Everyone have a good weekend? I'm definitely going through Badger football withdrawal, but I suppose that's to be expected! Fortunately, there's still plenty of Badger sports news to go through.
Andy Baggot of Madison.com writes that Wisconsin head football coach Bret Bielema could learn a lot from men's hockey coach Mike Eaves during the off-season. Bielema will face many of the same issues that Eaves had to deal with before the start of the 2010-2011 season, where Eaves needed to overcome personnel changes after a very successful season.
After reaching the NCAA title game in 2010, Eaves lost seven seniors (among them Hobey Baker winner Blake Geoffrion), four underclassmen to the NHL, and two assistant coaches to other coaching vacancies. Despite the turnover on the team, Eaves has lead the Badgers to a 14-7-3 record, including 6-6-2 in the WCHA. Baggot asked Eaves is he had any advice for Bielema:
"I think the advice would come in the form of, losing what he lost, to be patient,'' Eaves said. "In those moments when he wants to ramp up, step back. That would probably be what I'd say to him.''
More Badger Bits after the jump!
Football
Tom Oates of Madison.com writes that, like J.J. Watt, Wisconsin running back John Clay made the right decision in choosing to go pro.
Tom Mulhern of Madison.com says that, for now, it looks like offensive coordinator Paul Chryst will be staying at Wisconsin.
John Clay spoke with UWBadgers.com's Mike Lucas about his decision to declare for the NFL draft, and said that his age played a major role in his decision.
Hockey
The men's hockey team swept non-conference foe Canisius over the weekend, including a 6-5 overtime win on Saturday.
In fact, the Badgers broke a long streak on Saturday. The last time the men won in overtime was in 2007, according to Andy Baggot.
Basketball
We don't do a lot of news on the women's basketball team, but I figure any win over the Golden Gophers is worth noting. The Badger women are 8-8 this year, with a 3-1 record in the Big Ten.
A Final Note
J.J. Watt is headed down to Phoenix in order to train for the NFL scouting combine, according to his Twitter feed. Watt is definitely worth a follow if you're a Twitter user (@JJWatt99) and while you're at it follow us at B5Q! (@B5Q)
See ya'll on Wednesday!