B5Q Blogopean Union: it is the start of Serious Blogging Season

Good morning! This is going to be a daily(ish) post that discusses the goings on of the rest of the Big Ten Conference, and the country as needed. Much like the European Union, the Big Ten is a loosely confederated group of entities that sometimes have the same goals (like free movement of people between countries or not winning national titles in football or basketball) and sometimes accept new members that they later regret (Estonia or Nebraska).

We hope that you will use this post to comment on things happening around the conference and also as a sort of daily open thread to discuss breaking news or argue about Spotted Cow (which we NO LONGER DO).

• Folks who have been reading this site for a while may remember that we used to do a post every morning (during the week) that contained updates from around the Wisconsin athletic department and the Big Ten in general. Now that it is fall (by sports being played, NOT by weather) we’ll be doing it again. You can expect this post to go up (just about) every weekday morning between 7:00 and 7:30 a.m. CT.
• While we are doing some site announcements, let me list all of the writers’ Twitter accounts so you can harass them over there too. Matt Belz, Tyler Hunt, Owen Riese, J.J. Post, Bremen Keasey, Jake Dicker, Ryan Mellenthin and Kevin O’Connell. You can find my Twitter handle at the top of this post and, as always, you can reach us @B5Q.
• You should also follow us on Instagram @buckys5thquarter and subscribe to Bucky’s 5th Podcast on Spotify, Apple and Stitcher. You can also like us on Facebook. Once Tyler finally learns how to dance, you’ll be able to find us on TikTok too.

• You may have seen mention of this in the comments, but incoming freshman wrestler Braxton Amos (Mineral Well, W.V.) is really, really good. He won two medals (gold in men’s freestyle, bronze in men’s Greco-Roman) in Russia at the Junior World Championships.

• As final cuts and roster moves are made, we’ll have a post about which Badgers are where in the NFL this season. We don’t think Quintez Cephus has anything to worry about on cut day though.

• Congratulations to former Badger Tiffany Clark on being named to represent the United States on the international stage. The USA quarterfinal match of the NORCECA Continental Championship against Costa Rica is starting as I type this, so hopefully I remember to update this with the result! (Update: I did!)

• Brevin Pritzl has a new team for the 2021-22 season as he signed on with Team Fog Naestved in Denmark after hooping it up in Serbia last year. Pritzl’s stats were really solid in Serbia! 13.9 ppg on 39.6% shooting from deep? That’ll keep a guy employed for a long time overseas.

• When you are a Wisconsin grad from Minnesota and you win the Stanley Cup (again, mind you) you pretty much are required by law to take it out on a pontoon. Ryan McDonagh is nothing if not a rule follower.

• Freshman Joyelle Washington scored her first career goal, and the Badgers’ fifth of the match, on Sunday afternoon to help UW beat Eastern Illinois 5-0. The Panthers only had one shot all match (compared to 39 for UW) and it wasn’t even on goal soooooo it was a pretty solid effort all around by Wisconsin.

• The No. 1 thing that Black Shoe Diaries doesn’t like about Penn State’s season? It has something to do with their opening opponent.
• The Corn Nation report card of the Nebraska/Illinois game is as delicious as you’d expect.
• Purdue has named a starting quarterback. It is Jack Plummer. If you’d like more information on this matter, the link is right there! Sheesh, I’m not a Purdue blogger, I don’t know if this is the right move or not.
• What do Northwestern and San Diego State football have in common? Really good defenses and DREADFUL offenses.
• Are Scott Frost and Jim Harbaugh similar? Personally, I think this is insulting to Harbaugh, but a lot of people were making the comparison on Saturday.
• Rutgers volleyball started off the season with a stirring comeback against UMBC.
• The Terps volleyball team won the Maryland Invitational, going 3-0 on the weekend.
• Why did Illinois beat Nebraska on Saturday? The Champaign Room says, “Illinois simply executed the basics of football correctly more often than not.”
• IU’s new men’s basketball coach Mike Woodson was blasted as being unable to recruit by many national analysts upon his hiring. That, uh, has not been the case. The Hoosiers now have the No. 5 class in the country for 2022.
• The Wisconsin women’s hockey team has had great success with a Boston College transfer, so Minnesota decided to get in on the action. BC’s leading scorer from a year ago, Savannah Norcross, will be joining the Gophers for this season.
• An updated, in-depth top-30 for men’s hoops from our friends at The Only Colors.