Tag: chris mcintosh

Varsity Collective announces launch date of new Wisconsin Badgers NIL beer

The Varsity Collective’s new NIL beer will debut this week

The Varsity Collective announced that its new Varsity Golden Ale will launch on Friday, April 19 at 3:30 p.m. at Memorial Union in Madison, Wisconsin.

Proceeds of the beer will go directly toward the collective’s name, image and likeness fund for Wisconsin Badgers athletics. In short, it is an NIL beer for Badgers fans to enjoy while also supporting their favorite team.

Related: Wisconsin football 2024 spring transfer portal window tracker

The beer is in partnership with Potosi Brewing Company. The collective’s announcement on X tells Badgers fans to “come grab a taste of this new, 4.0% ABV, custom beer and support Badger student-athletes while you sip!”

Wisconsin fans were predictably fired up when the partnership was first announced back in March. That excitement can finally be fulfilled when the collective’s new initiative debuts on Friday afternoon.

 

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

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Wisconsin named one of the most attractive schools for future conference expansion

Wisconsin named one of the most attractive schools for future conference expansion

Wisconsin football was named one of the most attractive schools for any future conference expansion, according to an article by FootballScoop.

The ranking takes into account the factors that television executives are looking for: brand value, market size and general success.

FootballScoop’s exercise took every team in the nation and power-ranked them based on if conferences were disbanded immediately and built from scratch.

Related: Power ranking all 18 Big Ten football programs after the 2023 season

Wisconsin is No. 14 on the list with a total score of 241.9.

The 13 schools ranked ahead of Wisconsin, in order: Ohio State, Michigan, Alabama, USC, Texas, Notre Dame, Georgia, Penn State, Florida, UCLA, Oklahoma, LSU and Texas A&M.

This list will be interesting to revisit if conference expansion continues in the next few years — notably with the ACC’s current struggles.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

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Report: Wisconsin basketball head coach Greg Gard will return for 2024-25

Report: Wisconsin basketball head coach Greg Gard will return for 2024-25

Wisconsin head basketball coach Greg Gard received a vote of confidence from athletic director Chris McIntosh and will return for 2024-25, according to a report from BadgerExtra and the Wisconsin State Journal’s Jim Polzin.

This news comes on the heels of many fans calling for change after the Badgers’ 72-61 loss to James Madison in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Related: An early look at the Wisconsin basketball roster entering 2024-25

There was a legitimate argument for Wisconsin to either fire or retain the head coach. As we’ve outlined here on Badgers Wire, the benefits of bringing Gard back far outweigh the possible benefit of getting lucky with the next head coach.

Polzin reports McIntosh and Gard met earlier this week to discuss Wisconsin’s roller-coaster season. A similar meeting occurred between the Wisconsin athletic director and former football coach Paul Chryst in October of 2022, though that meeting let to Chryst’s firing and the eventual hire of Luke Fickell.

As reported, this year’s meeting resulted in the longtime Wisconsin coach returning for another season.

2024-25 will be Gard’s 10th season as Badgers head coach. He’ll enter with a 186-107 record (63.5 win percentage) and two Big Ten regular-season titles. All eyes will be on the head coach throughout next season as he and the program look to snap the program’s now seven-year Sweet 16 drought.

Gard and his staff return a promising roster in 2024-25, led by point guard Chucky Hepburn, guards John Blackwell and Max Klesmit, center Steven Crowl and incoming top recruit Daniel Freitag. That core, plus a few big moves in the transfer portal could set the Badgers up for a great season.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

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Wisconsin Basketball: Is NCAA Tournament success overrated?

Is NCAA Tournament success overrated when evaluating the future of the Wisconsin basketball program?

The headline is sure to cause angst among Wisconsin Badgers fans. But hear me out.

Wisconsin basketball’s 2023-24 season came to a crashing end with a 72-61 NCAA Tournament first-round loss to No. 12-seed James Madison. The loss ensured the program’s Sweet Sixteen drought would extend to seven years, and cast a dark cloud on an otherwise successful season.

Did the year have ups and big downs, and end in disappointment? Absolutely. But the program missed the NCAA Tournament entirely in 2022-23, made clear improvements in 2023-24 including the addition of St. John’s transfer guard A.J. Storr and now looks poised for a big 2024-25.

Related: If Wisconsin decides to move on from Greg Gard, who could it target as its next head coach?

This is not making excuses for an inexplicable no-show loss against James Madison, but it’s pointing out the fact that the program is not falling apart — contrary to some of the public sentiment.

That brings us to the general question: is NCAA Tournament success overrated when evaluating the health of a program? I’d argue it is.

The argument isn’t that NCAA Tournament success doesn’t matter, it clearly does. But more so is it overrated in the minds of college basketball fans.

For something to be overrated that means the public must put a disproportionate amount of importance on it. I think that’s the case here, as the sentence ‘Wisconsin hasn’t made the Sweet Sixteen since 2016-17‘ is uttered in every anti-Greg Gard discussion.

First, that sentence completely misses the context surrounding the drought.

Wisconsin’s best shot at a deep run was 2020, when the tournament was canceled. The program’s next-best look was 2022 when Johnny Davis and Chucky Hepburn suffered injuries at the worst possible time. Then it played the future national champion in Baylor in 2021, lost to an over-seeded Oregon team in 2019 and was somewhat screwed out of an NCAA Tournament birth in 2022-23 after playing one of the nation’s toughest schedules.

These are not all excuses, it’s just outlining the facts of the last seven years of disappointment. It’s also not letting Greg Gard off the hook — he’ll enter 2024-25 firmly on the hot seat and needing to take a big jump forward.

Related: Evaluating the reasons for and against Wisconsin basketball firing head coach Greg Gard

But returning to the general statement: of course NCAA Tournament success is overrated. Badgers fans want to make seismic changes because the team hasn’t advanced far in a single-elimination, high-variance, mostly-random postseason structure.

Plus, Bo Ryan’s incredible run in 2014 and 2015 made it seem like Final Four trips are easily executed and should be expected every season. I’d say that’s a few bars too high for any program, let alone Wisconsin’s.

Here’s the central question: what is a bigger indicator of future success, regular-season wins or NCAA Tournament wins? Both definitely matter, but I’d argue regular-season success matters far more for the long-term outlook.

Wisconsin has won at least 20 games in five of the last six seasons, have two Big Ten regular season titles to show for it and, when looking at the big picture, have been one of the 15-20 best programs in the country over that span.

Compare that to Florida Atlantic, whose former head coach Dusty May just took the job at Michigan. The Owls made a miraculous Final Four run in 2023, but went from 2003-2022 without making the tournament once.

Wisconsin has a better long-term outlook than a program like Florida Atlantic, even if FAU ‘at least can win in the postseason.’

Again, postseason success matters. It’s the driving force of the sport. But the public overrates winning NCAA Tournament games when evaluating the future of a program — seen clearly with the collective need to fire Gard.

The Gard debate will continue on, and should. But saying ‘Wisconsin should expect Final Four trips’ is not a sustainable way to run a college basketball program.

Postseason success must be taken into account along with all the other indicators of program health — recruiting, regular-season success, etc. It isn’t the end-all, be-all when evaluating a coach’s future.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

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Wisconsin social media expresses displeasure with Greg Gard after Badgers latest loss

Thoughts on the state of Wisconsin basketball?

Wisconsin basketball’s February skid continued Saturday with a deflating 88-86 overtime loss to the Iowa Hawkeyes.

The Badgers (17-9, 9-6 Big Ten) are a full three games behind first-place Purdue even with the Boilermakers’ Sunday loss to unranked Ohio State.

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A season that once seemed so promising — a No. 6 rank in the AP Poll, an 8-1 record in Big Ten play and a borderline 1-seed in bracketologies — is on the brink of unraveling. The Badgers are sure to be unranked in this week’s AP Poll. The Big Ten race is all-but-decided, and it feels as if an early NCAA Tournament exit looms.

There isn’t much of a positive side of the coin. But five conference games remain: vs. Maryland, at Indiana, vs. Illinois, vs. Rutgers and at Purdue. There is still a chance the team suddenly regains its January form and goes on a run into March. But, the overwhelming feeling among Badger fans is this slide will continue.

That sentiment has been shared on social media over the last 24 hours. More than anything, believe it or not, the recent losses have re-ignited the segment of the fan base that vocally opposes head coach Greg Gard.

We will litigate the head coach discussion when the season concludes, as I believe it is unfair to do so when five regular-season games, the Big Ten Tournament and the NCAA Tournament loom.

But numerous Wisconsin fans on X expressed their displeasure with head coach Greg Gard after the Badgers’ loss at Iowa:

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

Badger Countdown: Legendary coach turned 76 in December

The Wisconsin football season is on the horizon as we are now 76 days from the team’s season opener Sept. 2 versus Buffalo at Camp Randall.

The Wisconsin football season is on the horizon as we are now 76 days away from the team’s season opener Sept. 2 versus Buffalo at Camp Randall. As the Badgers usher in the Luke Fickell era in Madison, the team’s all-time best coach Barry Alvarez turned 76 in December.

Alvarez is greatly responsible for the success of the Badger football program to this day, changing the team’s fortunes when he took over at head coach in 1990. Operating as their head coach from 1990-2005 (16 seasons), Alvarez posted a 117-74 overall record.

Prior to taking over, Wisconsin had gone 9-37 over the previous four seasons and although they went 1-10 in year one with Alvarez, by his fourth campaign, the Badgers were a whole new team.

In January 1994, Wisconsin defeated UCLA 21-16 in the Rose Bowl, winning the program’s first of three bowl victories in Pasadena. Later in 1999 and 2000, the Badgers won consecutive Rose Bowls. In total, in bowl games he’s coached, Wisconsin has gone 9-4 (including fill-ins in 2012 and 2014).

Alvarez is by far the most accomplished head coach in program history and after he retired from coaching the team in 2006, he went on the have an incredibly successful tenure as UW-Madison’s athletic director.

Prior to retiring as AD in 2021, Wisconsin sports teams won 16 national titles during his tenure in charge. Additionally, Badger teams won 74 conference, regular-season or tournament championships over his 15 years.

As new athletic director Chris McIntosh has shaken things up across the many programs since Alvarez retired, there’s no denying he’s been left with some hefty shoes to fill.

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Wisconsin hockey hires Minnesota State HC Mike Hastings

On Thursday evening, Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh announced the hiring of Minnesota State HC Mike Hastings:

On Thursday evening, Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh announced the hiring of Minnesota State head coach Mike Hastings as the new head coach of the Badgers’ men’s hockey team.

In Wisconsin athletics’ statement, McIntosh highlighted Hastings’ history of success including finishing with a winning record in all 25 of his seasons as a head coach. Hastings has spent the last 14 seasons with Minnesota State and has led them to three straight NCAA Tournaments and back-to-back Frozen Four appearances in 2021 and 2022. He also took the Mavericks to the NCAA title game in 2022.

Wisconsin fired previous head coach Tony Granato earlier this month following struggles during his tenure with only two winning seasons in his seven years with the Badgers. It is definitely disappointing to see the former Badger leave the program, but it is exciting to see McIntosh working to restore the tradition of success to Wisconsin men’s hockey with this hiring.

Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh explains his decision to fire Paul Chryst

Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh has largely sidestepped why he fired Paul Chryst. He did, however, give a little insight:

Following an underwhelming 2-3 start to the season, University of Wisconsin Athletic Director Chris McIntosh made the difficult choice to move on from head coach Paul Chryst – naming defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard the interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh has largely sidestepped why he fired Paul Chryst. He did, however, give a little insight when asked why he felt the need to make a move now; he had this to say:

“The expectations of our program at Wisconsin are to win championships,” said McIntosh. “I felt that it was the right time to make a change to pursue those.”

Although Wisconsin has won three Big Ten West titles during Chryst’s tenure (2016, 2017, 2019), the Badgers failed to win a B1G Championship and haven’t won the conference title since 2012.

This move, while risky, signals the department’s desire to reinvigorate the program and help it reach new heights.

While we may never know the actual reason, this statement at least offered a potential explanation. UW desires to become an upper echelon program, and McIntosh didn’t feel like the Badgers would be able to accomplish that with Chryst at the helm.

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Two all-time great Badgers are on the 2023 College Football Hall of Fame ballot

The Badgers have a pair of former players on the College Football Hall of Fame ballot

The National Football Foundation recently released the 2023 College Football Hall of Fame ballot, and a pair of Badgers made the cut.

Wisconsin’s Troy Vincent and current AD Chris McIntosh are both on the ballot.

Vincent was inducted into the UW Athletics Hall of Fame in 2008. The 1991 All-American was one of the best defensive backs in the country during his time as a Badger. In 1991, Vincent was also named the Co-Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and had 18 passes defended, which ties for second in Badger history for one season.

Vincent would go on to make 200 starts in the NFL.

Before becoming Wisconsin’s Athletic Director in 2021, McIntosh was a first round pick of the Seattle Seahawks in 2000. In 1999, he was named Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year and a consensus All-American.

Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh tests positive for COVID-19

Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh tests positive for COVID-19

Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday and will not travel to Las Vegas for the Badgers bowl game,  according to a release from the athletic department.

Wisconsin is still set to face Arizona State in the Las Vegas Bowl on December 30, though it is a situation worth monitoring with what is currently going on in the sport.

Here is what McIntosh said in the press release:

“I would encourage everyone to follow the advice of medical professionals and get vaccinated, boosted, tested and wear a mask,” McIntosh said. “Those mitigation measures may not keep us from contracting COVID, but there’s a good chance they will keep us from having a severe outcome.”

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