Wisconsin Badgers
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Wisconsin Badgers are a variety of collegiate athletic teams from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This Division I-A NCAA athletic program has teams in football, basketball, ice hockey, crew, volleyball, soccer, cross country, tennis, swimming, wrestling, track and field, golf, and softball. The Badgers, for short, have several major on-campus facilities at which they play, including, but not limited to, Camp Randall Stadium, the Wisconsin Field House, and the Kohl Center. The Badgers compete in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except men's ice hockey (whose teams compete in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association).
The current athletic director is Barry Alvarez, former head coach of the football team. Team colors are cardinal and white. The mascot of the Badgers is named "Buckingham U. Badger.", or as commonly referred to "Bucky Badger".
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[edit] Team Name Origin
Contrary to popular belief, the true origin of the team's nickname has nothing to do with the state animal. Yet, the team's nickname 'Badgers', was borrowed from the state of Wisconsin. The territory was dubbed the 'Badger State', not because of animals in the region, but rather an association with lead miners in the 1820s. Prospectors came to the state looking for minerals. Without shelter in the winter, the miners had to 'live like badgers' in tunnels burrowed into hillsides.[1]
[edit] Football
Main Article: Wisconsin Badgers football
The most famous, and best-supported, of the Wisconsin varsity teams is the football team. Wisconsin's football program has been among the most successful in the Big Ten since the early 1990s, when Barry Alvarez was installed as the head coach. Since then, they have won 3 Rose Bowls and 3 Big Ten Championships. The Badgers beat the Auburn Tigers in the 2006 Capital One Bowl, the most prestigious of the non-BCS bowls. Bret Bielema has taken over the post of head coach when Barry Alvarez stepped down after the 2005-06 season.
Two Badgers have won the Heisman Trophy in the history of the program. The first was fullback Alan Ameche in 1954. More recently, in 1999, running back Ron Dayne, who now plays for the Houston Texans in the NFL, won the prestigious award. Both these players' jerseys have been retired since.
The Wisconsin Badgers football team play their home games at Camp Randall Stadium which has a capacity of 80,321. The student section at Camp Randall is considered by many to be one of the best in all of college football. Especially the world renowned Jump Around by House of Pain at the begining of the 4th Quarter. In addition the infamous 5th Quarter where the Wisconsin Badgers Band plays.
[edit] Basketball
The Badgers have developed into one of the Big Ten's basketball powerhouses in recent years. Wisconsin has made it to the Final Four twice in its history - recently in 2000 and before that in 1941, when they were National Champions. The team has made it to the NCAA tournament eight straight season starting in 1999. Wisconsin won the Big Ten Tournament in 2004, the only time since the inception of the competition in 1998. They also tied for the Big Ten regular season championship in 2002 and outright in 2003. In 2000, 2002 and 2004 Wisconsin lost in the NCAA tournament to the eventual national champion. This included Michigan State in the Final Four (2000) and North Carolina in the Elite Eight (2004).
Dick Bennett is largely credited with the beginning of the turnaround for the program. In his tenure at Wisconsin from 1995 to 2000 the Badgers achieved a 91-68 record. Bennett led the Badgers to two 20 win seasons. Only twice previously had the Badgers won at least 20 games in a season - the most recent being the 1940-41 Championship season. The current coach is Bo Ryan who has been in charge since the 2001-02 season and has led the Badgers into the NCAA Tournament in every season since. Currently Ryan has compiled a record of 112-49. The team play their home games at the 17,142 seat Kohl Center. In the Bo Ryan era the team is 72-5 at home.
[edit] Ice Hockey
The Badgers created history in 2006 when both their men's and women's hockey teams were crowned NCAA Division I National Champions. Before this, the men's team has won the National Championship on five previous occasions: in 1973, 1977, 1981, 1983 and 1990. The men's Badgers are perennially considered as being national championship contenders.
The Badger men won their sixth National Championship on April 8, 2006 at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, with a 2-1 victory over Boston College.
The women won their first title on March 26, 2006 at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis, with a 3-0 victory over the defending champs, the Golden Gophers of Minnesota. This is the first women's hockey national championship for Wisconsin and the first time that the NCAA Women's National Championship trophy has left the state of Minnesota (UMD won it in 2001, 2002, and 2003; U of M won it in 2004 and 2005). However, the victory did continue the Western Collegiate Hockey Association's dominance of the women's crown.
Mike Eaves is the current head coach of the men's hockey team. Mark Johnson coaches the women's hockey team. Both hockey teams play all of their home games at the Kohl Center in Madison, and compete in the WCHA conference.
