During the course of the day, while buried in the depths of the Daily Cardinal's bombshelterstyle office, I get to hear some of the major concerns and questions that exist in today's sports world. In this column, I would like to share a few of those with my devoted readers.
Q: When will Barry Alvarez retire as the Badger football head coach?
A: The addition of co-offensive coordinator Paul Chryst from Oregon State has undoubtedly surfaced this question, but don't expect any quick moves.
Logically, Alvarez will coach for at least five more years in order to reach the 20-year state pension mark. Assistants Brian White and Jeff Horton appear to be out of the running for Alvarez's successor, and have been replaced by Chryst and first year defensive coordinator Bret Bielema.
Keep in mind UW alumni would like nothing more than to keep the job within the family, giving a leg up to Chryst who graduated from Wisconsin in 1988, and coached for them as recently as 2002. But until Alvarez is prepared to retire and begin his political career in Madison, Chryst's hiring should immediately signal the end of White's days with the Badgers in the next two years.
Q: Will the Detroit Lions waive Joey Harrington and sign free agent Jeff Garcia?
A: This is an interesting story, as the aging veteran (Garcia) could reunite with former coach (Mariucci) and together vault an emerging franchise into the playoffs.
However, the logistics of this don't make sense at the time. The Lions, contrary to public opinion, are not quite ready to rid themselves of their number three pick of the 2002 draft. The team has too much invested in their young quarterback, and he finally may enter the 2005 season with healthy receivers around him in Carlos Rodgers and Roy Williams, coupled with an emerging ground game led by Kevin Jones.
Garcia is not the answer here, or for any other team in the NFL. Just ask the Redskins how well Mark Brunell panned out for them this past year.
Q: What should the Milwaukee Bucks do with guard Michael Redd?
A: This is a delicate issue for Bucks fans as their season has been a wash thus far and second year point guard T.J. Ford will not see the floor this season. Redd will become a free agent at the end of the season and rumors indicate that many teams have inquired about the services of the Bucks sharpshooter.
The right move here is to deal him for a young player and draft picks. One rumor floating around is Redd going to Golden State for Mike Dunleavy and their first round pick. Dunleavy has a huge upside and the Warriors appear to be headed for the lottery in the upcoming draft. If this trade or one similar to it is available for the Bucks before the deadline, they have to pull the trigger on a deal.
Q: Did I hear correctly that the UW swimming and diving teams had an intersquad scrimmage this weekend?
A: You are correct. The UW swimming and diving teams competed in the annual Cardinal/White scrimmage Feb. 4 at the UW Natatorium. The White squad edged the Cardinal squad by a score of 121-102.
The contest went into overtime when the Cardinal's junior diver Amanda Witte hit a huge pencil dive as time expired to tie the score at 112-112. But the White squad splashed back in the extra session as junior Sarah Hernandez took first in the 50-yard freestyle (23.86) to close out the event.
Badger fans may remember when Lee Evans tore his ACL during a intrasquad scrimmage two years ago, but should be happy to know that no one was injured during this competition.
Jon is a junior majoring in English and Journalism. If you have any questions you would like him to address, e-mail him at jrmcnamara@wisc.edu.
