Your thoughts on new UW football coach?
The UW was ready to announce Utah State football coach Gary Andersen as new coach of the Badgers today, after the required two-week waiting period for the job posting, but today’s snowstorm has delayed the announcement until Friday.
Don’t worry, reports suggest, it’s gonna happen. Just like Athletic Director Barry Alvarez assured fans that they shouldn't panic earlier this week: "I’ll hire a good coach, and this program will continue being very good.”
Maybe Andersen wasn’t Alvarez’s first choice, but Utah State team came within a Mason Crosby-like field goal try of knocking off the Badgers this year at Camp Randall. That 16-14 setback was one of only two the 11-2 and 18th-ranked Aggies suffered all season.
If you haven’t seen it yet, check out this four-minute video of Andersen as he works the Aggie practice field. It’s impressive. He seems to have charisma and more personality than former UW coach Bret Bielema—now with Arkansas.
While some people express concerns that Andersen hasn’t recruited in the Midwest, that personality could charm potential recruits here.
I also read that Andersen was concerned that with the holiday break, he was unable to gather his players and explain his decision to leave, so he called each one Tuesday—more than 100 calls, working the phone until 2:30 a.m. They appreciated that, and such attention to details and that caring attitude could pay off for the UW football team.
Andersen’s wife, Stacey, reportedly loved living in Utah. One son is a sophomore on the Utah State team, and their twin sons played for a state champion high school team and have signed with the Aggies for next season. Still, the UW offer apparently was too good for their father to turn down.
Andersen earned solid reviews as a defensive coordinator before being named head coach. Some observers express concern that his spread-style offense doesn’t match the UW power running game that starts with big, strong offensive linemen recruited from Wisconsin and the Midwest. I imagine Alvarez discussed that with Andersen and heard reassuring words.
I look forward to a new era with Andersen as coach.
Greg Peck can be reached at (608) 755-8278 or gpeck@gazettextra.com. Or follow him on Twitter or Facebook
Dec 21, 2012 at 1:44 a.m.
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Andersen has all the tools in place to continue Wisconsin's success on the football field. He's a great leader, coach, and recruiter, and he seems to have a lot of character that Bielema lacked. It doesn't hurt that he was a defensive coordinator under Urban Meyer.
Dec 20, 2012 at 5:24 p.m.
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Wisconsin fans need to count their blessings. It's been a great ride for them for a good number of years. Instead of playing armchair QB about something they have no control over, why not just sit back and take it as it comes?? It could be worse! You could be an Illinois fan!
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