Wisconsin benefits from Cosgroves departure

[Red November]

Pete Barth column: UW benefits from Huskers’ coaching change

 

 

 

 

Ironclad friendships are strongly woven throughout the college and pro football coaching fraternities, and it’s interesting how much those super- tight relationships can impact the sport.

 

Consider the surging Wisconsin Badgers, and their fantastic new defensive coordinator, Bret Bielema.

 

Some quick background: Badgers head coach Barry Alvarez and former Nebraska head coach Frank Solich go way back. Teammates with the Cornhuskers in the 1960s, Alvarez and Solich talk regularly and remain extremely close.

 

Ironically, Solich’s misfortune has indirectly led to great things for his buddy Alvarez and the Badgers.

 

Solich was fired last November after guiding Nebraska to a 9-3 regular season.

 

Former Oakland Raiders coach (and Badgers assistant) Bill Callahan was hired to take Nebraska to a level Solich couldn’t. One of the first things he did was call his good friend Kevin Cosgrove, who, of course, served as Wisconsin’s long-time defensive coordinator.

 

That hire raised the eyebrows of Nebraska fans, because while Cosgrove had coached capably for Wisconsin, he certainly had not reminded anyone of Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops or LSU’s Nick Saban in terms of defensive brilliance.

 

Because of loyalty and friendship, Alvarez never would have replaced Cosgrove. Isn’t it ironic that it took another one of Cosgrove’s buddies (Callahan) to separate him from the Badgers?

 

To Alvarez’s credit, he immediately scooped up the highly regarded Bielema, who had served as co-defensive coordinator in Bill Snyder’s Kansas State coaching cradle.

 

Take a look at how things have unfolded. Nebraska’s defense, statistically one of the nation’s best last season, is struggling mightily right now. So is Kansas State’s.

 

Meanwhile, the Badgers’ defense has never been better.

 

Sure, there are many variables involved in those three program’s current stations in the college football pecking order.

 

But clearly, Bielema has been brilliant, and it took a complex web of friendships (Alvarez-Solich-Callahan-Cosgrove) to get him to Wisconsin.

 

Now, the only bad news for the Badgers is that Bielema will be the hottest head coaching candidate in the nation during the offseason.

 

There’s a silver lining in that cloud, though. If Alvarez is smart, he’ll think strongly about giving up his head coaching job so he concentrate on his athletics director position. The time has never been better.

 

Thanks to his buddy Solich, Alvarez suddenly has his perfect successor on staff.

[DaveH]

He gets a for stating the obvious.

[Benard]

yeah, nice hire callahan.

[HuskerBob]

well at least we are indireclty benefiting from the Cos hire. b/c that D coordinator alleged "mastermind" from KSU is now at Wis and KSU is sucking. so Callahans plan worked after all!! wow is he crafty or what. genuis pure genuis.

[Benard]

well at least we are indireclty benefiting from the Cos hire. b/c that D coordinator alleged "mastermind" from KSU is now at Wis and KSU is sucking. so Callahans plan worked after all!! wow is he crafty or what. genuis pure genuis.

remember were not trying to beat ksu, we want to beat texas and okie.

[walksalone]

D'oh

[DaveH]

well at least we are indireclty benefiting from the Cos hire. b/c that D coordinator  alleged "mastermind" from KSU is now at Wis and KSU is sucking.  so Callahans plan worked after all!!  wow is he crafty or what.  genuis pure genuis.

remember were not trying to beat ksu, we want to beat texas and okie.

After losing at KSU the last 3 years, we have to beat KSU to even have a chance at Ok and Tx in the future.

[Red November]

A couple of observations:

 

1. For all of the "Callahan went to the Super Bowl with Gruden's players" crowd...does this mean Bielema is leading the nation in defense with Cosgrove's players?

 

2. Had we lost the Tech game 42-10, would folks be nearly bent out of shape? Take away the 28 points that the offense handed Tech with the turnovers, and that's about how the score should have been. Hmmmm....looks awfully familiar to the 38-9 or 31-7 whuppings that KSU and UT hung on us last year. And who was the defensive coordinator last year?

 

Don't get me wrong - I loved what Bo did with the defense last year. I love his spirit, his attitude, and I wish he were still here. But our defense had its crappy moments last year too...and don't underestimate the loss of Demorrio Williams on this year's defense.

 

I'm not 100% sold on Cosgrove yet - it's too early to judge any of this staff - but please, let's not revise history

[DaveH]

A couple of observations:

 

1. For all of the "Callahan went to the Super Bowl with Gruden's players" crowd...does this mean Bielema is leading the nation in defense with Cosgrove's players?

 

2. Had we lost the Tech game 42-10, would folks be nearly bent out of shape? Take away the 28 points that the offense handed Tech with the turnovers, and that's about how the score should have been. Hmmmm....looks awfully familiar to the 38-9 or 31-7 whuppings that KSU and UT hung on us last year. And who was the defensive coordinator last year?

 

Don't get me wrong - I loved what Bo did with the defense last year. I love his spirit, his attitude, and I wish he were still here. But our defense had its crappy moments last year too...and don't underestimate the loss of Demorrio Williams on this year's defense.

 

I'm not 100% sold on Cosgrove yet - it's too early to judge any of this staff - but please, let's not revise history

Well put.

[Benard]

A couple of observations:

 

1. For all of the "Callahan went to the Super Bowl with Gruden's players" crowd...does this mean Bielema is leading the nation in defense with Cosgrove's players?

 

2. Had we lost the Tech game 42-10, would folks be nearly bent out of shape? Take away the 28 points that the offense handed Tech with the turnovers, and that's about how the score should have been. Hmmmm....looks awfully familiar to the 38-9 or 31-7 whuppings that KSU and UT hung on us last year. And who was the defensive coordinator last year?

 

Don't get me wrong - I loved what Bo did with the defense last year. I love his spirit, his attitude, and I wish he were still here. But our defense had its crappy moments last year too...and don't underestimate the loss of Demorrio Williams on this year's defense.

 

I'm not 100% sold on Cosgrove yet - it's too early to judge any of this staff - but please, let's not revise history

Turn overs are part of a game. You can't say, oh if we take them away we only lose by 40. You could also say, if texas tech doesn't throw them good and we intercept them that we only lose by 10 but you don't. We got smoked, cosgrove stinks.

[gamecocks]

well at least we are indireclty benefiting from the Cos hire. b/c that D coordinator  alleged "mastermind" from KSU is now at Wis and KSU is sucking.  so Callahans plan worked after all!!  wow is he crafty or what.  genuis pure genuis.

remember were not trying to beat ksu, we want to beat texas and okie.

After losing at KSU the last 3 years, we have to beat KSU to even have a chance at Ok and Tx in the future.

I don't want to be mean DaveH, but lets not give K-State any more credit than they deserve. They have only beat us the past two years (and three of the past four). No offense, I just hate K-State and do not want to give them any extra credit.

[DaveH]

well at least we are indireclty benefiting from the Cos hire. b/c that D coordinator  alleged "mastermind" from KSU is now at Wis and KSU is sucking.  so Callahans plan worked after all!!  wow is he crafty or what.  genuis pure genuis.

remember were not trying to beat ksu, we want to beat texas and okie.

After losing at KSU the last 3 years, we have to beat KSU to even have a chance at Ok and Tx in the future.

I don't want to be mean DaveH, but lets not give K-State any more credit than they deserve. They have only beat us the past two years (and three of the past four). No offense, I just hate K-State and do not want to give them any extra credit.

Damn, I meant on our last three trips to Kstate. Not the last three years. Good eye!

[huskerfantls]

A couple of observations:

 

1. For all of the "Callahan went to the Super Bowl with Gruden's players" crowd...does this mean Bielema is leading the nation in defense with Cosgrove's players?

 

2. Had we lost the Tech game 42-10, would folks be nearly bent out of shape? Take away the 28 points that the offense handed Tech with the turnovers, and that's about how the score should have been. Hmmmm....looks awfully familiar to the 38-9 or 31-7 whuppings that KSU and UT hung on us last year. And who was the defensive coordinator last year?

 

Don't get me wrong - I loved what Bo did with the defense last year. I love his spirit, his attitude, and I wish he were still here. But our defense had its crappy moments last year too...and don't underestimate the loss of Demorrio Williams on this year's defense.

 

I'm not 100% sold on Cosgrove yet - it's too early to judge any of this staff - but please, let's not revise history

I think that it best you actually step back and think about it, loosing to UT or OU is alot different than loosing by 60 or even 21 to texas tech....

[DaveH]

I think that it best you actually step back and think about it, loosing to UT or OU is alot different than loosing by 60 or even 21 to texas tech....

Get over it. The team you claim to be a fan of has.

[Red November]

People have been bringing this up a lot lately given the Cosgrove situation and simply because Wisconsin has been such a great story this year.

 

I think its worth taking a look at who Wisconsin's defense has gotten fat against.

 

You can verify here: http://web1.ncaa.org/d1mfb/Internet/nation...teamtotoff.html

 

Team NCAA Total Offense Rank

Central Florida 108

UNLV 78

Arizona 114

Penn St. 83

Illinois 73

Ohio ST. 99

 

Now, stop there. That's a who's who of the worst offense in NCAA D-1

 

Their last two wins have been against better offensive teams, although the defense hasn't looked as dominant as it did in the first 6 games:

 

Purdue 12

Northwestern 26

 

 

Not really trying to make a big point here, but I'm far from the Wisconsin has the best defense in the nation bandwagon. Big 10 defensive stats are always inflated. I'd take Auburn or LSU's defenses before Wisconsin in a heartbeat.