Madison Experience

[knapplc]

If the people saying the words don't mean them in the way that you think they mean them, should you be frightened by or angry about their words?

 

If that was your first trip to Madison, how would you know what these words meant? Why would you not take them at face value?

[Badger_HB]

Yet another post rationalizing and justifying the lack of sportsmanship and poor behavior of this large student body. It seems many wiscy fans are embarrassed by it and would like it to change but just can't get beyond the reality of it. We have been going through the process of selecting a college for our HS senior son. Wisconsin was one of the schools we were looking at. It's off our list now. It is apparent wiscy is not properly helping to develop well rounded people. Hopefully you get a handle on dealing with your problems. You've at least made the first big step in realizing there is a problem. Now you just need to do something about it.

This, to me, seems a little irrational. You're indicting the university's ability to produce high-quality kids because they get drunk? You're muddling the university's reputation as a fairly high-ranked educational institution because the football atmosphere is hostile (which it is). I'm not telling you where to send your kids, but I can at least tell you you won't be disappointed with the education they receive. The drinking atmosphere is relatively widespread in Wisconsin as a whole. If you're not comfortable with that, that's fine.

[Nebula]

Maybe I just lucked out, but I didn't experience any of these horror stories. People talked sh#t, but the second I laughed it off or made some self-deprecating type of comment (like, "What are you even doing here?" "Well, I'm from Nebraska, man. We don't have indoor plumbing or electricity. This is the only way I'd be able to see the game.") people were instantly friendly.

 

The ONLY thing I thought was pretty weak was the "shoot 'em like a horse" comments I heard when one of our players was down on the turf. That is not a cool chant. I don't give a f#*k who is injured, Blaine Gabbert, Travis Lewis, Chase Daniel, whatever, you don't cheer an injury or mock the kid who is down.

 

The "eat sh#t, f#*k you" chant made me laugh, honestly. Is it the classiest thing ever? Nah. But I laughed.

[JJ Husker]

Yet another post rationalizing and justifying the lack of sportsmanship and poor behavior of this large student body. It seems many wiscy fans are embarrassed by it and would like it to change but just can't get beyond the reality of it. We have been going through the process of selecting a college for our HS senior son. Wisconsin was one of the schools we were looking at. It's off our list now. It is apparent wiscy is not properly helping to develop well rounded people. Hopefully you get a handle on dealing with your problems. You've at least made the first big step in realizing there is a problem. Now you just need to do something about it.

This, to me, seems a little irrational. You're indicting the university's ability to produce high-quality kids because they get drunk? You're muddling the university's reputation as a fairly high-ranked educational institution because the football atmosphere is hostile (which it is). I'm not telling you where to send your kids, but I can at least tell you you won't be disappointed with the education they receive. The drinking atmosphere is relatively widespread in Wisconsin as a whole. If you're not comfortable with that, that's fine.

I don't doubt the quality of the class room education students are being offered at Wisconsin. That is why they were one of the schools on our list to begin with. And, being totally honest, some of the reason they are now off the list has to do with the out-of-state tuition cost. Our son will be getting a fair amount of scholly dollars but not enough for him to justify attending Wiscy. I have always been a firm believer in "well rounded" developement. There is much more to a college education than just the education part of it. Sports play a huge role in teaching people how to deal with others, accept personal responsibility, and in learning how to react to adversity. In my mind, these things are more important than getting a piece of paper that somehow qualifies you for a supposedly better paying job for the rest of your life. One thing I know for sure is that 18-23 year old yound adults will have a lot of their social behavior shaped these first years out from under their parents wings. Becoming a loud-mouthed, foul-mouthed poor sport and using the excuse of alcohol to justify it, doesn't seem to be the way to go to me. When I went to the Univ. of Nebraska (early 80's) we also drank too much and very often. I doubt I was ever sober at a home game. We would sneak in Yukon Jack, Southern Comfort, Jack, whatever, into the games and we had already been partying for hours before kickoff. But we still managed to treat the visitors with the respect a guest deserves. I'm not sure what or where things have gone wrong in Madison but that doesn't seem to be the case up there.

 

The one caveat I have in making these claims is that "I have not been there myself". I am basing my opinions on the opinions and accounts of others. I usually try to resist this as many times it will cause a person to look stupid. But considering you and other seemingly reasonable and hospitable WU fans have admitted this is in fact the norm for your student body, I feel fairly safe in accepting it as the gospel.

[Badger_HB]

Fair enough. I wish you and your son luck in the search and decision, wherever he may go.

[azzgunther]

Yet another post rationalizing and justifying the lack of sportsmanship and poor behavior of this large student body.

 

I don't feel that I rationalized the behavior much. I'd tone it down if I could. Since there seems to be a good deal of surprise about the environment I thought I would get into what it is, why it exists, and what it means.

 

 

 

If the people saying the words don't mean them in the way that you think they mean them, should you be frightened by or angry about their words?

 

If that was your first trip to Madison, how would you know what these words meant? Why would you not take them at face value?

 

Unfortunately it was inevitable that people would come into town and be surprised by a relatively innocent act that was easily perceived to be aggressive. The only way you could have known would have been inquiry to someone who had been to Camp Randall or a visit to an online forum, which most people wouldn't have done. Hopefully word spreads, so people can decide if they'll be comfortable. As various thick skinned Nebraska fans found out Saturday, the "ass-h**e" chant is perceived to be friendly ribbing and if you just laugh it off or dish it back the kids will not only stop the chanting, they'll also get you beers and brats.

 

Except for those cases of in-your-face bravado (which I've never seen), it's mostly incumbent upon you to make of it what you will. If you choose to be offended and scared, you'll call the experience offensive and scary. If you choose to laugh with the kids you'll report some taunting received and some laughed off or dished back, and a great time.

[Excel]

We have been going through the process of selecting a college for our HS senior son. Wisconsin was one of the schools we were looking at. It's off our list now. It is apparent wiscy is not properly helping to develop well rounded people. Hopefully you get a handle on dealing with your problems.

 

 

You just denied your son a shot at success...

 

Out of all institutions of higher learning in our nation UW ranks fourth in alumni serving as CEO's of Fortune 500 companies beat only by Harvard, Columbia and UPenn and topping schools like Cornell and Princeton. Nebraska failed to make the list.

 

Wisconsin is also fifth in the nation when counting graduates serving in Congress.

 

UW consistently ranks among the top public universities in the nation and is frequently ranked among the best research institutions in the world.

 

Lets break it down...

 

 

Nobel peace prize winners

UW 19 UNL 3

 

Pulitzer Prize Winners

UW 34 UNL 8

 

P.R. Party School ranking

UW 14 UNL NR

 

ARWU World Ranking of Univ's

UW 25 UNL NR

 

QS World Ranking of Univ's

UW 41 UNL 401-450 tier

 

US News Law Schools

UW 34 UNL 85

 

US News Med Schools (Research)

UW 26 UNL 66 (Med School not on campus)

 

US News Med Schools (Prim. Care)

UW 10 UNL 7 (Med School not on campus)

 

US News Business

UW 28 UNL NR

 

US News Engineering

UW 16 UNL 95

 

US News Education

UW 9 UNL 50

 

AAU Membership

UW Founding Member UNL Revoked

 

Endowment

UW $1.5b UNL $1.1b (11th in B1G)

 

SI College Sports town ranking

UW #1 UNL >10

 

CNN Money's best cities to live

Madison 95 Lincoln NR

 

City Data Median Income

M $49k L $45k

 

% of city residents with Grad deg.

M 23 L 11

 

Distance to city of 1m pop

UW 122m L 475m

 

Sex offenders in city limits

M 154 L 239

 

Adult Obesity %

M 23 (Dane) L 26.3 (Lancaster)

 

NCAA Championships

UW 28 UNL 23

 

Conference Titles as of 2010

UW 183 UNL 72

 

Oh and football since 2000

 

UW 88-41 UNL 84- 46

 

Wisconsin has won the last 2 games in the series. Opponents are both 3-3 in series.

 

 

UW Alumni include Stephen E. Ambrose, Frederick Jackson Turner, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Charles Lindbergh among others.

UNL- Severely lacking though John Pershing and Warren Buffet stand out.

 

UW is the better overall school and Madison is the better overall town. UNL used to be good in football but so did Pitt and Minnesota. We live in a "what-have-you-done-for-me-lately" world.

 

I'd take UW any damn day of the week.

[hopittome]

Yet another post rationalizing and justifying the lack of sportsmanship and poor behavior of this large student body. It seems many wiscy fans are embarrassed by it and would like it to change but just can't get beyond the reality of it. We have been going through the process of selecting a college for our HS senior son. Wisconsin was one of the schools we were looking at. It's off our list now. It is apparent wiscy is not properly helping to develop well rounded people. Hopefully you get a handle on dealing with your problems. You've at least made the first big step in realizing there is a problem. Now you just need to do something about it.

 

Look, no offense, but academically we're one of the best public schools in the nation. Far, far better than Nebraska (this isn't meant as an insult, but it is true). Wisconsin isn't exactly an easy school to get into, and there's high competition for every incoming class. You don't want your kid to look at our school because of what happens at football games? That's irrational, at best. On the flip-side, I'm sure someone will be more than happy to take his spot...if he had a shot of getting in.

[commando]

We have been going through the process of selecting a college for our HS senior son. Wisconsin was one of the schools we were looking at. It's off our list now. It is apparent wiscy is not properly helping to develop well rounded people. Hopefully you get a handle on dealing with your problems.

 

 

You just denied your son a shot at success...

 

Out of all institutions of higher learning in our nation UW ranks fourth in alumni serving as CEO's of Fortune 500 companies beat only by Harvard, Columbia and UPenn and topping schools like Cornell and Princeton. Nebraska failed to make the list.

 

Wisconsin is also fifth in the nation when counting graduates serving in Congress.

 

UW consistently ranks among the top public universities in the nation and is frequently ranked among the best research institutions in the world.

 

Lets break it down...

 

 

Nobel peace prize winners

UW 19 UNL 3

 

Pulitzer Prize Winners

UW 34 UNL 8

 

P.R. Party School ranking

UW 14 UNL NR

 

ARWU World Ranking of Univ's

UW 25 UNL NR

 

QS World Ranking of Univ's

UW 41 UNL 401-450 tier

 

US News Law Schools

UW 34 UNL 85

 

US News Med Schools (Research)

UW 26 UNL 66 (Med School not on campus)

 

US News Med Schools (Prim. Care)

UW 10 UNL 7 (Med School not on campus)

 

US News Business

UW 28 UNL NR

 

US News Engineering

UW 16 UNL 95

 

US News Education

UW 9 UNL 50

 

AAU Membership

UW Founding Member UNL Revoked

 

Endowment

UW $1.5b UNL $1.1b (11th in B1G)

 

SI College Sports town ranking

UW #1 UNL >10

 

CNN Money's best cities to live

Madison 95 Lincoln NR

 

City Data Median Income

M $49k L $45k

 

% of city residents with Grad deg.

M 23 L 11

 

Distance to city of 1m pop

UW 122m L 475m

 

Sex offenders in city limits

M 154 L 239

 

Adult Obesity %

M 23 (Dane) L 26.3 (Lancaster)

 

NCAA Championships

UW 28 UNL 23

 

Conference Titles as of 2010

UW 183 UNL 72

 

Oh and football since 2000

 

UW 88-41 UNL 84- 46

 

Wisconsin has won the last 2 games in the series. Opponents are both 3-3 in series.

 

 

UW Alumni include Stephen E. Ambrose, Frederick Jackson Turner, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Charles Lindbergh among others.

UNL- Severely lacking though John Pershing and Warren Buffet stand out.

 

UW is the better overall school and Madison is the better overall town. UNL used to be good in football but so did Pitt and Minnesota. We live in a "what-have-you-done-for-me-lately" world.

 

I'd take UW any damn day of the week.

 

 

aren't you being a bit out of line when you say that he has "denied his son a chance at success"? while it may be true that wisconsin is considered the "better" school, i am quite sure that there are many success stories out of lincoln or any other school that he sends his son to. turning down wisconsin is not a kiss of death for success.

 

also....not so sure that boasting about graduates who are members of congress is really such a good thing. they can't even balance the nations checkbook.

[JJ Husker]

We have been going through the process of selecting a college for our HS senior son. Wisconsin was one of the schools we were looking at. It's off our list now. It is apparent wiscy is not properly helping to develop well rounded people. Hopefully you get a handle on dealing with your problems.

 

 

You just denied your son a shot at success...

 

 

 

I'm pretty sure he'll be just fine. Denied a shot at success? Simply because he will not be attending Wiscy. Me thinks you exaggerate too much. I went to UNL and I am successful. Not going to Wiscy didn't hurt me one bit. And don't worry, I doubt if I would have got accepted there anyway. You went to a whole bunch of trouble (way too much in my opinion) to prove your point but it had virtually nothing to do with what I was saying. My point was, it doesn't matter how many peace prize winners (BTW if Obama can get one the way he did, the validity of that whole thing is up in the air for me) or your rank in some arbitrary poll of best places to get a burger, if the environment doesn't promote good sportsmanship and basic manners, there are better places for a young person to attend college and learn how to interact with others. I'm not impressed with Wiscy. Not in the least. Just so you know, he has the grades, class rank, and ACT's to go virtually anywhere he wants.

 

Also, very convenient how you list football accomplishments since 2000. How'd you do for the 30 years prior to that? Thought so. And, I'll take Husker fans over Badgers any damn day of the week. We know how to win or lose with class and dignity. Some people struggle with losing and that may be understandable in the heat of the moment but not knowing how to win without capping it off with jerkish behavior is beyond my comprehension. I guess I haven't been exposed to it like those in Madison.

[Excel]

Well given the record, going to UW is a real opportunity to achieve great things. Deciding not to let your son attend because of some hooligans at a football game that you read about on a forum online is brash, ignorant, irresponsible and immature. You're definitely denying him a shot. But like someone said above...1. He probably wouldn't get in. (To be an out of stater at Wisconsin you'd better be REALLY squared away, they're not looking for anymore midwestern males) 2. Best to save the spot for someone that deserves it and would value it.

 

Oh and a few other thoughts. You expect your child to learn sportsmanship and basic manners in college? My parents ensured I had those things long before I left for college. And sure some of the rankings may be arbitrary in your view, but that's why I included so many...any way you want to measure it Wisconsin provides a better environment for higher education than any school in Nebraska. I really don't buy your "College molding my son into being a man" argument. You should have done that already so I don't include that in my evaluation.

 

Football stats since 2000 were included in keeping with my "what have you done for me lately" theme. I'll reiterate, Minnesota has won more CFB National Championships than UNL, and nobody really gives a care to it since they're awful now. Just like Minnesota you guys are no longer an elite team. Haven't been in more than a decade. It sucks, I'm sure but since 2000 Wisconsin has had a better record than the Huskers and last Saturday we proved we are the better team.

 

Oh and on Obama, you really went there? You've got to be kidding to play that card. Controversy around that award aside the Prize still remains one of the most prestigious in the world.

[commando]

dang...i think Badgerfan is angry.

[Excel]

dang...i think Badgerfan is angry.

 

Yea but not at anyone here, I'm trying to quit smoking. It's been a rough week

[buckytailgater]

Oh! I do have a question for Huskers fans: What the hell is up with your ultra-creepy mascot? That thing is frightening.

 

Yea, I was wondering that too, he gives me the "uuh ooh" feeling.

 

If you're not under seven years old it's not geared toward you. Simple as that.

 

 

And while we're talking about creepy mascots, how do you guys explain this?

 

 

Bucky is good at commercials

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-lpaWj7qZ0&feature=mh_lolz&list=HL1317879586

[JJ Husker]

Isn't it about time for these badger fans to be moving on? I don't think an NU football forum is really the place to be promoting their little unfriendly party school. Oh God! That ones probably good for another 2 pages of meaningless stats on the Wisconsin backwoods.