Wisconsin Football: The 10 Most Important People in the Program

Before Barry Alvarez made his mark on the Badgers in the early 1990’s, Wisconsin football was dead.

Camp Randall was empty on Saturdays, and so was Bucky's win column. 

While Alvarez might be the most influential figure in the history of UW football, plenty of others have played a vital role in the success of the program.

Here are the ten most important.  

Barry Alvarez

Legendary Badger coach Barry Alvarez no longer roams the sidelines in Madison, but he does preside over the press box.

After retiring as head coach and hand picking Bret Bielema as his successor, Alvarez became the Athletic Director at Wisconsin.

The state of Badger athletics is strong, and Alvarez has teamed up with Bielema to keep the football program firing on all cylinders. 

Bret Bielema

In the sports world, it is almost impossible to replace a legend, yet that is exactly what head coach Bret Bielema did at Wisconsin.

His predecessor, Barry Alvarez, inherited a Badger team that was one of the worst in the nation and turned UW into a three-time Rose Bowl champion and perennial Big Ten title contender.

Bielema has his detractors, but overall, the Wisconsin program hasn’t missed a beat under his watch.

Two Rose Bowl appearances in the last two years is proof of that. 

Pat Richter

Without Pat Richter, there’d be no Barry Alvarez, and Camp Randall might be in ruins.

Richter—who hired Alvarez as head coach—preceded him as Athletic Director at Wisconsin.  

As AD, Richter made it a priority to upgrade UW’s athletic facilities and focus on college athletic's most lucrative sport: Football. 

Russell Wilson

Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson is arguably the best signal caller to ever line up under center for the Badgers.

As a transfer, his time in Madison has been short, but he’s certainly left his mark.

Wilson is a class act and major talent both on and off the field, who will be sorely missed next season and beyond. 

Montee Ball

Since Barry Alvarez took over the Wisconsin program in the early ‘90’s, the Badgers have solidified their spot as Running Back U.

Moss, Fletcher, Dayne, Calhoun and Clay were all household names when they played, and most of them still are.

This year, Montee Ball joined the club with a record-breaking season, the likes of which hasn’t been seen since Barry Sanders was at Oklahoma State. 

Paul Chryst

As important as head coach Bret Bielema has been in keeping Badger football in the spotlight, there is no question that Wisconsin would not have been nearly as successful these past few years without the play calling and coaching of offensive coordinator Paul Chryst.

Every season Chryst is rumored to be a front-runner for a number of head coaching jobs.

When he finally does leave Madison to run a program of his own, he will be missed. 

Bob Bostad

You don’t hear a lot about run-game coordinator/offensive line coach Bob Bostad—but you should.

Over the last few seasons, Bostad has presided over one of the nation’s top rushing attacks while turning Montee Ball and James White into two of the most feared rushers in the country. 

Chris Borland

Chris Borland is a stellar defender and an anchor on the Badgers defense.

He’s also from Ohio.

Even though Borland wasn’t recruited by the Buckeyes, his success at Wisconsin sends a message to Ohio State and other traditional Big Ten and national powers that Wisconsin can and will recruit in their backyards. 

Insert Offensive Lineman Here

Another year, another pair of Badger offensive lineman on the All American team (Center Peter Konz and Guard Kevin Zeitler).

Wisconsin wouldn’t be Running Back U if it wasn’t for their stellar offensive line play year after year.

For a team that’s built its identity on smash mouth football, the guys up front are as important to the program as anyone else. 

Bucky Badger

Because of Capital One and the importance of marketing and social media, mascots actually matter nowadays.

Few of them can boast more notoriety or popularity than Wisconsin’s Bucky Badger.