It is stunning the contrast of Wisconsin Beliema and Arkansas Beliema...

[hogfanmd]

Was Alvarez really running things or "suggesting" what to do??
Is the recruiting that much different ??
Is it that he can't build a program but can maintain one ?
I know the talent in the SEC and the competition is greater then BiG X but we are talking about Rose bowl to NO Bowl.  And such embarrassing ways to lose to Mizzu and V Tech and then the way we have lost this season.  What's missing.
It's sad to watch and honestly hard to comprehend.  We should have enough resources at Arkansas to have a winning season and not be run over week after week.

[presidenthog]

Bert was told how to recruit, and how to run his offense. "The blueprint" he always talked about was given to him. The issue is that blueprint was created by Alvarez for Wisconsin. It is how to best use the talent in the recruiting base of Wisconsin. It is not here. Alvarez even said as much at the TD club.

We are a spread team recruiting base. This blueprint is a failure here.

The truth is Bert has no original thought of his own, and has succeeded using a formula given to him that someone else showed him how to use. He is not a good coach.

[hogfanmd]

Bert was told how to recruit, and how to run his offense. "The blueprint" he always talked about was given to him. The issue is that blueprint was created by Alvarez for Wisconsin. It is how to best use the talent in the recruiting base of Wisconsin. It is not here. Alvarez even said as much at the TD club.

We are a spread team recruiting base. This blueprint is a failure here.

The truth is Bert has no original thought of his own, and has succeeded using a formula given to him that someone else showed him how to use. He is not a good coach.

Sounds like the coach Red Beaulieu in Water Boy

[rude1]

All you needed to hear was that Alvarez met with BB 3 to 4 times a week to discuss the direction of the program, Alvarez was not going to let BB screw up what he had built in place.

[HogPharmer]

I think it's also important to point out that Wisconsin is in the weaker division of the Big 10. They don't have to play Michigan, Michigan State, OSU, and Penn State every year. It would be more comparable to them being in the SEC east where competition isn't as stout as it is in the west. We curb stomped the eastern division champs last year. Florida wasn't a good team and I was confident we would win that game even after the blowout loss to Auburn last year because frankly, Florida wasn't (and hasn't been) good.

[WPS501]

I think it's also important to point out that Wisconsin is in the weaker division of the Big 10. They don't have to play Michigan, Michigan State, OSU, and Penn State every year. It would be more comparable to them being in the SEC east where competition isn't as stout as it is in the west. We curb stomped the eastern division champs last year. Florida wasn't a good team and I was confident we would win that game even after the blowout loss to Auburn last year because frankly, Florida wasn't (and hasn't been) good.

East is so weak compared to us that we smoked South Carolina

[HogPharmer]

East is so weak compared to us that we smoked South Carolina

Did you even read my post or did you just cherry pick one sentence thinking my whole point was that Arkansas is better than the entire eastern division? I was strictly referring to the eastern division of previous years. And do you really think that the east is better than the west even this year? Or are you just trying to be a smartass? I didn't say we would beat Georgia or Florida or even Vandy this year. But if you think that because SC kicked our ass this year, that means the east is overall better than the west, then you are just ignorant.

[ChitownHawg]

Things were not all cotton candy in Madison. From 2012:

"So, you stole our head football coach, eh Razorbacks? Okay, well played. But at least know what you're getting into. We've seen others try to give you a heads up, but with all due respect, you need to hear it straight from Badger Nation itself.

For a coach who led a program to three consecutive Big Ten championships, you'll find a surprising number of Badger supporters saying 'good riddance' this week. I'm no Bret Bielema apologist, but I'm no hater either. Wisconsin football will survive, and may in fact grow into something better after this move. Who knows. Folks happy to be rid of Bielema are being awfully short-sighted in my opinion, yet their complaints are by no means unfounded.

So what was it like to root for Bret Bielema?"

https://www.buckys5thquarter.com/2012/12/6/3734422/farewell-bret-bielema-arkansas-wisconsin-good-bad-ugly

[presidenthog]

Any of these sound familiar

. Don't let him coach the special teams

In what could be viewed as a stubborn move, Bielema insisted on adding the special teams coaching to his duties shortly after becoming the head coach. It's not unheard of for a head coach -- Urban Meyer does the same -- but Bielema's special teams were awful during that time. As soon as Bielema swallowed his pride and delegated those responsibilities, the Badgers started going to the Rose Bowl annually. Coincidence?

This look

vacant stare off into the distance when something's not going right, compounded by an expression that can only be described as "trying to whistle while constipated." Television cameras routinely catch Bielema in this pose, when you would expect most other coaches to be yelling for an explanation from the refs or talking on the head set to his other coaches to determine what the hell just happened. Nope, Bret just stays motionless, like someone played a prank on him and he just woke up in bed at the 50-yard line.



Can you believe the words ... that are coming out ... of my mouth

Bielema always appeared to be a straight talker, almost to a fault. So it is a relatively new phenomenon to be questioning his forthrightness. He glossed over his two-faced remarks about the SEC's culture when being introduced as the new head Razorback and the Arkansas media let him get away with it.

As another example, Bielema had always praised UW tight end Jacob Pederson, but this past offseason, he tried to say this year's group of tight ends was the most talented he's ever been around. That is high praise. It is also ridiculous ... considering Bielema coached three current NFL tight ends in the same season once (2007 - Travis Beckum, Garrett Graham, Lance Kendricks). Nice hyperbole, coach.

Continuing the trend, Bielema's inconsistent explanations for whether shifting back to Danny O'Brien (the "two-minute quarterback") was injury-related or not never held any water. He even tried to play games with his quarterback decisions this year, coming out with a reason for selecting a starter later in the week that contradicted what he had already said. Don't even get me started on the complaints about Meyer's recruiting and then openly flipping recruits to come to Wisconsin (which I am all for, by the way -- just don't complain about someone else doing it better). For the record, that last complaint is just more evidence that Bielema will be a successful great coach in the SEC.

To summarize, it got to the point this season where I simply stopped putting any stock into what Bielema said anymore. I didn't expect that and I didn't like it.

[ChitownHawg]

Any of these sound familiar

. Don't let him coach the special teams

In what could be viewed as a stubborn move, Bielema insisted on adding the special teams coaching to his duties shortly after becoming the head coach. It's not unheard of for a head coach -- Urban Meyer does the same -- but Bielema's special teams were awful during that time. As soon as Bielema swallowed his pride and delegated those responsibilities, the Badgers started going to the Rose Bowl annually. Coincidence?

This look

vacant stare off into the distance when something's not going right, compounded by an expression that can only be described as "trying to whistle while constipated." Television cameras routinely catch Bielema in this pose, when you would expect most other coaches to be yelling for an explanation from the refs or talking on the head set to his other coaches to determine what the hell just happened. Nope, Bret just stays motionless, like someone played a prank on him and he just woke up in bed at the 50-yard line.



Can you believe the words ... that are coming out ... of my mouth

Bielema always appeared to be a straight talker, almost to a fault. So it is a relatively new phenomenon to be questioning his forthrightness. He glossed over his two-faced remarks about the SEC's culture when being introduced as the new head Razorback and the Arkansas media let him get away with it.

As another example, Bielema had always praised UW tight end Jacob Pederson, but this past offseason, he tried to say this year's group of tight ends was the most talented he's ever been around. That is high praise. It is also ridiculous ... considering Bielema coached three current NFL tight ends in the same season once (2007 - Travis Beckum, Garrett Graham, Lance Kendricks). Nice hyperbole, coach.

Continuing the trend, Bielema's inconsistent explanations for whether shifting back to Danny O'Brien (the "two-minute quarterback") was injury-related or not never held any water. He even tried to play games with his quarterback decisions this year, coming out with a reason for selecting a starter later in the week that contradicted what he had already said. Don't even get me started on the complaints about Meyer's recruiting and then openly flipping recruits to come to Wisconsin (which I am all for, by the way -- just don't complain about someone else doing it better). For the record, that last complaint is just more evidence that Bielema will be a successful great coach in the SEC.

To summarize, it got to the point this season where I simply stopped putting any stock into what Bielema said anymore. I didn't expect that and I didn't like it.

Seems we got the bad and ugly. The good never left Madison.

[Tusks]

Time to move on from BB.

[buldozer]

Alverez obviously built the Wisky program and ran it even though Beliema was the coach. None of the positives showed up here....

[HardCore]

Bielema went to 2 Rose Bowls because OSU was on probation and Michigan was struggling in the years after they let Lloyd Carr go.  If those two programs are typical.....it's Capital One Bowls

[From Tusk Till Dawn]

Bielema went to 2 Rose Bowls because OSU was on probation and Michigan was struggling in the years after they let Lloyd Carr go.  If those two programs are typical.....it's Capital One Bowls

So?  Are you saying if we went to two sugar bowls under similar circumstances that the fact we went should be discounted?

[ricepig]

So?  Are you saying if we went to two sugar bowls under similar circumstances that the fact we went should be discounted?

Of course not, when we went to the SEC championship game with Bama on probation, well......they're cheaters.......cheatin cheaters, the worse kind......

[SouthSide Johnny]

I think it's also important to point out that Wisconsin is in the weaker division of the Big 10. They don't have to play Michigan, Michigan State, OSU, and Penn State every year. It would be more comparable to them being in the SEC east where competition isn't as stout as it is in the west. We curb stomped the eastern division champs last year. Florida wasn't a good team and I was confident we would win that game even after the blowout loss to Auburn last year because frankly, Florida wasn't (and hasn't been) good.

And the power teams all had a down cycle when he was there, Wisconsin has their Second HC since he left and keeps doing about the same..

[Tusks]

BB was also sat down by Alvarez the 3rd year in an told him to 'get it together' or he's gone.  So his laziness has been around for a while.