FROM GOOD TO GREAT?
Over the last five seasons, Bielema has put his own brand on the brand, the Alvarez brand. Some of the changes or tweaks are more subtle than others. But the UW brand has been a constant.
That was confirmed during the recent Big Ten kickoff meet- ings in Chicago.
“Going into a game you know exactly what they’re going to do,” said University of Min- nesota linebacker Mike Rallis. “They’re going to run it right at you and say, ‘Stop us.’
“Just when you think they’re going to run the ball on every play – and you’re throwing a million guys in the box – they do a little play-action pass and get over the top of your defense. “It starts with their offensive line. They have a lot of talent
and a lot of size. They move well and they’re a nasty bunch. They finish all their blocks all the time. It’s what an O-line should look like.
“They’ve got great technique and they’re going to hit you in the mouth.”
That’s flattering to Bielema because physical football takes a commitment.
“It’s our style of play,” Bielema said. “I go back to when I first got here with Coach Alvarez and he always talked about how you have to train to be physical 365 days of the year. “I love it when we get ready to play opponents and they say, ‘We’ve got to get ready to play a physical style of game against Wisconsin.’
“To me, you just can’t get ready in a week to play the way
you have to play against us of- fensively and defensively.” There’s nothing magical about physical football. On the contrary, it comes down to the basics; most notably play- ing from the snap through the whistle and sustaining that energy for four quarters. “A lot of times it’s going to be a four-quarter game in the Big Ten,” Bielema said of the com- petitive nature of the confer- ence. “And you have to main- tain that level the whole time.” Rallis said something else that was music to Bielema’s ears.
They finish all their blocks all the time.
“When we start winter condi- tioning,” Bielema said, “the first thing we talk about is, ‘Have a start and a finish to every drill’
