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MADISON, Wis. The captivating, record-setting quarterback is gone now. So are three of the NFL-ready offensive linemen that protected him.
In fact, half the starters off last year's Rose Bowl-bound Wisconsin football team won't be putting on a Badgers uniform ever again. Such is the nature of the college football cycle, where change is a necessary, inevitable occurrence.
Despite his team undergoing as much upheaval as any group in the country, Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema won't settle for diminished expectations. That's not how a program rises to prominence and stays there. "We lost a lot of really good players," Bielema said. "But we have guys coming in behind them. That's the part that stood out to me is we really do have the ability to keep replacing guys and moving forward."Wisconsin, the two-time defending Big Ten champion, officially began putting the pieces together on another season with the start of spring practice Thursday evening. The Badgers will practice 14 times leading up to the team's spring game on April 28."I'm not ready to crown us champions yet, but I really am excited about the way they practiced," Bielema said following day one of the spring season. "The communication, the details of lining up and playing football were really good out there today for a first practice. There weren't a lot of mental breaks at any positions."What makes this spring particularly challenging for Bielema and the Badgers are the components missing off last year's team, which lost 45-38 to Oregon in the Rose Bowl and finished 11-3. Quarterback Russell Wilson used up his one year of eligibility after transferring from North Carolina State. He set the single-season school record for passing yards (3,175) and touchdown passes (33), among other marks. Center Peter Konz declared for the NFL draft after his junior season and is a likely first-round selection. Right guard Kevin Zeitler and right tackle Josh Oglesby also could receive NFL opportunities. Adding to the uncertainty of a new season is the addition of six new assistant coaches to Bielema's staff, including offensive coordinator Matt Canada, who previously served in the same role at Northern Illinois. Bielema didn't finish filling out his staff until Feb. 9, one of the biggest reasons for pushing back the start of spring football by nearly two weeks."I knew that we needed as coaches to talk through things more in the meeting room and give us a little bit more time to meet with our players before we hit the field than we normally have in the past," Bielema said. "I think that was good."Though Wisconsin's first practice was closed to the media, Bielema said he focused especially hard on fundamentals and implementing the coaching staff's new system of plays. He began with a ball security drill on offense to emphasize the importance of not committing turnovers. Defensively, players practiced pursuit drills to address angles to the ball carrier.Wisconsin has a long history of developing offensive linemen and molding players to fit schemes at other positions. But perhaps the biggest question mark among many concerning the Badgers focuses on which player will take over for Wilson at quarterback.As spring practice begins, Wisconsin has just two healthy quarterbacks in camp, and neither has much in-game experience.Sophomore Joe Brennan appeared in six games as Wilson's backup and completed 6 of 15 passes for 48 yards with no touchdowns and one interception. Redshirt freshman Joel Stave, a first-team all-state quarterback in Wisconsin as a high school senior, did not play in 2011.The other two quarterbacks on the roster have been saddled with injuries. Senior Curt Phillips is coming off three ACL surgeries and will be limited to non-contact passing drills in spring camp. Junior Jon Budmayr, the No. 1 quarterback before Wilson's arrival, continues to experience nerve problems in his throwing elbow and will miss all of spring practice. Given Brennan and Stave's inexperience, there will be plenty to learn over the next month."Joey and Joel both looked extremely quick in their decision making," Bielema said. "There weren't busts in the huddle, there weren't busts in alignments. It was the first practice with coach Canada, just trying to ease the learning curve of getting rid of the football in the throwing game. I think that's helped them quite a bit."The situation at quarterback is dire enough that the Badgers are expecting former Maryland quarterback Danny O'Brien to be on campus Saturday for a recruiting visit. O'Brien is scheduled to graduate from Maryland this spring and would have two years of eligibility remaining. Just like Wilson did at Wisconsin, O'Brien's graduation and subsequent enrollment in a graduate program would allow him to play immediately for the Badgers by NCAA rules.Whoever wins the quarterback battle at Wisconsin will be aided by having Montee Ball in the backfield once again.Ball, a Heisman Trophy finalist last year, bypassed the NFL to return for his senior season despite putting together a record-setting campaign. Ball led the country with 1,923 rushing yards and tied Barry Sanders' single-season FBS record by scoring 39 total touchdowns.It will be awfully difficult for Ball to match that spectacular season, but Bielema said that wasn't Ball's focus as spring practice began."He's not trying to produce the same numbers," Bielema said. "He's not trying to do anything other than trying to win football games and play his best football. He's trained extremely hard. He looks extremely fast. He has added about five pounds, so it's going to be fun to see him continue to grow."With a season of unprecedented upheaval looming, at least the Badgers can rely on Ball as the one constant.Follow Jesse Temple on Twitter.
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