The Golden Age of Wisconsin Sports

The Spoiled Years
In 1996, I was nine years old and just developing my love for all Wisconsin sports. I remember watching Brett Favre and idolizing him for every touchdown he threw and every comeback he led. I worshiped the Packers and Favre that year and when they won Super Bowl 31, I felt like I had won too. Every inch of my bedroom walls were covered by Brett Favre and Reggie White posters. (I even had green and yellow streamers draped across my ceiling... for effect, I guess.) Two years later the Badgers won back to back Rose Bowls and I was again on top of the sports fans world and spoiled. 

The Dark Years
A few years later it all came crashing down on my head. The Packers were good, but not great. The Badgers football team was solid but never made it to a bowl game worth remembering. I had become a big Brewers fan, but they were the Brewers, terrible. I was a huge fan of the Bucks, but even at their peak, I was left disappointed. The only thing positive I remember from that time was the Final Four run by the Badgers basketball team in 2000. I looked back at the Packers Super Bowl win and the Badgers Rose Bowls and wondered if the best Wisconsin sports fan era was over. I mean, some cities haven't had a championship team in forever. Could it be that Wisconsin was the next great sports drought capital?! (These are the questions a teenager thinks about in class.) Granted, it had only been 6 or 7 years of sports mediocrity, but it felt like much longer to me at the time. Soon I came to realize that I was spoiled as a ten year old. The Packers were my first distinct sports memory and everything after was a let down. In all honesty, compared to a lot of cities/states, even "the Dark Ages" probably were not as bad as I remember. Over the next few years, the Packers would get my hopes up of another championship and I would enjoy every minute of the season, but alas, I would be let down once again. I followed the Brewers and Bucks religiously, but at seasons end I would be trying to forget what had happened.

Changes are Brewing
But then things started to change: Aaron Rodgers gave me hope that the Packers would one day challenge for another championship; the Brewers young stars started to give me hope for the future; the Badgers started to build a strong winning foundation under Bret Bielema. The Bucks even drafted a few guys that weren't busts (RIP Tractor Traylor) and made it to the postseason. My optimism was growing, but I tried to diminish my excitement because being a pessimistic sports fan is easier to deal with losing then being overly optimistic.

The Beginning of the Golden Age
Last December I flew down to Charlotte, North Carolina to meet up with my college roommate Tim and spend a few days down there before driving up the east coast to Foxborough. The Packers were playing at New England and Tim is a huge Patriots fan, so we decided to go to the game and then drive up to Vermont to his parents house before I flew home and he drove back down south. I was not in the best of moods knowing that I spent all this money on plane tickets and gas and food to go out to Foxborough and see Matt Flynn take on the Pats. Aaron Rodgers had just gotten a concussion against Detroit the week prior and lost the game and now the Packers needed help to get into the playoffs. The afternoon before the game, Desean Jackson returned a punt against the Giants for a touchdown and gave the Packers the help they needed to get into the playoffs without having to beat the Patriots. To my surprise, the Packers almost pulled out a stunning victory in Foxborough against one of the best teams in the NFL, on the road, without Aaron Rodgers. Things were looking up.

The Golden Age
The Packers still needed to win their last two regular season games just to make the playoffs and we all know what happened. Those two final games catapulted them into one of the greatest playoff runs which ended in a Super Bowl 45 victory. At the same time, the Badgers football team was rolling through opponents and racking up outrageous numbers. The Badgers made it to the Rose Bowl and lost to TCU, but things were looking up in Madison. The Brewers followed not long after behind the one-two punch of Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder, and captured their first division title since 1982. The Badgers had Russell Wilson fall into their laps in the off season and now are legitimate national title contenders. The Packers are off to one of the hottest starts in team history at 5-0 and Aaron Rodgers looks like an early season runaway MVP. The Brewers won a thrilling 7 game series in the NLDS against the Arizona Diamondbacks and are now tied 2-2 against NL Central division rival St. Louis. Although I thought I had witnessed the Golden Age of Wisconsin sports at an early age, I now see that I am currently living in the Golden Age. The Bucks aren't losing so that can be counted as a win I suppose. Wisconsin has two quality college basketball programs as UW and Marquette both look to build off sweet sixteen appearances from last year. Fans of Wisconsin sports should do their best to enjoy every moment of what is going on right now because this truly is the Golden Age and I'm not sure if the stars will align like this ever again.

Marquette Basketball Season Preview

Each of the past two seasons, under Head Coach Buzz Williams, the Marquette Golden Eagles have exceeded experts and coaches predictions of where they would finish in the ultra-competitive Big East Conference. In 2008, Marquette was picked to finish sixth and finished the season in fifth place. In 2009, the coaches poll had Marquette finishing twelfth and they responded by finishing fifth. This season, the coaches have picked Marquette to finish eighth and judging by the past two seasons, I would think Buzz will find a way to exceed expectations once again. The fiery, third year head coach has an energy about him that gets the most out of his players. Coach Williams will have to work his magic again as this years Marquette squad is full of young, inexperienced talent. A few key contributors return but much of the success of the season will rely on how quickly the new guys adjust to the higher level of play.

Coach Williams will have veteran senior forward Jimmy Butler to help lead the team and be the coach on the floor.  Marquette also returns last season's second leader scorer in Darius Johnson Odom. Butler was voted as a preseason second team All-Big East and Johnson Odom was selected to the preseason Honorable Mention All-Big East team. Senior guard Dwight Buycks also returns and will possibly be used by Coach Williams as a point guard until one of the younger point guards is ready to step into that role which would allow Dwight to return to his natural two guard position.

The incoming freshman class is full of Buzz Williams type players. Leading the class is four star prospect and Madison, WI native Vander Blue. The Madison Memorial product is an ultra athletic two guard who can shoot as well as get to the basket of the dribble. Blue gained valuable experience this summer as he helped lead the under 18 US national team to a gold medal in the U18 FIBA Americas. Joining Blue in the 2010 class is the incredible athletic point guard Reggie Smith. The Chicago native is only six feet tall but plays above the rim and may end up being the best on ball defender Marquette has. His ball hawking abilities are raved about by Coach Williams and he brings an energy that is hard to match. Jamail Jones is another impact freshman that is a slasher and scorer from the wing. A raw yet talented forward will most certainly make an impact with his shooting and scoring abilities. If he is able to pick up his defensive abilities, he will most certainly see more minutes.

Darius Johnson Odom was the JUCO player of the year before he transferred to Marquette and that was an obvious success, so Coach Williams followed that pattern and brought in last season's JUCO player of the year in Jae Crowder. The do-it-all forward is often compared to Lazar Hayward for his style of play. Crowder is a strong athlete with inside and outside abilities with a knack for rebounding and scoring. He has a smooth jump shot yet is willing and able to play with his back to the basket and will be an automatic contributor for a Marquette team that lost it's leading scorer and team leader in Lazar Hayward.

As always, the upcoming college basketball season has many questions that will be answered throughout the season, but it's hard not to be excited with the talent that Coach Williams has assembled with this years squad. The roster is made up of Buzz Williams type players who are athletic and able to play multiple positions. Marquette will be undersized again, but will be quick and scrappy and will play high pressure defense that will hopefully allow the team to get out and run and showcase that athleticism. They will also be able to shoot the three from 4 positions on the floor. Only time will tell what this year's team is capable of and I am sure the ride will be fun to watch.

Can the Packers Overcome Ryan Grant's Season Ending Injury?

Before the season, the Green Bay Packers were a hot pick to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. After the week one road victory at Philadelphia, the Packers remain at the top of many predictions to go deep in the playoffs. If the Packers are going to fulfill the lofty expectations set for them, they are going to have to do it without their starting running back Ryan Grant who was placed on season ending IR this week. Grant's season barely got started when an awkward tackle in the second quarter made every Packers fan hold their breath. Seeing Grant limp off the field with a severely sprained ankle that required season ending surgery, made me immediately start to question whether or not the Packers have enough firepower at the running back position to fill Grant's void. The Packers have only two running backs on their roster and decided to keep three fullbacks including John Kuhn as an emergency backup running back. Well it is now a full blown emergency.

With Grant out, the Packers have to find a way to replace a running back with the fourth most yards in the entire NFL in the past two years. Brandon Jackson becomes the starter with no starting experience and fullback John Kuhn as the only backup available. The Packers signed Dimitri Nance off the Atlanta Falcons practice squad who is an undrafted rookie out of Arizona State University. Nance is an emergency backup with no NFL carries to his name.

General Manager Ted Thompson likes to work from within and develop players but in this case, I think it is necessary to go elsewhere and find help. The Packers still have one of, if not the most potent passing attacks in the NFL, but unless they can develop a decent running game, it makes the offense that much more predictable. The Packers will no longer be able to rely on play action pass if they cannot find a suitable replacement for Grant. Hopefully Brandon Jackson can fill Grant's void and if you read any of the comments made by head coach Mike McCarthy it sounds like the Packers are content with Jackson as the starter. If not, some of the expectations for this team need to be lowered because although the NFL is a pass dominated league, it is extremely difficult to win without the presence of a respected running game.

Wisconsin Badgers Key Players Presentation

Click on the link below to watch my presentation on some of the key players for the Wisconsin Badgers football team this year. 

http://mbbc.na4.acrobat.com/p81407498/

Aaron Rodgers' Journey

Below is a little taste of Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers journey to being considered one of the best QB's in the NFL. I did it through a pretty cool tool called Prezi. Go ahead and check it out!

Aaron Rodgers' Journey on Prezi

Mike Ramczyk Interview

I had the opportunity to interview Mike Ramczyk who is the sports editor at my local newspaper, the Lake Geneva Regional News. I got to ask him questions about sports and covering sports on a local basis as well as state wide. Mike's answers were very informative and quite interesting in regards to sports journalism and sports media.

Q: Why and how did you choose sports writing as a career?

A: I chose it as a career because I have loved sports my whole life. I also enjoyed reading the stats and scores in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. I used to write down the games and stat leaders for pro football every Sunday, and I would predict the winners and keep my record. As a junior at UW-Whitewater, I chose Journalism as my major because I had already worked in it and I loved it.

Q: Did you play any sports growing up and if so, what?

A: Yes, I played just about every sport, including soccer when I was 8, high school baseball, football, basketball and track, and I’ve golfed plenty of times. I love winning in sports and being competitive.

Q: What is your biggest challenge in sports writing?

A: My biggest challenge in sports writing is making a story interesting enough for someone not related to the topic to read it. I know parents want to read about their kids, but it’s hard to interest the person who doesn’t like sports.

Q: Do you ever experience writer's block and if so, how do you overcome it?

A: Not so much, but there are times when I don’t know how to express what I want to say. I will simply jot down some notes or move on to another story then come back to the one I had trouble with.

Q: What is your favorite sport and favorite sport to write about?

A: My favorite sport to play is baseball. My favorite sport to watch is football, and my favorite sport to write about is football. People absolutely love football, and there is so much action and emotion that goes into coaches and players on and off the field.

Q: What advice would you give to someone who was looking into entering the field of sports media or journalism?

A: Only do it if you love sports and love writing. It’s not the most lucrative field, but it is very fulfilling. Also, it’s hard to get into, so you have to start small and work your way up. I would say start at your college newspaper then show those clips to your local paper. Eventually, a break will come your way. I covered small-town stuff for two years before the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel offered me an entry-level job. Now I’m a sports editor. It took me five years to become a sports editor for a full-time job.

Q: What is your routine for writing a story or covering a game or team?

A: For covering a football game for example, I actually roam the sideline taking pictures of the action. With any noteworthy play, I jot down what happened in my notebook. Then, after the game, I interview coaches and players with a digital recorder. Finally, I use my notes, what I physically saw and my comments to formulate a story. I’d start with the lead, which is who won and why they won. Then, I write about what else happened in descending order of importance.

Q:What is your most fond memory involving your job and/or sports writing in general?

A: So far, it is a tie between meeting and interviewing Ryan Braun of the Brewers and covering a Wisconsin Badgers football game. Braun was an awesome guy, and I felt professional. And the Badger game was sooooo exciting. There were 80,000 screaming fans all around me, and I was down on the field taking pictures. Also, the media room had about 50 writers, photographers and TV people. It was very exhilarating!

Green Bay Packers vs. Baltimore Ravens- December 7, 2009

Last December, my roommate and I went to the Packers vs. Ravens game on Monday Night Football. The game was played in December so needless to say it was extremely cold. Lambeau Field is the most historic and well known stadiums in sports and I could see why. The feeling I got while walking into the stadium and watching the game was incredible and I would recommend it to every sports fan to make a trip up to Green Bay at least once. This slideshow is just a little taste of what we experienced in what was a night I will never forget.