Preview to the Preview to Spring Ball
It’s that time again where the Badgers content space is rolling out their previews to spring ball which starts in a few weeks and of course I will be no different. However I will leave the detail and the punditry to my more eloquent colleagues. As always I am a football coach so let’s talk about spring ball from a coach’s point of view. What am I looking for?
FILM!
Dear sweet baby Jesus we need something to actually look at. I spent last spring mining Twitter for any tidbit or video clip that could give us any insight on the progression of the players on the field. As the spring went on it felt more and more like I was just reading an regurgitating other people’s work without adding the insight that I can provide outside of trying to give a football fundamental perspective. But actually watching the Badgers on the field can bring us back to why we are here and give us real answers to the questions surrounding the team because bystanders can lie…but film never does.
Movement Away from Football Identity Politics
As the Apostle Rufus taught us in Dogma it is better to have ideas that beliefs. Through thought and study it is very easy one’s idea of how a team should function to change, but if you build your fandom on a belief of how things are supposed to be done that’s very difficult to change. The belief that there is only one way for Wisconsin football to succeed is dangerous in a game that is constantly evolving. A refreshing way to look at football is that at the end of the day the goal of every team is to score more points than their opponent. The path that takes you to that goal can very and often be the road less traveled but as long as the team in pointed in the right direction you can grow along the journey. So stop worrying about if the Badgers will have a fullback (they won’t) or if they will run a nickel defense (they will) and instead learn why they may or may not be the path forward in college football.
“Fickell’s guys” Taking the Next Step
Year 3 and now Coach Fickell’s players are going to be the upper classmen. I have spoken at nauseum about the upper classmen over the last two years not buying into the program. The lack of leadership and effort by some (not all) of these players has directly lead to problems both on the field and the locker room. Now in year three there will be key pieces of that first recruiting class (both high school and transfer) that are going to be in position to be the team leaders and it is their job to kick to finale of the transition into overdrive. They were brought in for their athleticism and versatility, but gave way to experience…now it’s their turn.
Wisconsin Fans Actually Being Fans Again
I have never understood the notion of hate/love. Spending so much time and energy commenting and hating something people claim to hate or worse continuing to bitch and moan after they claim they are “done” with the team. Who is the audience for this style of commentary? Sure in the age of social media being negative is the way to get noticed and to get attention. I feel like I am living on an island of one person trying to actually enjoy the sport, and it got to a point last season where I just had enough and had to step away for a little while because I just couldn’t take the hate anymore. Passion from the fandom is important, but to be a part of the fandom you should be a fan. Hate is not “tough love”. Be critical, be focused, but if you can’t find anything constructive beyond calling the coaching staff names or repeating the same tired lines over and over again maybe it’s time to find another sport.