B1G

Wisco Wednesday: To Fire or Not to Fire – The Greg Gard Experience

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Part 1

Wisconsin Basketball has been one of the most consistent programs in the past 3 decades. With 3 different head coaches, Wisconsin has been to all but 3 March Madness tournaments since 1997 (not counting 2020). In that same time frame, Wisconsin has won 6 Big Ten regular season titles, 3 Big Ten tournament titles, been to 3 Final Fours, and almost a national title (Winslow touched it). Dick Bennet and Bo Ryan account for all the Final Fours, all the Big Ten tournament titles, and 4 of the regular season titles while only accounting for one of the missed March Madness tournaments (1998). Greg Gard accounts for only 2 Big Ten regular season titles with 2 missed March Madness tournaments and quite a few early exits. That brings me to the subject of today’s Wisco Wednesday: “Fire Gard”, a phrase I have heard from many Wisconsin faithful. Originally, this article was going to assess the merits of the Fire Gard crowd. But after last night’s win against Illinois, I think it’s best to start with why Greg Gard deserves to stay as Wisconsin’s head coach going forward.

Before we go into Greg Gard’s recent success, let’s start with …

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Is Wisconsin good? Walk on Fan’s February 17th Bracket Update

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1 Seeds:

Auburn (2-0), Duke (2-0), Florida (2-0), Houston (2-0)

2 Seeds:

Alabama (1-1), Tennessee (1-1), Wisconsin (1-0), Texas Tech (2-0)

How about that Wisconsin offense? Pretty damn good right? Wisconsin proved they belong at the top of the Big Ten with a trouncing at Purdue without their best bench player. Unfortunately, the best in the Big Ten is still worse than the top four SEC teams. As a whole, the SEC might be .500 in conference play, but an upper echelon has separated themselves from the pack. Auburn is hands down the best basketball team in the country while Florida, Alabama, and Tennessee are fighting for second. Duke had a rebound week much to my chagrin. And I am still high on Houston after an impressive win at Arizona. I expect them to win out while the SEC will stack a couple of losses, pushing Houston up from the 8 the NCAA Basketball Committee put them at.

** As a side note, I am nervous about Wisconsin going into this week. Greg Gard has had teams this well-regarded before, only to collapse at the end of the season. Please god let this team be different **

3 Seeds:

Texas

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Wisco Wednesday: Breaking Down Wisconsin’s High-Flying Offense

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Before the 2024/25 basketball season, what word would you use to describe Wisconsin Basketball?

Gritty? Tough? Controlling? Simple? Slow? Anything that describes a dominant defense and a slow-paced offense that runs the swing offense to perfection would work. Dick Bennet, Bo Ryan, and Greg Gard made Wisconsin a defensive powerhouse that could reliably win games as long as they scored 60 points. And that’s what they did. Since the 1995/96 season, Wisconsin has averaged 64.7 points a game. That includes Dick Bennet’s 2000 Final Four team that averaged 59.9 points a game. Wisconsin’s best offense during that time frame was last year at 74.7 points a game. Wisconsin’s second-best offense was Bo Ryan’s first Final Four team at 73.5 points a game. This year’s team? 81 points a game. A far cry from Bo Ryan’s 300th win, a 48 – 38 slugfest against Virginia. 

Why the change?

Why is this team scoring a historic amount? Simple, Greg Gard had to change things up to not lose his job. After multiple seasons where Wisconsin stalled out and ran simple offenses that were easily exploitable, Gard modernized his offense to be highly efficient. According to Ken Pom’s offensive efficiency rating, Wisconsin has …

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Welcome to Chaos: Walk On Fan’s First Bracket for 2025

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1 Seeds:

Auburn, Houston, Florida, Tennessee

2 Seeds:

Duke, Purdue, Alabama, St. Johns

All right, this is the first article I’m writing. Ever. It was supposed to be easy. Then Auburn and Duke lost. Am I biased in dropping Duke to a 2 line? Probably, but the ACC is severely underperforming while the SEC has too many contenders to count. Nothing pains me more than having 3 SEC teams in the top 4, but until they’re proven otherwise, they stay there. Houston is the only team I can currently see competing with the SEC. My one hot take here is I believe Pitino and St John’s will not lose another game before tourney season.

3 Seeds:

Texas Tech, Kansas, Illinois, Texas A&M

4 Seeds:

 Arizona, Mich State, Wisconsin, Iowa St

Now back to some more chaos. Kansas lost a terrible game while both Texas teams were uninspiring in the past week. Out of this grouping, the Big Ten reigns supreme. I hate putting Arizona higher than Wisconsin, but they keep winning in a tough conference. As an aside, I’ll give my full opinion on Wisconsin on Wednesday. 

5 Seeds:

Maryland, Gonzaga, Louisville, Kentucky

6 Seeds:

Michigan, Ole Miss, Marquette, Clemson

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Wisco Wednesday: The Mighty Ducks

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It’s been 14 years since Wisconsin had a crack at #1 on their home turf. I just wish this was a different Wisconsin team going into the game.

What about Iowa?

We’re not discussing the Iowa game in depth. Everything was bad. But specifically, the O-Line, D-Line, and QB play were really really bad. I’d be shocked if both the OC and the DC were employed next year. 

Moving on…

Game Preview: Oregon

#1 Oregon at Wisconsin 

Where: Camp Randall Stadium

When: Saturday, 11/16 – 6:30 PM (CST)

How to Watch: NBC

Spread: Oregon -14.5

O/U: 52.5

Oregon Ducks’ Record: 10-0

Best Win: 32-31 Over #2 Ohio State

#1 in the Camp at Night:

Since 1973 the #1 team in college football has played at Camp Randall 5 times. Ohio State twice, Michigan twice, and Iowa once. Wisconsin went 2-3 in those games… not too bad. 

My point is, this is not a common occurrence. The last #1 to play at Camp Randall, 2010 Ohio State, lost to an unranked Wisconsin team. JJ Watt had the game sealing sack. 

There are probably a lot of apathetic fans at this point in the season. But they shouldn’t let the scarcity …

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Week 10 Big Ten Picks

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Last Week we went 3-5 ATS. That’s not ideal. Hopefully we can get back on track this week.

Odds were taken from Fanduel at the time of writing*

4 Ohio State (-3.5) at Penn State – 11:00 AM on FOX

Ohio State seems to be the hurdle PSU can’t seem to get over. But 3.5 is just too much. I think this is a tight game where either team wins by 3 or less. 

Pick – Penn State +3.5

Minnesota (-2.5) at Illinois – 11:00 AM on FS1

Brett Bielema has made a career out of beating Minnesota. The wrong team is favored, ILL-INI pulls the upset. 

Pick – Illinois +2.5 (Upset Special)

Northwestern (-1.5) at Purdue – 11:00 AM on BTN

Purdue is possibly the worst Power 4 team in FBS. NW wins comfortably. 

Pick – Northwestern -1.5

1 Oregon (-14.5) at Michigan – 2:30 PM on CBS

Michigan still can’t figure out who to play at QB. Oregon is a national title contender that continues to cover week after week. I see no reason for that trend to change. 

Pick – Oregon -14.5

Indiana (-7.5) at Michigan State – 2:30 PM on Peacock

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Wisco Wednesday: Do or Die vs The Hawkeyes

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Take me down to Iowa City, where they drink Busch Light and the offense ain’t pretty. This will be a Battle of Backup QBs for the prestigious Heartland Trophy. Avert your eyes.

Looking Back 

Penn State – 28
Wisconsin – 13

Wisconsin was winning 10-7 at halftime. That feels like an eternity ago at this point. 

Wisconsin has played 3 “good” football teams at this point. Penn State, USC, and Alabama. All 3 were embarrassing. Alabama smoked the Badgers. And Wisco blew halftime leads against USC and Penn State. I guess that’s a sign of progress, but blowing leads makes me think this is a coaching issue. 

Wisconsin could not run the ball in the 2nd half, and that’s concerning. Is it on the OL? The play calling? Walker? Honestly, I have no idea. That’s something Longo and Fickell need to evaluate. If Wisconsin can’t run the ball, then getting even 1 more win will be difficult. 

I will say that the environment in Camp Randall was amazing. The students were a bit late (blame the university, not the kids), but the crowd was loud and standing for most of the game. 9/10, please have more night games in Madison. …

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Week 9 Big Ten Picks

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Last Week we went 4-3 ATS and correctly called the Illinois upset of Michigan. Let’s see if we can do a bit better in week 9. 

Odds were taken from Fanduel at the time of writing*

Rutgers (+14) at USC – (Friday) 10:00 PM on FOX

USC is winning close and losing close. I don’t see a scenario where they win by more than 2 scores. Don’t let me down 2 weeks in a row Rutgers. 

Pick – Rutgers +14

Nebraska (+25.5) at 4 Ohio State- 11:00 AM on FOX

Ohio State is a juggernaut. Nebraska lost by 49 to Indiana last week. If Ohio State wants to, they’ll top that mark. 

Pick – Ohio State -25.5 

Washington (+6.5) at Indiana – 11:00 AM on BTN

Indiana’s starting QB is hurt, and I don’t care. They are more than just a QB, they are a great team. It helps that the backup is pretty good too. The Indiana wagon keeps rolling along. 

Pick – Indiana -6.5

20 Illinois (+21.5) at 1 Oregon – 2:30 PM on CBS

Oregon will absolutely win this game (probably). But 21 is a lot to win by, especially against an underrated, …

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Wisco Wednesday (a day late): Homecoming Week

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After back-to-back road wins, Bucky is coming home. Is this team ready to compete with the number 3 Nittany Lions? Or will it be another splattering like the Bama game?

Looking Back 

Northwestern – 3
Wisconsin – 23

Three in a row. Wisconsin has stacked 3 dominant wins in 3 consecutive weeks. Albeit the competition was rather poor. But blowing out bad teams is a hallmark of the Wisconsin we’re used to from the last 30 years. 

The offense wasn’t as good as the couple of weeks prior, but the defense was elite, and special teams made some massive plays. Tawee Walker’s dominance continues with 23 carries for 126 yards (5.5 ypc). Overall the run game has grown exponentially since week 1 due to the development of the offense line. 

It’s not a stretch to say all 5 starters on the OL will be playing on Sundays in a couple of years. 

Another week, another vintage Wisconsin defense. In the last 3 games, they’ve given up 1 touchdown. The run D could be better (the D-line is still the biggest weakness on the team), but the secondary is so good they more than make up for it. 

Wisconsin is becoming …

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Week 8 B1G Picks

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All the B1G games picked against the spread. Let’s see if Walk on Fan has any idea what we’re doing. 

Odds were taken from Fanduel at the time of writing*

2 Oregon (-27.5) at Purdue – (Friday) 7:00 PM on FOX

Oregon is coming off of a massive emotional win and has to travel across the country in a short week. Of course, I think the Ducks win, but 27.5 is too rich. Purdue covers, but Oregon wins 38-14

Pick – Purdue +27.5

Nebraska (+6.5) at Indiana – 11:00 AM on FOX

IMO – this is the hardest B1G game to pick this week. Indiana’s schedule is so soft it’s hard to tell if they are for real. I think Neraska’s defense is good enough to keep this game close, but Indiana’s offense is just too much. This feels like Indiana 23, Nebraska 14 to me.

Pick – Indiana -6.5

Wisconsin (-7.5) at Northwestern – 11:00 AM on BTN

Bucky is on a roll and Northwestern’s win last week was heavily dependent on turnovers. The Wildcats won despite being outgained by Maryland, and I think that’s a sign they aren’t very good. Wisconsin pounds NW 45-7.

Pick

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