Skip to main content

UW football notes: Bielema downplays ‘toughen-up pill’ comment

Take some lighten-up pills.

That, more or less, was Bret Bielema’s reaction to the minor hullabaloo that materialized from some comments the University of Wisconsin football coach made about P.J. Hill following the Badgers’ 30-24 victory over Illinois on Saturday.

Asked about Hill, who was injured during the game, Bielema said during a postgame radio interview that his star tailback “needs to take some toughen-up pills.” In the time since he made those comments, some have wondered why Bielema would use a public forum to question a player’s toughness.