got an opportunity to show the nation what Wisconsin is all about, and the basketball team got a win that helped secure an NCAA Tournament bid.

Business as usual:

Despite a six-game losing streak, Bo Ryan continued to go with the game plan. The one-game-at-a-time philosophy was followed the entire season, from the 12-3 start, the six-game losing streak, and ultimately a 7-3 finish that would land them in the NCAA Tournament for the eleventh straight season. Ryan refused to dwell on any loss, or get too excited about a win. Win or lose, Ryan and his team kept on moving on to the next game, staying extremely focused. I think this approach is why the Badgers were able to finish strong at the end, and grab one of the last spots in the Tournament and steal a win from Florida State.

Most dominating performance:

Any Women’s Hockey game was an example of domination, but a 7-0 win over Dartmouth at the Kohl Center was the complete example of what Wisconsin Women’s Hockey was. The NCAA Quarterfinal win would propel the Badgers to their third National Championship in four years, sending the seniors out in style as arguably the most successful student-athletics in school history. The Badgers seemed in control of every game, putting on a clinic for their opponents and the fans. It was a thrill to watch the season unfold, knowing something special could happen at any moment.

The one game I wish I had seen:

I would have traded nearly every game I saw this year to be in Boston for the Women’s Hockey Frozen Four. Instead, I was stuck in Madison at the WNIT, watching the game on the Kohl Center TV in the concourse. It’s not every day that a fan gets to watch their team win a National Championship, let alone in such a convincing way. To have been there in Boston would surely have been a memory any Badger fan would remember forever. Hopefully, we’ll have plenty of chances in the near future.

Biggest question to ponder over the summer:

Will the football team rebound from a 7-6 season, or will Bret Bielema’s season-by-season record continue to fall? Bielema has gone 12-1, 9-4, and 7-6. If Bielema struggles, is he on the hot seat at Kellner Hall?

The question everyone is asking:

How will the current state of the economy affect the Athletic Department and ticket sales? Will everyone renew their season tickets? If not, are there enough fans willing to buy those season tickets, or will there be empty seats? As for the Athletic Department, how much can they cut costs without it directly influencing the student-athletes and fans? Are they able to creatively save money while still providing the things necessary to run one of the nation’s most successful athletic programs? Only time can answer these questions, though it’s important to remember that every university is dealing with these same problems.

Now it’s time to spend the summer resting up for what surely will be another exciting year of Wisconsin Athletics. On Wisconsin!

Charlie Healy

Don't tell Charlie Healy there's nothing to do in Madison during the springtime.

For college sports fans, springtime can be somewhat of a letdown. When basketball season ends, there is a big chunk of time left open for the first time since the beginning of the football season. Many fans are able to fill that hole with baseball, softball, or the increasingly popular lacrosse.

At Wisconsin however, we don’t have baseball or lacrosse, and softball is finishing out yet another disappointing season. While I am not in support of adding baseball or lacrosse, something needs to fill that void once the hockey and basketball are over. Thankfully, there were several unique opportunities this spring

Though they don’t compete that often in Madison, Track & Field and Rowing have been extremely successful recently. The Women’s Lightweight and Men’s Rowing programs both won National Championships last season. The Men’s Track team has won the Big Ten Championship ten of the past fourteen seasons.

Track and Field hosted the Wisconsin Open last weekend, and hosts the Wisconsin Twilight Invitational this weekend. The Twilight Invitational is a great way to see both the Men’s and Women’s teams the weekend before they compete at the Big Ten Championships.

I had never attended a track and field event before last year’s Twilight, and I had a great time watching the action, which seemed to never stop. From the running events on the track, to the field events, it seemed like something was always happening. I’m looking forward to getting a glimpse of the team this weekend at the event which lasts all afternoon, into the evening.

Men’s Rowing hosted Michigan and Minnesota, and won both contests on Lake Mendota. Being on the lake though, the races are not the most fan-friendly events.

The big events in the spring though are the Football Spring Game, Crazylegs Classic, and UW Varsity Band Concert.

The annual spring game is the culmination of spring practice for the football team. While the excitement of a fall football game isn’t there, it’s still a fun time to be able to get a glimpse of what next year might look like. About 25,000 fans attended the first half, though the halftime rain showers sent many fans home. The remaining fans crammed under the upper deck overhang to watch the second half. All eyes were on the quarterback, as Dustin Sherer and Curt Phillips spent the spring battling for the starting quarterback position. Sherer was the starter, and appears to be the favorite going into the fall, but Phillips certainly did not disappoint.

This year I finally decided to run in the Crazylegs Classic. The 8k run, which starts at the Capital and ends at the 50 yard line of Camp Randall Stadium had over 18,000 runners this year. Unfortunately, it was raining the entire race, though it was still a fun time. I ran with a friend, which made it much more enjoyable, and we both were aiming for a time of less than 40 minutes, so we were able to push each other throughout the race. We both crossed the finish line in 39 minutes, were everyone was greeted with water, food, and cheering fans in the stands. Despite the pouring rain, it was a fun run, and a great way to spend a Saturday morning.

Many college bands play a concert at the end of the football season or school year. No one does it like the Wisconsin Band though. What began as an end-of-year celebratory concert, the Varsity Band Concert celebrated its 35th anniversary this year with three shows at the Kohl Center. Pyrotechnics, prop, lights and guest artists compliment the excitement that the band brings to their performances. The show consists of 5th quarter favorites, special selections with guest artists, and several halftime shows from the football season. It’s a fantastic way to celebrate the end of another year, and a great way to hear the band one last time before the summer hiatus.

Even though the Softball team is having a tough season, there is plenty to do and see at Wisconsin in the spring besides wait around for the football season to begin again.