With the announcement yesterday that Chris Ash and Charlie Partridge will be co-defensive coordinators in 2011, the news that Wisconsin had hired Dave Huxtable as their linebackers coach was kind of swallowed up. Let's take a look at the newest addition to the Badger football staff.
Tom Mulhern of Madison.com writes that Bret Bielema's luring of Huxtable away from UCF is a big loss for the Knights. Huxtable was their defensive coordinator, and oversaw some of the best defenses in the country. For example, in 2009 the Knights were fourth in the country in run defense. The Knights were in pretty good company: they only trailed Texas, Alabama, and TCU. Via Mulhern, here is what Bielema had to say:
"I think Dave is a great addition to our staff," Bielema said in a statement. "He brings a ton of experience, having coached the linebacker position virtually his entire career. His defenses at UCF were very well-coached, as evidenced by their success this season. As good a coach as he is, he is even a better person and he will fit into our staff very well."
I'm sure Huxtable will be more than willing to work with two linebackers as talented as Mike Taylor and Chris Borland in 2011. More Badger Bits after the jump!
Rob Schultz of Madison.com writes that Penn State's recent success in Big Ten play shows that there is some parity in Big Ten basketball this year.In case you hadn't heard, former Wisconsin quarterback Brooks Bollinger is set to retire, according to the Grand Forks Herald. Bollinger had nine touchdowns and 2,226 passing yards in his NFL career, as well as a QB rating of 74.6.
Andy Baggot of Madison.com writes that the 2011-2012 college football season is already dragging up some unpleasant personalities, notably former UConn head coach Randy Edsall and Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon.
Baggot also writes that Wisconsin defenseman Justin Schultz may make school history this year. He also takes a look at Schultz's interesting stats from this year.
Chuck Schwartz of Sixty Minutes. No Alibis. No Regrets. has his updated bracketology for week 10.
Adam Rittenberg of ESPN.com has his regular Big Ten mailblog up! If you're a Big Ten fan and you're not reading his blog regularly, you should seriously re-prioritize your life.
Graham Filler of Off Tackle Empire takes a look at the five best non-conference football games from 2011.