Tag: Bob Bostad

Former Wisconsin offensive linemen, top assistant named semifinalist for national award

Former Wisconsin linemen, top assistant named finalist for national award

Several former Wisconsin Badgers have helped lead the Indiana Hoosiers to a record 10-0 start to the 2024 season.

Those are tackle Trey Wedig, guard Drew Evans and offensive line coach Bob Bostad. The trio is a significant reason the Hoosiers’ line was named a semifinalist for the 2024 Joe Moore Award on Tuesday.

Related: Indiana coach Curt Cignetti is doing what everybody expected Luke Fickell to do at Wisconsin

The award, with history since 2015, is given annually to college football’s best offensive line. Notable recent winners include Washington (2023), Michigan (2021-22), Alabama (2020) and LSU (2019).

The Hoosiers were named a semifinalist for the 2024 award along with Alabama, Army, Iowa, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas and Tulane.

As mentioned, three former Badgers are a big reason for the nomination.

Wedig has started all 10 games at right tackle for the Hoosiers this season. He boasts one of the top PFF grades of any eligible tackle in the Big Ten, making him one of Curt Cignetti’s top transfer additions from a highly successful offseason.

The versatile lineman entered the portal after playing a reserve role on the 2023 Badgers in year one under Luke Fickell. He would’ve been up for limited snaps again in 2024 with both Jack Nelson and Riley Mahlman back for a final season.

Evans, meanwhile, transferred to Indiana back in 2023 after initially walking on with the Badgers ahead of the 2022 season. He started the first nine games of the 2024 season for the Hoosiers before suffering a season-ending injury last week in practice.

Bostad, finally, is the most notable former Badger of the group. The current Indiana offensive line coach was a top assistant under Bret Bielema in the mid-2000s before returning to the Wisconsin program in 2017 as its inside linebackers coach.

He transitioned back to offensive line duties in 2022 as Paul Chryst reworked his offensive coaching staff. The veteran assistant then took a job at Indiana after Chryst’s firing.

Indiana will look to continue its dream season on Nov. 23 when it faces the top-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes. The team is a win away from possibly reaching the Big Ten title game, a remarkable turnaround after a 3-9 final season under Tom Allen.

A big factor in that success has been the work of Wedig, Evans and Bostad along the offensive line.

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Former Wisconsin transfer lineman to miss remainder of 2024 season with Achilles injury

Former Wisconsin transfer lineman to miss remainder of 2024 season with Achilles injury

Former Wisconsin Badgers and current Indiana Hoosiers offensive lineman Drew Evans will miss the remainder of the 2024 season after suffering an Achilles injury, according to a release from the program.

Evans suffered the injury in practice this week leading up to Indiana’s matchup against Michigan. He had played an integral role in Indiana’s 9-0 start to the season, starting all nine games at left guard.

Related: Bye Week Report Card: Grading Wisconsin’s offense and Grading Wisconsin’s defense

The redshirt sophomore lineman transferred to Indiana after initially walking on with the Badgers ahead of the 2022 season. The Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin native followed position coach Bob Bostad, who left Wisconsin for Indiana after the Badgers fired former coach Paul Chryst during the 2022 season.

Evans did not appear in a game in either of his first two collegiate seasons. His play in 2024 as part of Indiana’s strong offensive line has been a big surprise, especially after he won a starting job due to an injury to the projected starter.

Evans’ absence will test Bostad and the depth of his group. Indiana is in the midst of a dream season in year one under new coach Curt Cignetti. It is approaching a College Football Playoff appearance — a result that would mark an unprecedented turnaround after the program’s 3-9 2023 campaign.

Indiana and Michigan will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday. Indiana’s offensive line without Evans will be a big story against a top Michigan defensive front.

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Former Wisconsin starting offensive lineman commits to Indiana

Former starting Wisconsin offensive lineman commits to Indiana

Versatile Wisconsin offensive lineman Trey Wedig entered the transfer portal a few weeks ago. After a brief stay, the now-former Badger has committed to Indiana.

Wedig will be reunited with former Wisconsin OL coach Bob Bostad at IU as the program undergoes a facelift under new head coach Curt Cignetti.

The former Badger played four seasons in Madison. He started eight games for the Badgers in 2022, five coming at right tackle, two at right guard and one at left guard. He then appeared in 10 games this season, logging more than 250 snaps as the team’s versatile sixth offensive lineman.

With consistent playing time in question entering 2024, Wedig is off to an opportunity at Indiana that should see him start immediately.

Report: Former Wisconsin coach set to be retained under new staff at Indiana

Report: Former Wisconsin coach set to be retained under new staff at Indiana

The Indiana Hoosiers made a few splashes in the last few weeks, firing longtime head coach Tom Allen after a disastrous 3-9 season. It then hired one of the hotter coaching names on the market: former James Madison head coach Curt Cignetti.

Cignetti had the Dukes at 11-1 this season after an 8-3 2022 campaign. He is no Jonathan Smith (former Oregon State coach, now at Michigan State), but the college football world agrees he did a terrific job at James Madison.

One piece of Cignetti taking over at Indiana is how he’ll handle the staff around him. ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg reported there is one assistant coach set to be retained: former Wisconsin offensive line coach Bob Bostad.

Bostad was in Madison from 2006-2011 as tight ends coach, run game coordinator and offensive line coach. He then was the program’s inside linebackers coach from 2017-2021, before Paul Chryst moved him to coach the offensive line entering the 2022 season. Once Chryst was fired, Bostad took a job under Allen at Indiana.

Bostad is experienced along the offensive line, knows how to recruit the midwest and has a good track record as an assistant coach. Cignetti’s move to retain him with the new staff should prove to be a smart one.

Rutgers football head coach knows Indiana offensive line coach Bob Bostad from the NFL

Rutgers football head coach Greg Schiano knows Indiana offensive line coach Bob Bostad quite well.

Bob Bostad is someone Rutgers football head coach Greg Schiano knows well. And Bostad is being charged this week with slowing down a Rutgers defensive line that is among the most talented in the Big Ten.

The offensive line coach for the two years that Schiano was the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2012-13), Bostad is highly experienced at the college and professional level. He is a highly-regarded coach and was a strong hire for Indiana this offseason.

Rutgers (5-2, 2-2 Big Ten) plays at Indiana (2-4, 0-3 Big Ten) on Saturday. Kickoff is at noon and the game will be on the Big Ten Network.

On Monday, Indiana head coach Tom Allen was asked about the development of the rebuilding offensive line. Like Rutgers, the offensive line for Indiana has been a point of emphasis this year.

This offseason, Rutgers hired Pat Flaherty, an offensive line coach who won two Super Bowls with the New York Giants. Indiana brought in the experienced Bostad to work wonders with their own group.

“I want to see it continue to elevate, for sure. I do think that Matt Bedford played his best game this past weekend, so seeing growth there and getting him healthier all the time,” Allen told reporters on Monday.

“As a group they continue to mesh and gel and work together. Obviously going against really good fronts and going to go against another good front this week. Just have to continue to develop. And even kind of made some adjustments and try to add some things to what we want to become up front even in the run game. And saw some positive returns on that; want to keep building off of that.

“And obviously the second half of the season needs to be their best. And so we’ve had a chance to kind of get those guys solidified in where they’re at and where they’re playing in those consistent spots. And I want to see them take these next six games and allow us to really be a unit that’s on the rise.”

Schiano, given his connection to Bostad, is keenly aware of what Indiana’s offensive line coach brings to the Hoosiers sidelines.

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In addition to his time with Schiano in Tampa Bay, Bostad also spent two years as the offensive line coach of the Tennessee Titans. And he has significant Power Five coaching experience on his resume as well.

Schiano praised the whole coaching staff during his weekly press conference.

“You look at — first off, Tom Allen is an excellent football coach. I’ve known Tom for a while now. He’s a great coach. He’s a great person,” Schiano said.

“In his program, I know Rod Carey, who is now the offensive coordinator, is an excellent coach, the line coach, Bob Bostad was my line coach down in Tampa. They are a well-coached football team.”

Breaking down every position along Badgers’ offensive line entering fall camp

Here’s a full breakdown with analysis of every position along the Badgers offensive line:

At a school like Wisconsin, the offensive line is the heart and soul of the entire program. Football games are won and lost in the trenches, dating back to the Barry Alvarez era – a strategy that hasn’t been deviated from since.

Things could look slightly different along the offensive line next season as the Badgers gear up for fall camp. After several years working with the inside linebackers, Bob Bostad has returned to his rightful place as the Badgers’ offensive line coach.

According to PFF, Wisconsin’s O-line ranked No. 3 in the country as a run-blocking unit (88.6). However, their pass-blocking ranked No. 98 (55.5) out of 130 division one programs in 2021.

Coach Bostad is a no-nonsense coach that expects perfection. The program desperately needs the offensive line play to return to the Wisconsin standard, and he’s precisely what the Badgers need to iron things out.

Wisconsin saw two significant departures this offseason in starting RT Logan Bruss and LG Josh Seltzner, both of whom are now in the NFL. Thankfully for Paul Chryst and company, they’re talent-rich along the offensive line. At the moment, Wisconsin has eight scholarship offensive linemen rated as four or five-star prospects coming out of high school.

Coach Bostad differs in philosophy from former offensive line coach Joe Rudolph. Instead of cross-training, he likes to find a specific position for his players to specialize in where they can work to master their craft.

Here’s a full breakdown with an analysis of every position along the offensive line as Coach Chryst and Bostad work to find the best starting five for week one:

A look at Wisconsin football’s entire coaching staff for the 2022 season

Here is a look at Wisconsin football’s revamped coaching staff for the 2022 season:

When Wisconsin football returns to the field this fall, it will look significantly different from the one fans saw last winter in the Las Vegas Bowl against Arizona State, especially on the sideline.

After a disappointing 9-4 season, head coach Paul Chryst decided it was time to shake things up on the coaching staff, specifically as it pertained to the offense.

UW averaged 25.4 and 25.1 points per game in the last two seasons. The last time Wisconsin went consecutive seasons averaging fewer than 26 points per game came back in 1991. It was time for an influx of new ideas.

Since then, Coach Chryst has hired three new assistant coaches and moved several other coaches into new roles.

The most significant shakeup in the coaching staff came when former offensive coordinator and current Badgers’ offensive line coach Joe Rudolph departed for a similar position with Virginia Tech – a clean slate for both sides.

Coach Chryst quickly identified Baltimore Ravens tight ends coach Bobby Engram as the program’s next offensive coordinator, and signed him to a two-year deal. He will look to reinvigorate a Wisconsin Badgers’ offense that has become stale in recent years.

Here is a look at Wisconsin’s revamped coaching staff for the 2022 season:

2023 three-star OT Joe Crocker sets official visit to Wisconsin

2023 three-star OT Joe Crocker sets official visit to Wisconsin:

After Bob Bostad made the switch back to coaching the Badgers offensive line, he wasted little time in offering three-star offensive tackle Joe Crocker out of Nashville, Tennessee. 

Now, the highly coveted three-star tackle has formally set a three-day official visit to Madison that’s expected to begin on June 2nd. 

Per 247sports, Crocker is the No. 418 overall prospect in the 2023 recruiting class, the No. 30 OT in the country, and the No. 14 player in the state of Tennessee. You can watch his junior season film here.

The 6-foot-6, 310-pound tackle currently holds offers from Michigan State, Kentucky, Arkansas, Cincinnati, Duke, Florida State, Georgia, Michigan, Pittsburgh, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Virginia, and several others.

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