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Barry Alvarez will coach Wisconsin in Outback Bowl (Update)
A day after Gary Andersen’s surprising departure from Wisconsin to Oregon State, Badgers athletic director Barry Alvarez was left to wonder who would coach the team in the Outback Bowl.
On Thursday he found the answer: himself.
Sound familiar?
Alvarez, the Badgers’ coach from 1990-2005, manned the sideline for the 2012 Rose Bowl (which UW lost 20-14 to Stanford) after Bret Bielema accepted Arkansas’ head coaching position. Under similar circumstances, the 67-year-old Alvarez will do it again when UW takes on Auburn on New Year’s Day in Tampa, Fla.
“A number of the seniors met with me on Wednesday after our team meeting and asked if I would consider coaching the team,” Alvarez said in a statement. “I told them I would have to sleep on it. After thinking it over and meeting with some of the seniors again this morning I have decided to coach. I feel this gives our assistants an opportunity to concentrate on getting the team ready for a very good opponent in Auburn. My goal is to make sure our players, especially the seniors playing their last game, have a memorable experience and we do everything we can to prepare to win the game.”
Alvarez, who also is a member of the College Football Playoff selection committee, took over as University athletic director while still assuming the head coaching position in 2004. He stepped aside after the 2005 season (culminating with a win over Auburn in the Capital One Bowl) and promoted Bielema, his defensive coordinator.
When Bielema left, Alvarez hired Andersen away from Utah State prior to the 2013 season. In two seasons at the helm, Andersen led the Badgers to a 19-7 record, but dropped the Big Ten title game 59-0 to Ohio State on Saturday.
Alvarez said Wednesday that he was “very surprised” by Andersen’s sudden departure.
For more Wisconsin news, visit BadgerBlitz.com.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
