Varsity is the free Official Digital Magazine of Wisconsin Athletics, covering Badgers football, basketball, hockey and more each week.
Issue link: http://catalog.e-digitaleditions.com/i/91086
Injuries an unfortunate part of the game BEHIND THE DESK BARRY ALVAREZ • UW DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS ball point guard, Josh Gasser, had injured his knee during practice that morning and was lost for the season. A That just guts you. I know Bo felt really good about Josh taking over for Jordan Taylor. I had just read where he felt like he had found some answers through the additional practice time that the team had in the fall. Then this happens. Bo is a veteran coach. He has been around the game for a long time, and he has been through things like this before, so he knows how to handle it. Bo will have an answer. Not long after hearing about Josh Gasser, our quarterback, Joel Stave, got hurt on the first play of the third quarter. It made me sick — sick to my stomach — when he had to be helped off the field. I didn't think it was vicious hit. It was just the way he fell with all the weight on his shoulder. At that point, I felt so bad for our coaches, Bret and Bo, and both our players, Joel and Josh. I really felt like Joel was com- ing on. You could see his progress each week; he was getting better. He completed his first eight passes Saturday and we win that game go- ing away if he's healthy. Then this happens. This is when you're tested as a head coach. You have to come up with a solu- 16 » VARSITY NOVEMBER 1, 2012 t halftime of the Michigan State game last Saturday, I learned that our basket- tion, and move on. You have to try to get your kids to close ranks and you try to get everybody to pick up around the person who's now step- ping into the position. You have to get the job down because the bottom line is that no one else cares if you have issues or injuries. You've got to find a way to win, as callus as that may sound, it is what it is. We're guaranteed three more games. After that, we're hoping to play in the Big Ten championship game and a bowl game. There's a lot of season left and we have a lot of good players who are healthy. You just have to make it work. We're not the only ones dealing with injuries. Everybody loses players. You hate to see it when it happens, especially when they are players that are critical to your success. But that's just part of the game. Bret has always talked about having the "Next Man In'' mental- ity, and that always applies. I remember when our best re- ceiver, Chris Chambers, got injured on the grass practice field at Holy Name Seminary. He was making a routine cut in a non-contact drill during training camp. He had surgery on his foot and a pin was inserted to stabilize a stress fracture. I don't know how many games he wound up missing; I think it was four or five. But he was a senior. That was tough. Plus, we had no one comparable to him. Everybody else just had to step up a little bit. Sometimes when something like this happens, everybody rallies and is more focused. You have to find a way to use it to your advantage. With quarterbacks, you do what they can do best. You give them things that they can do, so that they can play within themselves. You don't put them in a position where they can lose a game. This is where your linemen have to step it up, and your running game has to come around. This is where you have to get your mind right. It's probably good to have a bye in the schedule this week. We'll be all right. Bret and his coaches will figure out a way.