October 2008 - Posts

• Beckum's UW career over

  Posted Oct 26 2008, 09:48 PM by Ben Voelkel

  Remember what you saw of Travis Beckum Saturday, because it's the last you'll see him in a Wisconsin uniform.

  The UW senior tight end suffered a fractured left tibia during the third quarter of the Badgers' 27-17 win over Illinois. He had successful surgury Saturday night and will miss the rest of the season.

  That puts a capper on what can only be a disappointing year for Beckum, at least when it comes to on-field production. After nearly running up 1,000 yards receiving last year and earning first-team All-America honors, Beckum could have opted to declare for the NFL draft. I thought he should have. He probably would have been one of the first two or three tight ends taken. And when you consider all the questions for this season (Who would be the quarterback? Would that player look to Beckum as much as Tyler Donovan did? How would Beckum deal with constant attention from opposing defenses?) with the potential for injury and the fact that last year was really a year of great circumstance (wide receiver go-to options Luke Swan and Paul Hubbard were both injured for big chunks of the season leaving Beckum to be THE man), you wonder really how Beckum could one-up 2007.

  Sure, he hoped to improve his blocking to make him a more well-rounded player. But think about it this way: by declaring for the NFL draft after last season, Beckum would have likely been drafted high enough to earn a contract that would set him up very nicely financially. Instead, he returned to school, risking his draft status.

  And yes, it is absolutely commendable to make the decision to finish a degree. But it's not like doing so can't be temporarily put on hold while making gobs of money playing football. College will always be there, your athletic prime won't.

  So it's really too bad Beckum's season is over. I really do feel bad for him. While it will likely be lower than what it would have been a year ago, Beckum will still get drafted come April. I would just hope that in the future, when money talks, more college athletes, for their own sake, listen. 
  

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• Big Ten basketball media day

  Posted Oct 26 2008, 09:00 AM by Ben Voelkel

  Rosemont, Ill. — Marcus Landry is getting a little preseason love. The Wisconsin forward was one of five players named to the Big Ten preseason all-conference team. As a team, the Badgers were picked to finish third in the Big Ten behind Purdue and Michigan State.

  Joining Landry on the first team are Purdue forward Robbie Hummel (Player of the Year), Michigan State forward Raymar Morgan, Michigan guard Manny Harris and Purdue guard E'Twaun Moore. 

  The media sessions are about to start, so I'll have more in a little bit. 
  

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• Some perspective

  Posted Oct 26 2008, 12:22 AM by Ben Voelkel

  A good win for the Badgers today, one both the team and the fans needed to get over the last six weeks of football. When you realize it had been since Sept. 13 at Fresno State that the Badgers had won a game, it kind of puts into perspective how rough it's been. I mean, before today, the last time Wisconsin actually followed through with 1-0, the Dow Jones was over 11,000, the sky was falling on the Brewers season, people were seriously talking Big Ten championship for this football team and O.J. was still not guilty (yet).

  How times change.

  Anyway, good performances today by Dustin Sherer, the UW defense (!?!) and David Gilreath and Garrett Graham. Illinois might not be what they were last year, but then again neither are the Badgers.

  Big Ten basketball media day is tomorrow. Next time we talk will be from the Hilton O'Hare.

  'Til then.
  

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• UW men's basketball media day

  Posted Oct 21 2008, 10:34 PM by Ben Voelkel

  I've got a fairly busy next couple of days here, so there is more to come, but first a few thoughts from Wisconsin men's basketball media day.

  • From everyone I talked to, there was very little concern about the impact the newly-lengthened 3-point line will have on gameplay. Bo mentioned he thought the "shooters" would be unaffected, but the "marginal" guys, players who were stretching their range at the former distance of 19 feet, nine inches. Guard Jason Bohannon, a "shooter" said the new distance won't impact him at all. Many of the threes he attempted last year were beyond even the new distance.
    

  One non-shooting area of the game that could be affected is the relative ease of entry to the middle of the defense. With perimeter players and their defenders extended that much further away from the hoop, it could create bigger lanes for penetration and give post players more time before a double-team arrives.

  • Trevon Hughes spoke a lot about what he picked up from playing with Michael Flowers last season. Flowers quiet leadership and defensive tenacity stood out most to Hughes, who will be relied on for both this season as point guard and the backcourt's top defender. If Hughes took good notes, there's few better to learn those things from than Flowers.
  • Senior forward Marcus Landry was probably the most popular interview subject. Sitting behind a table at the front of the room, Landry often had five or more reporters and cameras keyed on him as he answered questions in his normally-quiet tone. There was also a different air of confidence in his voice than I remember from last year.  
  • After losing big men Greg Stiemsma and Brian Butch from last year's team, there is a definite size void to be filled. Second year players J.P. Gavinski, Keaton Nankivil and Jon Leuer as well as senior Kevin Gullickson and freshmen Jared Berggren and Ian Markolf will all vie for time. The biggest issue facing the bigs is improving how they play with their feet. Solid footwork is essential to post play under Ryan, both offensively and defensively.

  That's about all for right now. More to come in the next couple days.
  
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• No pros, no championship

  Posted Oct 19 2008, 07:42 PM by Ben Voelkel

  Wisconsin basketball has experienced an unprecendented level of success since Bo Ryan took over the team in 2001. 

  The Badgers went from a Big Ten afterthought to a perennial conference favorite, a fixture in the NCAA tournament. In his seven years at UW, Ryan has guided the Badgers to as many NCAA tournaments — seven — as the previous 103 years of basketball at the school.

  For as much success as the Badgers have had, it hasn't been because of rosters laden with stud talent. Ryan and his staff recruit players that are willing to buy into the system, sacrifice a little personal glory and play defense, three things not at the top of most top prospects' lists.
  

  Since he's taken over, just one player — Devin Harris — from the program has made a significant impact on an NBA roster. In time, Alando Tucker could make two. With his equal opportunity swing offense, Ryan has coaxed the most out of his players and beaten numerous teams with better individual talent.
  

  This year's team isn't much different. Trevon Hughes and Marcus Landry are probably the best NBA prospects on the team, but both are undersized for their position and neither is included on NBAdraft.net's mock drafts for 2009 or 2010. 
  

  So it looks like more of the same formula this season, which is fine if you like winning loads of Big Ten games (Ryan's .737 league winning percentage is tops in conference history, just ahead of some guy named Knight). But if you're holding out hope for an NCAA champion? Don't hold your breath.
  

  Until Ryan gets three future pros on the same team, the Badgers are longshots to be the last team standing. At least that's what research by CBS Sportsline's Gary Parrish strongly indicates. Parrish checked the rosters of the last 40 national champions. You know what he found? All but one, 2003 Syracuse, had three future pros on the roster.

  And it really makes sense. With the tournament as unpredictable as it is, it helps to have a roster of superior talent to bail you out of a tough spot. 
  

  Now, if any coach is capable of pulling off the feat with just decent talent, it's Ryan. Bo could round up 10 guys from campus and go .500. But until the day comes when several pro prospects are hoopin' in the Kohl Center, the Badgers will be longshots to win it all.

  What do you think? Can the Badgers win a national championship with a roster of similar composition to the present one?
  

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