As I sat in the locker room of the Wisconsin Badgers I found myself in a state of awe.  I was back in Madison to enjoy a long weekend and the first home meet of the year, and of course I couldn’t resist a trip down memory lane.  Flipping through an old media guide, nostalgia filling my lungs, surrounded by the familiar sounds of ice tubs being filled and athletes playing about after a hard day’s practice, I couldn’t help but marvel at how many fantastic young men have sat in the same room dreaming of races, tempo runs, and that ever elusive podium.

Wisconsin Cross Country is an anomaly in the NCAA…it’s not a start up dynasty or simply some product of a few rich boosters and an abundance of distance scholarships to be handed out.  Since 1972 when the regional qualifying meet was first introduced, the Badgers have found themselves at every NCAA championships.  To further matters, an overwhelming amount of those years have seen the Badgers competing for a spot on the podium.  The rest are scattered with stray top ten finishes, and a very few teams settling for top fifteen.  All in all, the Badgers have never placed worse than 19^th at the big dance.  For the past decade or so, anything outside of a top five finish has been considered a relative disappointment.  If expectations are high for the Wisconsin Men’s Cross Country team this fall, they can take comfort in knowing that it’s nothing new.

What are new are the faces and taut frames that fill the uniforms of the perennial powerhouse that is Wisconsin.  The newest members of the Midwest’s sleeping giant got a bit of a wake up call this weekend however as one of the finest teams in the country was taken down by neighboring program Marquette.  The home opener has been a great way to check the progress of the supporting cast since the Zimmer Cross Country Course opened in the fall of 2009, the top contenders cheering on the sidelines of the low key affair as they try to figure out who will be joining them on the line in Terre Haute come November.  While the Badgers have made a habit of running away with this style of meet, this past weekend started the season off on an unusually sour note.   

One could spend hours over-analyzing exactly what went wrong for the young competitors this weekend: overtired legs that have been training for a 10k for months, complacency or lack of experience, unfamiliarity with the 6k distance…the list of excuses can go on and on.  But at the end of the day, this is a team that has spent nearly half a century embracing one simple fact.  There are no excuses come November 21^st. 

Returning All-Americans Maverick Darling (13^th) and Mohamed Ahmed (12^th) as well as former UVA standout Ryan Collins (32^nd) will look to carry on the proud tradition of the Badgers.  They will be joined by Elliot Krause (who spent 9600m of nationals as an All-American before collapsing several times down the final straight) as well as track standout Reed Connor. 

Also returning are contributors Drew Shields, the lone bright spot in an otherwise disappointing first outing.  His fellow teammates Alex Brill and Mike Brice among others will look to step up as they help the Badgers push for yet another trophy finish and their 13^th straight Big Ten title.

From here the Badgers will go to Champaign on September 16^th to get some more early season experience under their belt, hopefully this time with better results. 

For all your Badger needs including interviews and race summaries, be sure to check back every week as I report on the Badgers in the way only an alumnus of one of America’s premiere programs can.  Until then, On Wisconsin!