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Score least important part of spring game BEHIND THE DESK BARRY ALVAREZ • UW DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS S pring games are never a pre- dictor of success or failure in the fall. During my final season as head coach, we played the game at Lus- sier Stadium. Camp Randall wasn't available because of the renovation project. I want to say our starting offense scored only a couple of touchdowns against the reserves. Some report- ers afterwards wanted me to use the word "ugly'' to describe what they saw. I wouldn't do it. I reminded them that they were watching a practice. Sometimes people don't under- stand what coaches are trying to accomplish in a spring game. You're playing as many kids as you can, you're mixing and match- ing, you're trying to teach. No one brought up that "ugly'' spring game after we won 10 games and averaged 34 points. I don't remember us completing many passes or moving the ball in last year's spring game. But that team went on to win 11 games and got back to the Rose Bowl. Don't get me wrong: there are a lot of benefits to a spring game. Besides our younger players, the biggest winner Saturday will be our partners: The Center for Nonprofits and the School of Human Ecology. Ticket sales to the spring game will help fund student internships. It's a win/win for everybody involved. We can help them raise some 12 » VARSITY APRIL 26, 2012 money, and they bring a little more awareness to the game. Last year we got nothing but positive responses after partnering with the School of Nursing. Some of the attention that was generated created a million-dollar gift for the school. I just hope we have some good weather Saturday so everyone can enjoy the day. Hopefully we can get I just hope we have some good weather Saturday so every- one can enjoy the day. Hopefully we can get from 15,000 to 20,000 at Camp Randall. You want to put your kids in front of a crowd and get a little roar. from 15,000 to 20,000 at Camp Randall. You want to put your kids in front of a crowd and get a little roar. The older guys aren't going to get as much out of a spring game, but it's good exposure for your redshirt freshmen and walk-ons and anyone who hasn't played. This is their first chance to be on our field with people in the seats. It's a big day for them to get out in front of their family and friends and high school coaches. You know they'll be excited and you just want to see them compete and have some fun. Everybody treats the spring game the same. Nobody is going to show what they've got in April. I read where Ohio State's Urban Meyer said they used about 30 percent of their playbook. They just ran basic stuff in their spring game. That's what everybody does. You're going to limit what you do. That's why you can't take it too seriously. What you want to do is get through the spring game without getting anybody hurt. Trust me — after what I experienced with Lee Evans — that's by far the most important thing. That's why you don't play Mon- tee Ball. From what I've seen, he's ready for another big year. I watched practice last week and I saw a bunch of young assistants who are coaching hard. I've been impressed with their enthusiasm and some of the new ideas that they've brought in. I see the players responding to them. The kids were encouraging one another from the sidelines. You could see everybody was really into it, even the injured guys. That creates good chemistry and leader- ship, and that's good stuff. You want to end on a positive note, and you want to start estab- lishing the team's personality. That's what the spring is about. It's not about keeping score in a spring game.