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Wisconsin Badgers football: Fans have suffered through worse than Cal Poly
By TOM MULHERN
11/18/2008
Wisconsin State Journal
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 I've been on the Wisconsin Badgers football beat for 10 years and off the top of my head, I can name a half-dozen teams I've seen come into Camp Randall Stadium who are probably worse than Cal Poly.


 The Citadel, Western Illinois, Buffalo, Temple, Western Kentucky and Murray State come to mind.

 Temple might be the worst team I've seen, losing 65-0 in the second week of 2005. Buffalo was close behind, losing 35-3 in the final regular-season game in 2006.

 Both Temple and Buffalo are (barely) Football Bowls Subdivision teams.

 The Owls had won three games total the previous two years and were between conferences, getting bounced out of the Big East and before full acceptance into the Mid-American.


 The game was so lopsided, even Barry Alvarez, known for his aversion to running up the score, couldn't prevent putting up 65 points.

 "It's hard," Alvarez said after the game. "I asked the official if he would hold that (play) clock as long as he could. I didn't want to score any more points. I don't like to do that. I don't feel comfortable doing that."

 Buffalo had long been considered as the bottom of the (then) Division I-A barrel since elevating to that level in 1999. Coming into the 2006 season, it had the worst overall winning percentage in the previous seven years in Division I-A at .127 (10-69).


 That game was a little closer than expected. The Badgers led 7-3 late in the first half and used a goal-line stand to get them going.


 I haven't seen Cal Poly play, but I would wager right now, after doing some research, it's better than those six teams I mentioned and not much worse than a lot of the other non-conference fodder the Badgers have paraded in front of their fans.


 The Badgers beat San Diego State 14-0 in 2006. Cal Poly beat San Diego State 16-14 that season and beat the Aztecs again in the opener this year. Yet, I don't remember an uproar because San Diego State was on UW's schedule.


 Why?

 Two reasons: Nobody around here knows anything about Cal Poly and nobody likes one of these non-conference games stuck at the end of the regular season. Fans didn't like it when Buffalo came here in the final regular-season game in 2006 and they don't like it now with Cal Poly.

 Frankly, I don't blame them. UW coach Bret Bielema undoubtedly believes, with all his heart, he was justified in taking Virginia Tech off the schedule to create a bye the week before the Big Ten season.

 But anybody in the UW athletic department who is surprised by the fans' reaction to this game just isn't paying attention. As much as UW officials can defend the scheduling policies of the football team, fans are getting tired of paying good money to watch lousy teams. It's as simple as that.
 

 As it turns out, this isn't even one of the worst teams. But that won't change how the fans feel.

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8 comment posts
Last Reply: 11/20/2008 5:53 PM
Wisconsin Badgers football: Fans have suffered through worse than Cal Poly
(11/20/2008 5:53 PM)
MustangGrad says:
You may hope that you'd scheduled the Mustangs for 2009. This looks to be the best offensive team the Mustangs have ever had, including a 1980 National Championship Team. If you don't know the name Ramses Barden yet, you should. He's broken Jerry Rice's collegiate records and is a big, talented receiver. If you've never watched a Cal Poly game this year (and I'd bet that would have been hard to do other than online), you will find the offense one that you may think is a run option team. Then you'll see game stats where the QB throws for over 400 yds a game. And you'll wonder, what the heck is that offense? With seniors in almost all of the key offensive positions you may well wish this game was scheduled for 2009. At a minimum, it should be an entertaining game. This offense is fun to watch.
(11/18/2008 10:00 PM)
Badger Fan says:
I hope that we can beat Cal Poly. They bring a completely new scheme to the game on Sat. It's up to our coaches to make the defensive adjustments and some less predictable offensive plays, needed to win. Fortunately for the coaching staff, since Cal Poly is another team with small O and D lines, we may be able to wear them down like we did our first three opponents this year, and still win. But Cal Poly has an experienced QB that can pass and run, an excellent, tall
receiver, decent running back, and some defensive skills. If Cal Poly can build up a big early lead, we may not be able to comeback. What would Barry do then? Hope we win for the seniors! See you at the game.
(11/18/2008 9:47 PM)
woodsman91 says:
RC,

I don't disagree with many of your points, and you are entitled to your opinion.

However, I would submit that the Big Ten has more parity that it has ever had. All that rhetoric about the Big Ten being a power conference "back-in-the-day" was almost exclusively based on several factors:
1. OSU an MI have always been perceived as consistent national powers. Nobody else in the Big Ten can be considered a consistent and perennial national power.
2. There were drastically fewer bowl games to showcase other teams.
3. The level of competition has improved and the "power" has shifted completely in mirror image of demographics and population shift from region-to-region over the last 20 years.

Having said that, putting this game at the end of the seasons is less than desirable, but I submit that the scheduling challenges associated with a recently expanded schedule had more to do with that than gaining a "cupcake" to close the year.

(11/18/2008 9:36 PM)
bob says:
Hey Tom, say what you want about Temple, but Buffalo is bowl eligible this year. Turner gill has done a terrific job with that program.
(11/18/2008 9:02 PM)
RC says:
If a "talented" Cal Poly football squad puts a scare into the badgers this saturday as some supporters of ticket sales want to have you to believe can happen, perhaps the coach and the Athletic Dept. could again lure Cal Poly financially to play the badgers at Camp Randall in 2009 during an existing bye week? Cal Poly should not be as talented next year right? But then again neither should the badger's team be after losing the senior class that will play their last home game this saturday. Apparently the majority of the fans that fill Camp Randall to watch college football don't care about the level of competition their mighty home team from the big ten plays. If the badgers can get a Cal Poly scheduled next year, then, the badgers can bail-out on the final away game from a "most talented" Hawaii team late in the year and practice for another potential bowl game in December. If no one is following the current economic situation, let me remind the Athletic Dept. that the economy woes that will linger into next November will deter many loyal traveling fans from making the trip way way out west. Besides, would any one really want to travel so far away to see a game that would have the badgers probably at a sub 500 big ten conference record playing a nonconference game weeks after they played their last big ten opponent? I should check the official updated 2009 football schedule to see if Hawaii has been eliminated as an opponent. After all, the schedule of opponents seems to change bi-weekly. Wow, 8 home games for the bleeding red fans! A close win earlier in the 2009 year against Cal Poly should impress the BCS computer and bowl scouts. Another 3-5 conference big ten record is good enough to secure a good bowl for a football team from a one-time great football conference that had some talent two decades ago. That's college football for the sport's fans of america. At the very least, badger fans should demand that the final season game that is scheduled year in and year out HAS to be against a big ten opponent.
(11/18/2008 8:57 PM)
woodsman91 says:
I think its more than a little arrogant/ignorant to make statements that indicate we think Cal Poly is a bad, pathetic team. I for one am very afraid that we will share the same fate that MI did last year when it lost to Appalachian State. These comments do nothing but give Cal Poly, a proud program, nothing but locker room bulletin board material, and reflect poorly on us as Badger fans. I for one fully expect the fight of our lives in this game. They have the talent, speed, desire and scheme to beat us. We are very nearly on the cusp of not going to a bowl game, much less the despised Motor City Bowl.

If you want to make a statement, do so by showing up and supporting the team, instead of tearing something down. Its November in WI, and it should be cold. You idiots don't understand the complexity of scheduling.

I, for one, hope we comport ourselves well and wish the best to all the players especially the seniors this Saturday. I hope they can achieve one their goals. If you have larger issues with the AD, find another way to make the statement.

GO BUCKY!!
(11/18/2008 7:05 PM)
JP of Madison says:
There is only one way for fans to show their displeasure with the Badgers' cupcake scheduling. What they should do is stay home in droves. That way, the UW won't get money from concessions, programs, Bucky's locker room, etc. Hit 'em where it hurts, the only place that will get their attention. Let the few folks watching on the gawd-awful Big Ten Network see huge chunks of empty seats. Wisconsin likes to think of itself as a big time program. Bielema had an experienced team that was expected to contend for a Big Ten title. So have some guts and play Virginia Tech. Maybe they would have been better prepared to play at Michigan had they not bailed out on the Virginia Tech game. So instead of fans having a great game in the nice weather of early fall, they had to pony up good money for tickets to watch Cal Poly in frigid late November. The regular season should have ended last Saturday with a great game against Minnesota on Senior Day. The arrogance at 1440 Monroe Street is disgusting.
(11/18/2008 5:27 PM)
Biffer says:
The coach and Athletic Dept. ask us fans to support the seniors (which I will do by attending Saturday) but, their own actions in scheduling a game like this as THEIR LAST GAME in Camp Randall doesn't support the seniors!

I don't care how good or bad Buffalo or Cal Poly are, they aren't in the Big Ten! These young men have given their all to the football program for the past 4-5 years. They deserve to remember their last home game against a Big Ten opponent. That would/could have been possible this year and the opportunity was taken away.

THANKS SENIORS! YOU'VE MADE US ALL PROUD!

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