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Football
Melvin Gordon had every reason to leave Wisconsin last year, and no one should have barked twice. But he didn't, and it's hard not to have an increased level of respect for the running back. You'll find even more respect for Gordon after you read this piece by Fox Sports Wisconsin's Jesse Temple.
After winning the Super Bowl, Russell Wilson has the biggest platform to express his opinion(s), if he chooses to do so. Well, he certainly has, writing a terrific article on race in the NFL as part of Sports Illustrated MMQB's summer-long project of celebrating the history of the league.
Personally, I think Wisconsin's cornerbacks are going to be a lot better this season. BTN.com's Tom Dienhart apparently thinks otherwise, ranking the unit as the eighth-best in the conference.
Basketball
Let's check in with how Sam Dekker is doing at the LeBron James Skills Academy via Twitter.
Dekker, as he did at Kevin Durant's Skills Academy, matched up nicely with Arizona's highly-touted recruit Stanley Johnson.
Great head-to-head matchup here of Sam Dekker and Arizona freshman Stanley Johnson. Stan is not typical frosh. So strong.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) July 9, 2014
Love watching @JayBilas work with kids on court here. Shoots them straight. Just got into @samdek1 for not getting better post position.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) July 9, 2014
Quick notes on measurements from LeBron's camp: LSU's Jarell Martin's 6'7.5" WS = 2.5" shorter than his height. Sam Dekker measured 6'9"...
— Jonathan Wasserman (@NBADraftWass) July 9, 2014
Sam Dekker is listed at 6'9, 229 lbs. at the Lebron James camp, was listed at 6'7, 220 last season.
— Bucky's 5th Quarter (@B5Q) July 9, 2014
All these young high school players need to be watching 6'9" Sam Dekker's work ethic in all these drills! Excellent footwork! He grinds!!
— Joey_Velasquez (@HoopsWhisperer) July 9, 2014
Drew has a piece for BT Powerhouse posing this question: when will Wisconsin have a player drafted in the NBA, particularly the first round? Likely very soon, thanks to Dekker and Frank Kaminsky.
Hockey
The USHL's Madison Capitols released their 2014-15 schedule. While there are no conflicts with UW football games, four weekends contradict the UW hockey schedule.
Quick hitters
I really liked this idea: Andrew looked at six types of cult heroes in sports and gave a Wisconsin comparison for each. My personal favorite was the selection of Matt Bernstein. The greatest part of his game versus Penn State was the fact it was on national television, and the fullback was shreddin' the Nittany Lions.
The Badgers were ranked the 12th-best athletic program in the country, based off last year's results in football, men's and women's basketball, and baseball.