The Post-Crescent from Appleton, Wisconsin • 27

Saturday, December 2011 www.postcrescent.com The Post-Crescent, Appleton-Fox Cities, Wis. D-) Transfers knocking on UWs door UW NOTES press conference in advance of the Big Ten Conference championship game against Michigan State today. The decision to take Wilson was a special circumstance, brought on, in part, to junior quarterback Curt Phillips undergoing three ACL surgeries. After Wilson arrived, sophomore quarterback Jon Budmayr suffered a nerve problem in the elbow of his throwing (right) arm during the first week of preseason camp. Both Phillips and Budmayr missed the entire season and there's no guarantee either will be ready for next season.

That opens the possibility of the Badgers being in the market for another one-and-done quarterback. The backup is redshirt freshman Joe Brennan and the No. 3 is freshman walk-on Joel Stave, who is being redshirted. Bielema would have to weigh the risks of UW becoming a destination for one-and-done quarterbacks, which would likely not help the school's reputation in recruiting high school quarterbacks. "One thing I learned valuably in my early years, if I decide to accept a transfer, I'm overly critical of the type of character and person I bring into that locker room," Bielema said.

"Because it's a little bit different situation." Bielema said he would like to believe the Badgers still could be playing in many kids of faith, I think Russell found us for the right reasons." Konz unlikely: Bielema spoke before the team's practice, but it sounds unlikely center Peter Konz of Neenah will play. Konz missed the last two games with a dislocated left ankle and got minimal work this week. Meanwhile, Bielema spoke highly of left guard Ryan Groy and center Travis Frederick. "It's kind of at a point with us, do we want Pete, who hasn't been repping?" Bielema said. "Or do we want to stay with Ryan and Travis, who have done an outstanding job the last two weeks? We'll favor more on (the latter) than someone who hasn't been there a lot." WISCONSIN TWO DEEP Probable starters in boldface WISCONSIN VS.

MICHIGAN STATE What: Big Ten title game When: Today, 7:17 p.m. Where: Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis Records: Badgers 10-2, 6-2 Big Ten; Spartans 10-2, 7-1 this game without Wilson, but it's unlikely anybody outside the team shares that view. "I really do think good things happen to good people," Bielema said. "We were in a very bad situation at quarterback and somehow Russell appeared. We have so Michigan State vs.

Wisconsin WHEN THE SPARTANS HAVE THE BALL WHEN THE BADGERS HAVE THE BALL WR Sr. WRSo. FS Sr. LB Sr. I Nick Toon 6-3 220 4 Jared Abbrederis 6-2 180 7 Aaron Henry 6-0 210 9 Kevin Claxton 6-1 240 II Joe Brennan 6-3 205 12 DezmenSouthward.6-2 200 13 Conor O'Neill 6-0 220 14 Marcus Cromartie.6-1 180 By Tom Mulhern Wisconsin Stat Journal INDIANAPOLIS University of Wisconsin football coach Bret Bielema is becoming popular with football players who want to transfer schools.

In a normal year, Bielema said he gets inquiries from about four or five players, who are interested in transferring. This year, the number has doubled. It's all due, of course, to the wildly successful season quarterback Russell Wilson has had as a one-year transfer from North Carolina State. "Because of the success of Russell Wilson, I've been contacted by up to 10 players now, who want to talk about the opportunity to transfer in," Bielema said on Friday during a MICHIGAN STATE TWO DEEP Probable starters in boldface 2 William GholrtonDE 6-7 280 So. 3 BJ.

Cunningham 6-2 215 Sr. 3 Mike Sadler 6-0 182 Fr. 4 Edwin Baker RB 210 Jr. 4 DanConroy 5-10 190 Jr. 5 Johnny Adams CB 5-11 175 Jr.

7 Kerch Nichol WR 6-2 220 Sr. 8 Kirk Cousins OB 6-3 205 Sr. 9 Isaiah Lewis SS 5-10 195 So. 10 Andrew MaxwelL.QB 6-3 208 So. 10 Chris Norman LB 6-1 227 Jr.

12 Dana Dixon FS 6-2 170 So. 1 3 Bennie Fowler. WR 6-1 21 5 So. MTonyUppett CB 6-2 189 Fr. 16 Chris D.Rucker....WR 5-9 178 Sr.

17 Kevin Muma 6-0 189 So. 20 Nick Hill RB 5-7 180 Fr. 20KyleSelden 6-5 199 Sr. 22 Larry Caper RB 5-11 223 Jr. 23 Jairus Jones SS 6-1 209 So.

24LeVeonBell RB 6-2 237 So. 25 Keith Mumphery.WR 6-0 202 Fr. 27 Kurtis 6-1 196 Fr. 28 Denkos Allen LB 5-10 220 So. 31 DarqueiaDennard.CB 5-11 185 So.

32 Mitchell White CB 5-11 180 Jr. 33 Jeremy 5-11 205 Fr. 34 Taiwan Jones LB 6-3 234 Fr. 38 Niko Palazeti FB 6-1 250 Fr. 39 Trenton Robinson 5-10 195 Sr.

40 Max Bullough 6-3 245 So. 41 Kyler Elsworth LB 6-1 215 So. 42 Todd Anderson FB 6-2 265 Sr. 44 Marcus Rush DE 6-2 250 Fr. 47 Adam Setterbo FB 6-3 245 Sr.

49 TyQuan Hammock. LB 6-0 230 So. 50 Steve Gardiner LB 6-1 222 Jr. 51 FouFonotl RT 64 300 Jr. 52 Denzel Drone DE 6-2 262 So.

55 Corey Freeman DE 6-2 250 Jr. 58 Matt Giampapa 6-2 222 Fr. 59 Dan France LT 6-6 315 So. 60 Micajah IT 6-5 320 So. 62 Chris McDonald 6-5 300 Jr.

63 Travis Jackson 6-3 275 Fr. 67 Joel Foreman LG 64 315 Sr. 68 Ethan Ruhland 6-5 290 Jr. 69 Blake Pacheco DT 6-1 264 Sr. 73 Henry Conway RT 6-6 318 So.

75 Jared McGaha LG 6-6 298 Sr. 80 Dion Sims TE 6-5 276 So. 81 Brad Sonntag WR 5-8 176 Sr. 82 Keshawn Martin 5-11 189 Sr. 85 Garrett CeleV 6-5 252 Sr.

88 Brian 6-5 245 Sr. 96 Kevin Pickelman 64 288 Sr. 98A.RashadWhite...NT 6-2 316 Jr. 99 Jerel Worthy DT 6-3 310 Jr. Michigan State has the Big Ten's top-ranked run defense, allowing 102.5 yards per game and a scant 2.9 yards per carry.

But UW had success running the ball in the Oct. 22 game until RB Montee Ball left the game after a helmet-to-helmet hit in the first half. At that point the Badgers had rushed 25 times for 132 yards. Even though Ball returned and UW finished with 220 rushing yards, the Badgers became one-dimensional after Ball was hurt. The lack of balance allowed Michigan State to unleash a pass rush that leads the Big Ten with 38 sacks.

The Spartans do a good job of disguising blitzes and SLB Denicos Allen was effective coming off the edge. Badgers QB Russell Wilson was sacked three times at Michigan State and it would have been worse if not for his ability to escape. Michigan State is a surprising last in the Big Ten in rushing, averaging 139 yards per game. But the Spartans' passing game has given the Badgers fits the past three meetings, averaging 318.3 yards, with 10 TD passes. QB Kirk Cousins threw for 290 yards and three scores in the Oct.

22 game. UW's defensive backs struggled with senior WR BJ. Cunningham, who had six catches for 102 yards. UW CBs Antonio Fenelus and Marcus Cromartie must be physical against Cunningham, who lacks separation speed. But the most dangerous WR in the past seven games has been senior Keshawn Martin with a team-best 34 catches for 450 yards and four TDs.

He is quick and willing to go over the middle. UW's defensive line won the battle up front last time, with four sacks. Michigan State allowed only 1 1 in its other 1 1 games. SPECIAL TEAMS A big part of Michigan State's success in coach Mark Dantonio's five seasons has been special teams play. It wasn't just the punt block for a touchdown at the end of the first half in the past game against UW, either.

The Spartans also blocked a 30-yard field goal attempt by Philip Welch. They had a 74-yard punt return for a touchdown by Martin in their 34-24 victory over UW last season. Welch put two kickoffs out of bounds last week, including his first one. UW coach Bret Bielema said Welch switched from an 1 1- to a five-step approach after that and fixed the problem, but his last kickoff also went out of bounds. By Tom Mulhern, Wisconsin State Journal ANDY BAGGOT'S FIVE THINGS TO WATCH FOR QB Fr.

SSSo. LB So. CB Jr. WRSo. QB Sr.

Sr. WRSo. RBSo. CB Fr. RB Fr.

SS Jr. CB Sr. RB Jr. LB Fr. CB Fr.

FB Sr. FS Fr. LB So. DE Fr. TESo.

TE Fr. DESo. LB Jr. LSSo. LT Jr.

LB Fr. Sr. LS Sr. Jr. RT Sr.

RG Sr. CSo. DE Fr. Fr. LGSo.

TE Sr. TESo. FB Fr. DTSo. DTSo.

DE Sr. Fr. DT Sr. DTSo. KSo.

DE Jr. Sr. 15 Jeff Duckworth 215 16 Russell Wilson 210 18 Philip 6-3 205 19 Manasseh Garner6-2 210 20 James White. 5-10 195 21 PenielJean 5-11 190 22 Jeff rey Lewis 6-2 210 24 Shehton Johnson 190 26 Antonio Fenelus 190 28 Montee Ball 5-11 210 30 Derek Undisch 225 32 Devin 185 34 Bradie Ewing 60 245 43 Michael Trotter 210 44 Chris Borland 5-11 245 45 Warren Herring 260 48 Jacob Pedersen 240 49SamArneson 6-4 245 51 Tyler Dippel 6-4 260 53 Mike Taylor 6-2 230 56 James 210 58 Ricky Wagner 64 320 59 Marcus Trotter 235 60 Jake Current 6-3 305 6-2 230 64 Robert Burge 6-7 325 67 Josh Oglesby 6-7 330 70 Kevin 64 315 72 Travis Frederick ...64 330 250 78 Rob 345 79 Ryan 6-5 320 82 Jake Byrne 64 260 85 Brian Wozniak ....64 260 86 Sherard Cadogan6-3 255 87 Ethan Hemer 6-6 300 91 Jordan 290 93 Louis Nzegwu .....64 255 94 Kyle 6-1 190 95 Patrick Butrym ....64 285 96 Beau Allen 6-3 310 96AlecLerner 5-7 175 97 Brendan Kelly 6-6 255 98 Brad Nortman 6-3 210 Kansas City at Chicago: Even with Caleb Hanie behind center, the Bears should have no trouble disposing of the reeling Chiefs. Kansas City has its own quarterback problem.

Bears 21, Chiefs 13 Atlanta at Houston: At least the Falcons enter the game with a starting quarterback. Houston had to sign Jake Delhomme midweek to replace injured back-up Matt Leinart. Falcons 28, Texans 14 Denver at Minnesota: Tim Tebow's magic continues, thanks in large part to the stellar effort of the Broncos defense. The Vikings are just too banged up. Broncos 23, Vikings 20 Carolina at Tampa Bay: The Buccaneers have played well on the road the past two weeks in Green Bay and Tennessee but have nothing to show for it.

The Panthers just got by the winless Colts a week ago. Buccaneers 31, Panthers 21 Cincinnati at Pittsburgh: The Bengals again will try to prove they are for real in a tough road game against AFC North co-leader Pittsburgh. Unfortunately for them, the Steel-ers are for real. Steelers 25, Bengals 21 New York Jets at Washington: The Jets are barely hanging on in the playoff chase and have been hardly road warriors this season. Look for the Redskins to get win No.

S. Redskins 24, Jets 17 Oakland at Miami: The Raiders are looking more and more like contenders in the AFC, while the Dolphins have won three of four. Oakland, however, is more potent on offense. Raiders 30, Dolphins 17 Tennessee at Buffalo: After a fantastic start to their season, the Bills have sunk to third in the AFC East. The Titans are two games back in the AFC South but have been far from impressive at Bills 20, Titans 19 Indianapolis at New England: Talk about a mismatch.

A matchup this out of whack hasn't occurred since the Christians faced the lions in the coliseum. Patriots 52, Colts 7 Baltimore at Cleveland: The Ravens claim their focus is where it needs to be. We'll see. This could be another one of those trap games for Baltimore. Ravens 17, Browns 10 St.

Louis at San Francisco: The 49ers not only wrap up a playoff spot with a win, but the NFC West as well. The Rams just don't have the offensive firepower to make this a game. 49ers 34, Rams 14 Dallas at Arizona: This is just the type of game that Dallas should win but often doesn't. Tony Romo realizes this is no longer November and melts under pressure. Cardinals 16, Cowboys 14 Green Bay at New York Giants: Had the Giants shown anything against New Orleans last week, I'd consider taking New York.

But since they didn't and the Packers are coming off a 10-day rest, this one could get out of hand early. Packers 35, Giants 23 Detroit at New Orleans: After whipping the Giants at home a week ago, it appears Drew Brees and the Saints are clicking on offense. For Detroit, no Suh means no chance. Saints 42, Lions 16 San Diego at Jacksonville: I'm sure this wasn't what ESPN had in mind when it picked this game for Monday night earlier this year. The Jaguars will to-five yards, 12; six-to-20, seven; 20-plus, five.

4UWQB Russell Wilson needs a TD pass tonight to set an NCAA career record. He has thrown at least one in 36 consecutive games, equaling the mark set by Graham Harrell of Texas Tech. 5 The Badgers led the Big Ten in turnover margin during the regular season and Michigan State was second. IThe Badgers and Michigan State have met before at a neutral site, in a domed stadium with a Big Ten title and a Rose Bowl berth on the line. It happened Dec.

4, 1993, in Tokyo. Promised a six-figure payout, the teams agreed to play a game there long before its significance was defined. 2 Of all the unusual developments that came to life in the first meeting Oct. 22 at Spartan Stadium two blocked kicks, turnovers and the Hail Mary pass the most eye-opening was the fact Michigan State didn't draw one penalty. 3 UW tailback Montee Ball's 34 TDs represent school and Big Ten records, as well as the second-highest total in NCAA history.

Here's the breakdown of their distances: one yard, 10; two- TOP 25 WOODS: Badgers missed their best chance No. 8 Oregon 49, UCLA 31 At Eugene, LaMichael James ran for 219 yards and three touchdowns and Oregon beat UCLA in the inaugural Pac-12 championship game Friday night for the Ducks' third straight conference title and a likely berth in the Rose Bowl. The Bruins (6-7) kept it closer than many thought they would, but it was not enough as the Ducks (11-2) head to a BCS bowl for the third straight season. Associated Press any legitimate alternative to Alabama, voters would jump at the chance. The Badgers could have, and should have, been that team.

But two straight losses because of back-to-back special-teams blunders, one massive last-minute secondary breakdown and one Hail Mary has left the Badgers where they are today. Without a prayer. Mike Woods: 920-993-1000, ext. 232; ormwoodspostcrescent.com; On Twitter: FloridaGators59 A team with the 12th-ranked offense nationally, along with the seventh-ranked defense would be far more appealing than an Oklahoma State team that has the third-ranked offense but the 107th-rated defense. Wisconsin would have been seen as a team that could have given LSU the same kind of battle that Alabama did and, because these are human polls, that may have been enough to move the Badgers into the No.

2 slot in the BCS standings. Because if there was But I have a pretty good feeling the human polls would have been very good to the Badgers. Simply because the Badgers are not Alabama. No one really wants to see an LSU-Alabama rematch in the title game, save for half the state of Alabama. But the Russell Wil-sonMontee Ball combination that leads a potent Badgers offense on a team that not only won its division but also would be a bona fide Big Ten champion would have been attractive.

From D-l Stanford. Stanford would have no chance because its season is over. The belief is Oklahoma State would have to crush Oklahoma today to have any chance of overtaking Alabama at No. 2. But how Would have the polls have treated the Badgers if they were standing today at 11-1? I have no relationship to anyone named Einstein, so I couldn't begin to guess what the computers would have said.

BOSIO: Pitching coach will try to sort out Zambrano CHRIS BOSIO FILE Age: 48. Drafted: Second round of the 1982 amateur draft by Milwaukee Brewers. Major league careen Pitched for 1 1 seasons; for the Brewers (1 986-92) and Seattle Mariners (1 993-96). Career record: 94-93, 3.96 ERA. Career highlight: Pitched no-hitter for Mariners on April 22, 1993, against Boston.

2003: Pitching coach for Tampa Bay Devil Rays under manager Lou Pinella. Left after the season due to family health reasons. 2006: Served as assistant pitching coach at UW-Oshkosh. 2007: Served as pitching coach and then interim manager at 'Lawrence University. 2008: Served as pitching coach for Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts (Cincinnati Reds).

2009: Pitching coach for Triple-A Nashville Sounds (Brewers). 2009: Replaced Bill Castro as Brewers pitching coach on Aug. 12. 2009: Named major league advance scout for the Brewers. 2011: Took over as pitching coach for Triple-A Nashville in June.

2011: Accepts position as pitching coach for Chicago Cubs. return to Milwaukee for a seventh season. Should Counsell decide to retire, the Chicago Tribune reported Sveum is likely to ask him to join him on his staff. The Brewers have also spoken to Counsell about a "non-playing role," according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Pat Listach, the 1992 AL rookie of the year with the Brewers, will begin his second season as the Cubs bench coach.

Bosio has been a fixture in the Fox Cities, offering lessons to countless youth baseball players over the years. He said he will continue to work at XLR8 Sports Training in Apple-ton until he leaves for spring training. Mke Woods: 920-993-1000, ext. 232; or mwoods9postcrescent.com; On Twitter: QFIoridaGatorsS9 be his own worst enemy. At times he's strung too tight." Bosio said he had never met new Cubs president Theo Epstein before, but came away impressed with both he and general manager Jed Hoyer.

"I was sold in the interview process on Theo and Jed and, obviously, Dale," said Bosio. "Just everything they said, the direction they want to go and their motivation to win and bring a world's championship to Chicago. They're intelligent baseball guys. I'm excited to be a part of this process and a great organization that's known around the world." Another former Brewer, Craig Counsell, could also join the Cubs staff. The Brewers recently announced they would not make a contract offer to the 41-year-old Counsell to From D-l to be working with Dale," said Bosio.

"When he offered me the job as pitching coach of the Chicago Cubs, to hear him say that, knowing the confidence he has in me, that's a great feeling. We're going to be prepared, are going to have intensity and a lot of enthusiasm." Bosio is being counted upon to turn around a pitching staff that ranked 25th in the major leagues in ERA at 4.33. Matt Garza and Ryan Dempster each won a team-high 10 games last season for the Cubs, who finished in fifth place in the NL Central with a 71-91 record. The turbulent Carlos Zambrano finished 9-7 with the Cubs last season. Trying to rein in the talented but emotionally troubled Zambrano will be a play hard for new coach Mel Tucker.

Norv Turner, however, should sharpen those resume skills. Jaguars 23, Chargers 21 Last week: 12-4 For the season: 114-62 Dan Kohn: 920-993-1000, ext. 305, ordkohnOpostcrescent.com; On Twitter OPCDanKohn looking for a front-line starting pitcher. But he lets his emotions get the best of him. That's what makes him tick, but he has to get those under control a little more.

Like a lot of guys with high emotions, he can top priority. "There's a reason he has a 125-81 career record," said Bosio. "He's overpowering at times and he's a competitor first and foremost. Those are great qualities to have when you're.