Author: jplucas

Barring a setback in negotiations, Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Brad Childress will be named the Vikings’ head coach. Before joining the Eagles, Childress was an assistant at the University of Wisconsin.

A recent letter to the Tribune criticized the University of Wisconsin-Madison Athletic Department for its use of taxpayer dollars to support the salaries of our athletic director and our new football coach.

For the record, please note that the UW-Madison Athletic Department is self-supporting and does not utilize taxpayer dollars to support those salaries or any other part of its operations.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) ââ?¬â? Ohio State’s athletic program is the nation’s top collegiate sports moneymaker.

Ohio State made $89.7 million from ticket sales, royalties, advertising, broadcast agreements and other sources during the 2004-05 academic year, about $50,000 more than second-place Texas, according to U.S. Department of Education statistics.

The Buckeyes’ top rival, Michigan, placed third on the list at $78.4 million, followed by Florida ($77.4 million) and Wisconsin ($75.3 million).

Chicago may not have to build a $1 billion stadium to make a serious bid to host the 2016 Summer Games, Mayor Daley said Wednesday, suggesting stadium venues as far away as Wisconsin and Indiana.

With a seating capacity of 80,795, the University of Notre Dame stadium could be an option. So could 80,321-seat Camp Randall Stadium at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

In the past few weeks, Barry Alvarez has been surprisingly forthcoming about the number of lucrative job offers that could have pulled him away from the University of Wisconsin over the past 15 years.

ORLANDO, Fla. – It took Brian White about five minutes of coaching Ron Dayne in his freshman year at the University of Wisconsin in 1996 to realize the talent he would be entrusted with over the next four seasons.

One of the first drills of practice was a simple cut drill, in which the back runs directly at White, who leans to the left or right. The back is supposed to make a jump cut in the opposite direction.

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – Jim Sorgi sometimes tells Peyton Manning to pipe down.

He does so gingerly. After all, Sorgi values Manning’s guidance, not to mention an Indianapolis Colts roster spot. But when Sorgi takes the field – as he will at some point against Arizona on Sunday at the RCA Dome – Manning maintains an electronic link to Sorgi’s helmet.

Orlando, Fla. – In a game where almost nothing else went wrong for the University of Wisconsin, the Badgers suffered one notable loss.

Junior offensive tackle Joe Thomas of Brookfield, a National Football League prospect who was to decide soon whether to return to UW or declare for the draft, suffered a right knee injury Monday during the 24-10 victory against Auburn in the Capital One Bowl.

Orlando, Fla. – In celebration of his magnificent sendoff, the 24-10 victory against Auburn in the Capital One Bowl that was as dominant as it was shocking, Barry Alvarez will spend a little down time at his winter retreat just southwest of here. He may do some public speaking, and he most assuredly will reflect on a job well done in 16 years at Wisconsin.

When Barry Alvarez came to the University of Wisconsin in 1990, the Badgers’ football program was at one of the lowest points in its history.

The miserable tenure of previous coach Don Morton � combined with the mismanagement of the UW athletic department altogether � had eroded fan interest in the football team.

MADISON, Wis. – Barry Alvarez will earn $600,000 as University of Wisconsin athletic director, and his successor as football coach will earn $750,000 under contracts the two men signed.

Alvarez picked Bret Bielema, now in his second year as the Badgers’ defensive coordinator, to succeed him in July. The two men signed the new five-year contracts Friday night, a day after the UW Board of Regents approved the deals.