THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1969 Monday, October 24, 2011
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Volume XLIII, Issue 35
City proposes $1M in extra spending News Reporter Members of the Madison City Council are proposing to add $1 million in spending to the mayor ’s budget for 2012, $500,000 of which will go
to the Overture Center. The council proposed 29 amendments that will add a total of $1 million of spending to Mayor Paul Soglin’s $250.4 million budget for 2012, which mainly focuses on the development of the Overture Center and other
community services. Ald. Lauren Cnare, District 3, said a major part of the increased spending would fulfill the city’s commitment to funding the Overture Center. The proposed $500,000 is in addition to the initial $1.35 million
$500,000
$400,000
Overture Center funding
Other community projects
Sex charges on alder dropped Kaylie Duff y News Reporter The Dane County District Attorney’s office believes a city employees’s accusation that she was sexually assaulted by a Madison alder, but will not pursue the case because of insufficient evidence. Assistant DA Shelly Rusch said Solomon although the district attorney’s office will not follow up on the allegations of sexual assault made by assistant city clerk Elena Berg against Ald. Brain Solomon, District 10, she believes the accusations are true. “There is no doubt in my mind that Ms. Berg did not consent,” she said. Despite Rusch’s convictions, a jury of 12 would have had to unanimously agree beyond a reasonable doubt for the allegations of sexual intrusion to be pursued, a letter sent by Rusch to the state Department of Justice said. Solomon denied all allegations. “[They are] false accusations,” he said. “I deny any wrongdoing, and it is a horrible thing to have happened.” According to the letter,
if the allegations had gone to trial, the defendant’s attorney would have presented the jury with a list of “reasonable hypotheses” consistent with the client’s innocence. The letter went on to say that both Berg and Solomon were engaging in social drinking the night before the alleged assault in the early morning hours of April 14. Both were highly intoxicated. Rusch also wrote the defense attorney could have argued Berg accepted a ride back to her house from Solomon, even though another coworker volunteered to drive her home. Consensual kissing occurred on the walk back to the car and on Berg’s bed. The letter said at about 5 a.m. the following morning, Berg found Solomon penetrating her with two to three fingers. Later that morning, however, personnel at the City County Building witnessed the two together and said that Berg was “tipsy” but not incapacitated. The two also appeared equally affectionate, Rusch said. Solomon and Berg had contradicting accounts of the morning of April 14, Rusch said. Berg said that the digital penetration “really hurt,” while Solomon claimed Berg
Library
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CITY BUDGET AMENDMENTS: BY THE NUMBERS
$100,000
Andrea Choi
allotted in the mayor ’s budget. “It’s likely that some amendments will get approved and incorporated into the progress and some of them will fail,” said Cnare, the council’s president. “I think it’s difficult to say which of that is going make it to the process. We take care of services such as removing snow on the road. We also want to make sure we get proper and sufficient payments for these services.”
One amendment suggested to improve services was the addition of three employees to work on snow removal at bus stops, Cnare said. Another suggested project is adding an additional $100,000 to the library budget, Cnare said. The extra funding would allow Madison libraries to spend extra on library materials like books and CDs for 2012. The proposed increase in the library budget is due to a survey published on
the City Council website, where 71.8 percent of people surveyed ranked books, eBooks and digital collections in public libraries as “very important” services for the community. In terms of the Overture Center, 48.2 percent of surveyed subjects ranked it as “highly important” to the community. Cnare said City Council members are looking very carefully into all
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Hard to swallow Wisconsin defensive tackle Patrick Butrym looks on as all of Michigan State rejoices in the Spartans’ improbable game-winning Hail Mary, which bounced around the endzone before falling into the arms of Keith Nichol at the 1-yard line. UW seemingly ensured overtime after scoring two late touchdowns, but watched its second chance disappear in dramatic fashion.
Megan McCormick The Badger Herald
FOR FULL STORY SEE SPORTS, page 8
ALDER, page 2
DOR: State not on track to create 250,000 jobs by 2015 Fall 2011 report on economic stance shows governors’ promise unlikely Matt Huppert State Editor Gov. Scott Walker may not create the 250,000 jobs by 2015 as promised as a keystone of his campaign, according to a Department of Revenue report released Friday. The report, which reflected on the economic progress made during Fall 2011, said the government will have created 136,000 private sector jobs by 2014. Since the recovery period began in February 2010, 42,800 jobs were created, and about onefourth of those were lost in the recession. In recent months, recovery has slowed in Wisconsin and the nation, according to the report. The report also said that by 2015 there will be 200,000 more people living in the state, but the same number of jobs as in 2008. Zhao Lim The Badger Herald Jay Heck, director of Gov. Scott Walker’s administration admitted Friday it would likely not meet its campaign keystone promise of creating 250,000 new jobs throughout the state by watchdog group Common 2015. While critics say Walker has not spent enough time committed to jobs, Walker and his peers said the administration has made leaps in beginning progress. Cause in Wisconsin, said © 2011 BADGER HERALD
“We all know that the report shows that Walker focused on issues there’s still work to be other than job creation done, but we’re moving during his first months in the right direction,” in office. As such, Heck Welhouse said. According to the report, said, the numbers for new the current economic developments are lower. predicts an “Walker ’s central forecast unemployment promise rate of 7.7 was to percent in 2011 create “These forecasts and 7.8 percent jobs in change every in 2012. Wisconsin, Welhouse and he time; they’re said spent an obviously not economic the awful lot of set in stone. It’s predictions are time doing other things just a projection, susceptible to rather than and we hope the change. “These creating things we’ve been forecasts jobs,” Heck said. doing will turn change every “Perhaps into results that time; they’re obviously not if he spent more time are better than the set in stone,” expectations.” Welhouse doing what said. “It’s just he promised projection to do, the Andrew Welhouse a report Spokesperson and we hope Senate Majority Leader the things would have been been more Scott Fitzgerald we’ve doing will turn optimistic.” into results Andrew Welhouse, spokeserson that are better than the for Senate Majority Leader expectations.” Welhouse said the Scott Fitzgerald, said the special report highlighted the first Legislature’s year of growth after three session is focusing on creating an environment years of decline. The report forecasted for businesses to grow a 1.1 percent increase in WALKER, page 3 employment for 2011.
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The Badger Herald | News | Monday, October 24, 2011
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Walker supports curbing ‘double dipping’ Sam Heo News Reporter Gov. Scott Walker announced Friday his support for an Assembly bill which that for measures to curb “double dipping,” a practice that allows employees to collect both pensions and paychecks. Current law allows a participant in the Wisconsin Retirement System to receive both annuity and wages after he or she has terminated her participation in the WRS and thus, losing his
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that an employee is getting away with something illegal or unethical. In fact, many workplaces re-hire recent retirees as contract or temporary employees,” Burden said. “As [Vice Chancellor for Administration] Darrell Bazzell pointed out, the practice often saves money in the short-term because the university is not paying fringe benefits on those employees. The pros and cons of ‘double dipping’ are thus more complicated than it initially seems.” Jay Heck, executive
director of Common Cause Wisconsin, fears the bill might affect the overall employment of the state. “When someone retires from state service, they are entitled to a pension,” Heck said. “But does that mean that their usefulness is over? You know, there may be the case that it might be more prudent to rehire these people because they have experience in working in the state, rather than hiring someone brand new and have to train them again.”
The governor has affirmed that workers should not be prohibited to work because of collecting a pension; rather, they should be allowed to enter the work field so their experience and expertise can be used for the state, Heck said. Julie Laundrie, spokesperson for Sen. John Erpenbach, D-Madison, said the senator does not have an opinion on whether or not the bill could have negative implications because the bill has not been heard in a public hearing.
Out-of-staters can carry concealed firearms Leopoldo Rocha
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or her eligibility to receive group insurance benefits. However, under the double dipping bill, a WRS participant who has received a position in the covered employment is not eligible to collect a pension until the participant terminates his or her covered employment. Barry Burden, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin, said he does not share the governor’s enthusiasm for the double dipping bill. “To call the practice ‘double dipping’ suggests
Residents of more than two dozen states will be able to legally carry handguns into Wisconsin when the state’s concealed carry law goes into action Nov. 1. On Thursday, Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen released a list of 25 states and two territories whose residents will be allowed to carry weapons into Wisconsin. The legislation will allow Wisconsin residents to carry a concealed weapon provided they are above the age of 21 years and have the correct permits and requirements. Out-of-state owners who have a permit issued by their state must “submit to a background search
that is comparable to Wisconsin’s background check,” according to the concealed carry FAQ page on the Department of Justice website. While the full list of states that Wisconsin would allow has not yet been released or completed, the DOJ will continue to update it if they deem another state’s requirements meet Wisconsin standards, DOJ spokesperson Dana Brueck said in an email to The Badger Herald. She said the full list will be available to the public by the Nov. 1 enactment date. According to the DOJ website, the reciprocity list of the states the DOJ released this week is not a mutual agreement between the states. Gun owners who live in Wisconsin cannot
carry their weapons into another state unless that state decides to place Wisconsin on a reciprocity list as well, the website said. If a Wisconsin resident has a permit from another state for their weapon, they are not allowed to carry the weapon in Wisconsin unless they register it with the DOJ, according to the DOJ website. Jeri Bonavia, executive director of the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort, a statewide grassroots organization working to prevent gun violence, said she disagreed with the new reciprocity rules because background checks in every state can vary greatly. “They are opening Wisconsin up to individuals from out of state carrying guns
who have gone through very little training and background checks that may or may not be adequate,” Bonavia said. The National Rifle Association, an organization that advocates for gun rights in the U.S., is “110 percent” in support of requiring gun owners to receive some sort of training, NRA spokesperson Rachel Parsons said. Still, Parsons said NRA supports concealed carry reciprocity agreements between states. “Arbitrary state lines should not impede people from carrying a firearm for self-protection if they have a permit for it,” Parsons said. State Rep. Kelda Roys, D-Madison, said she was unhappy about the concealed carry law,
Newly hired dean set to lead CALS Selby Rodriguez Campus Editor The search for a new College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Dean has ended, the University of Wisconsin announced Friday. Kathryn VandenBosch will replace Interim Dean William VanderBosch Tracy March 1 as head of the college, which encompasses 19 varying academic departments, according to a UW statement. VandenBosch, who is both the head and a professor in the University of Minnesota Department of Plant Biology, expressed
enthusiasm over her new position. “I’m really enthusiastic and excited to be coming to Madison and joining the UW family,” she said. “I look forward to being here.” VandenBosch was one of the three finalists announced early in August and has an extensive background in plant biology, the statement said. Having talked to Provost Paul Deluca over the past week before Friday’s announcement, VandenBosch said the two agreed on conditions fairly quickly. VandenBosch also said she was unaware of the hunt for a new dean until she received a letter from the CALS search
and screen committee, after which she applied a month later. Comparing UW to her current residence at the University of Minnesota, VandenBosch said she was eager to begin working on a campus where all the life sciences are integrated instead of separated. “It’s exciting to me how the life sciences here are so strong,” VandenBosch said. “In terms of supporting science on campus, there’s continuity with all the life sciences being neighbors on campus.” She added she is excited to see what she could bring to this unique set-up. VandenBosch received her Master of Science and
Halloween Extravaganza! Members of the Madison community gathered at the Henry Vilas Zoo Sunday to participate in Halloween at the Zoo, an alternative to trick or treating with live music, treats and games. Zhao Lim The Badger Herald
Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts, according to the University of Minnesota Plant Biology website. The UW statement said she also spent time on campus as a postdoctoral associate, which VandenBosch said was a memorable experience for her. VandenBosch said she has been a fan of UW since her initial visit. Citing the campus’ locations and its historic buildings — one of which CALS is located in — VandenBosch said she is looking forward to the move and a smooth transition. “I was [at UW] 25 years ago as a post-doc, and I’ve been back to visit from time to time,” she said. “I think it’s terrific.”
ALDER, from 1 thanked him for respecting her boundaries. Rusch said Berg suffers from specific psychological issues stemming from already being the victim of a past sexual assault. The jury may consider the issue of re-traumatizing a victim. If a case did take place, Berg would be required to consent to the disclosure of her otherwise confidential counseling records. The defense could also use her past traumas as evidence of “buyer ’s remorse,” Rusch said. This means the victim may have consented to the sexual act, but later wished she had not. Rusch was skeptical of Solomon’s account, because Solomon was aware that Berg suffers from traumarelated psychological issues. “I can’t fathom how they could come up with that,” Solomon said, when asked to respond to Rusch’s skepticism. “I definitely didn’t do anything inappropriate.” While the allegations will not be pursued, Rusch said this incident will be taken into account if Solomon is suspected of similar behavior in the future. Check out badgerherald. com to see a full copy of the letter.
regardless of the new reciprocity agreement, but said specifically the training requirements the law requires for gun owners in Wisconsin are insufficient. Roys said the training specified in the law and by the DOJ does not to do enough to prevent inexperienced or improper use of firearms by permitted gun owners. “The training should require basic training that ensures those who want to carry a concealed weapon know how to handle a firearm and have actually fired a gun before,” Roys said. “It is unfortunate that this law was passed in such a hasty manner and we couldn’t fully explore this issue before it became law, but that seems to be a pattern of this Legislature.”
SPENDING, from 1 of the proposed amendments to ensure that each is necessary. “I think the questions we need to ask are ‘Do we need them?’ and ‘Do we need them now?’” she said. “We have to understand what each amendment means and how each influences society depending on individual preference.” David Schmiedicke, the city’s Finance Director, said the major impact of the increased spending would be an increase in taxes for the average home. If all of the amendments are approved, an additional $1.5 million above the mayor ’s budget will be needed in taxes, he said. According to the Board of Estimates’ meeting agenda, other proposed amendments include the removal of funding for a Performing Arts Study, the allocation of $30,000 to the Police Department for a Southwest Safety Initiative and additional funding to the Parks Forestry service to perform early detection of the Emerald Ash Borer. The proposed changes will be considered at this week’s Board of Estimates meeting Monday for a discussion on the additional spending. Board members will have a vote on the amendments. Based on the Board of Estimate’s recommendations, the City Council will then consider the amendments in their entirety before taking a final vote. The full council will consider the mayor ’s proposed budget and decide whether to approve the amendments in mid-November.
The Badger Herald | News | Monday, October 24, 2011
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‘Pass the Mic’ brings diverse artists to campus Olivia Demarinis News Reporter Passing the Mic’s poetry slam on Saturday night concluded the third and final event of the Spoken Word Series put on by the 2011 Wisconsin Film Festival. After the Festival’s Just Bust Spoken Word and Encyclopedia Show Thursday and Friday nights, the seventh annual Passing the Mic event at the Overture Center brought newcomers in the poetry world and heavy-hitters like well-known word artists Sonia Sanchez and Danny Simmons to the stage. Emphasizing the title of
the poetry performance, the show was a delivery of the microphone through many generations of poets. Beginning with high school teens from across the Midwest to University of Wisconsin students, the night concluded with a showcase of professional poets. “[It’s] really exciting,” said Office of Multicultural Arts Initiative Executive Director Willie Ney. “[This] is one of the truest of our multigenerational spoken word events.” High school Midwest Youth Poetry Slam All-Stars from Detroit, Milwaukee, the Twin Cities and Chicago were selected to perform with other artists.
After several teens delivered their poems, the mic was passed to UW’s First Wave Hip Hop Theater Ensemble. Founded in 2007, the group is unique nationally as the “first four-year scholarship for spoken word hip hop [artists],” according to Ney. A select group of only fifteen become each year’s “cohort” and are personally taught and trained by Director Chris Walker on performance in several different genres. Ney, who also founded First Wave, said programs like this are instrumental because they bring in an educational aspect ignored in the classroom.
“[First Wave] continues their own authentic stories and identities in their work, where many traditional programs wouldn’t,” he said. The First Wave performers Saturday epitomized this individualized attention with the impressions they sought to leave on audience members, both through style and subject matter, Ney said. Def Poetry on Broadway stars Black Ice and Mayda del Valle took the stage following the high schoolers. Their poetry reflected on the marginalized groups in society and the marginalized portions
In focus: Sexual abuse treatment Seung Park News Reporter The University of Wisconsin will host the 27th Annual Midwest Conference on Child Sexual Abuse today to explore ways to treat and diagnose the abuse. The conference is expected to draw more than 900 attendees, according to Jeffrey Russell, the vice provost for Lifelong Learning and the dean of the Division of Continuing Studies. “The majority of attendees come from the fields of social work,” Associate Dean and Conference Chair James Campbell. “We also have psychologists, attorneys, teachers, medical professionals and members of law enforcement.” There are several conferences around the country focusing on child sexual abuse, Campbell said. “The UW conference deals specifically with
treatment issues, and the majority of attendees are practitioners who provide direct services,” Campbell said. Although there have been talks of expanding the upcoming conference to target a wider range of topics, Campbell said the conference will remain intensely focused on ways to diagnose and treat the symptoms of child abuse in the near future. Campbell acknowledged the field of study can be quite challenging to work in as it is an area that is sensitive and can drastically impact victims’ lives. “Frankly, the sensitive nature of the crimes and the impact they have on people’s lives needs specific attention,” he said. “This conference is purposefully designed for professionals dealing with this specific area.” For Campbell, who first became interested in the topic when he was
an undergraduate, the conference is only one of many steps toward greater recognition of the problem as a whole. Campbell added people need to be aware that there are professionals taking steps to provide support for victims and that these professionals are currently working hard to increase the ways reports of abuse can be substantiated. Russell emphasized how large of a problem sexual violence is and that steps can and should be taken to prevent its occurrence. “The silent epidemic of child sexual abuse can be prevented with the conscientious, continued efforts of informed individuals,” Russell said. “No human being should be violated by another. When it happens, we need to address and treat the trauma.” Campbell agreed in an interview, while also
pointing out how large a problem child sexual abuse is in society. He also said child abuse does not discriminate and can affect children of all races, classes and economic standings. This, he said, is why it is so important to increase protection and support for children. “We have a responsibility to try and give [all children] a chance and provide support for them, just as many other children have that opportunity,” he said. Recent studies have shown that the efforts of activists like Campbell may have paid off. However, the problem is far from being solved, Campbell said. “We have to be very careful about discounting reports of abuse because we’re dealing with children,” he said. “I just feel like we have an obligation and responsibility [toward the victims].”
within each individual in society. Well-known poet and playwright Jessica Care-Moore also performed some of her own poetry on the struggles of her home city, Detroit. Simmons and Sanchez gave keynote addresses at the end of the evening. Both are published authors with their own different personalities. Simmons preceded Sanchez with a few poems, stating he was going to read his works and let, “a real poet get up here [on stage].” Sanchez’s performance was the opposite. She flew through poems characterizing her spoken word style with works
WALKER, from 1 and several bills have been introduced to accomplish that goal. Heck said the special session legislation contained several bills that do nothing to promote job creation. “These are bills that have to do with abortion and other things that further divide the people of this state rather then bring them together in a common goal to improve the economy,” Heck said.
containing “scat” jazz riffs and repetitions of her design. The evening’s performances were a collaboration between the Wisconsin Book Festival and Just Bust Spoken Word & Hip Hop Open Mic. The program involves UW students performing their own slam poetry series and occurs on the first Friday of every month. Ney emphasized how the unique multicultural programming on campus mirrors society at large. “It’s a reflection of our world, we live in a multilingual, multiracial, multi-religious world. Here we represent all voices,” Ney said.
Editorial Page Editor Allegra Dimperio oped@badgerherald.com
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The Badger Herald | Opinion | Monday, October 24, 2011
Opinion
Vague wording in pension plan leads to squabbles Vincent Borkowski Staff Writer It was recently released in the news that Gov. Scott Walker has indeed kept the promise he made during his campaign to pay his pension cost, just as he is requiring all state employees to do. The main argument, however, is over the timing. Walker is quoted to have said he would begin paying it “immediately.” The gray area of this word is where his opponents have chosen to strike. Like vultures awaiting an easy meal, liberals have focused in on his ambiguous language, but really they’re just grasping at straws. Walker began paying his pension cost in August, when the law required him to do so, whereas his opponents say he should have paid “immediately” in January, right after he was elected. Walker has backed up his choice to pay in August instead of January, saying he has paid closer to what state employees will have to pay (something to the tune of 6.7 percent) by paying later. Had he paid in January, he would have saved around 5,000 clams.
So Walker pays more deficit Jim Doyle created money for the cost of his during the last 18 years. pension, and already the Wisconsin is 10 billion (yup, billion vultures have descended? dollars I really do not understand with a “b”) in the hole, yet some still the “logic” believe Walker of Walker ’s trying to hurt opponents. I really don’t is our economy. He’s at fault understand the Michael Moore for paying wrong more “logic” of Walk- was when he said money? er’s opponents. Wisconsin He’s at He’s at fault for wasn’t in debt. fault for paying more We are. supporting But now the bill he money? He’s at Walker is fixing created? fault for sup- the deficit and He’s at fault porting the bill holding himself because he wishes to he created? He’s to the same spending be treated at fault because high standards. the same he wishes to It’s certainly as the state different employees be treated the a he’s same as the state Wisconsin now that this is the affecting? employees he’s first time in 18 Sounds a bit like liberal affecting? Sounds years that we desperation. a bit like liberal have a projected state I would desperation. positive money balance. have Wisconsin had preferred my governor to pay the suffered under Doyle percentage I have to pay for too long and we’ve in order to fix our state’s forgotten what a balance failing economy. The without a negative sign arguments previously really means. It means had been focused on how jobs. It means hope. It Walker “doesn’t listen to means economic recovery. These liberal vultures the people” and yet here he is treating himself seem to poke at the like one of us. Walker most nominal issues; wants to fix the spend- Walker isn’t able to tie happy economy and the his shoes in the morning
Megan McCormick The Badger Herald
During his campaign, one of the promises Gov. Scott Walker made was that he would pay his pension cost immediately. Liberals say Walker broke his word; “immediately” implied he would pay directly upon his inauguration. without someone calling him a fascist. It is more pertinent, however, that the vultures really focus on the important issues, like why our economy needs to be fixed and why government spending is not the answer to everything.
The picking apart of Walker ’s speeches to the point of debating a single word is embarrassing. “Immediately” is all relative, especially when in the end you end up paying more to unite yourself with Wisconsinites
everywhere. Walker has kept his promises and more, and will continue to rehabilitate our Wisconsin economy. Vincent Borkowski (vborkowski@wisc.edu) is a junior majoring in neurobiology.
Traumatic brain injury legislation can benefit athletes Charles Godfrey Columnist Wisconsin lawmakers are taking steps to protect youth athletes from repeated concussions. A bill currently before the Legislature would cover youth sports from ages 11 to 19 and require coaches to take a player out of the game or practice immediately if the player may have had a traumatic brain injury. The athlete would not be allowed to play again until he or she has written permission from a health care provider. Given the medical evidence demonstrating the huge risk associated with successive concussions, allowing an athlete to
play with an existing brain injury is flat-out stupid. Contact sports are a beautiful thing. There is something about a big hit that taps into the deeper layers of human consciousness, activating emotions that evolved long before business casual, silverware and napkins, or before the automobile was even a blip on the horizon. I’m a Minnesotan who may have been taught how to skate before he could walk, so I learned at an early age not to shy away from contact. And because I wasn’t the most prolific goal scorer to set foot on the ice, I usually made it my objective to run into people and create disorder. It was exciting, and every time I stepped out onto the ice I got an adrenaline rush. There are many euphemisms that describe the blunt force trauma of a high-energy
collision — “he really report that appeared got laid out,” or “he just in the New York Times got labeled,” to name a said in sports such as and hockey, few of the less profane football examples. There are as diagnosed concussions many phrases to describe may represent as little as the mild traumatic brain one-sixth or one-seventh injuries that go with of the actual number of these collisions, such as concussions. I think most players and “having a few coaches would cobwebs” or “seeing stars.” “Having a agree with these It’s a feeling few cobwebs” estimates. The longthat most or “seeing term effects of athletes learn to ignore. stars”[is] a concussions can These feeling most be devastating. Post-concussion lighthearted athletes learn syndrome colloquialisms to ignore. symptoms can make light include chronic of a serious headaches, medical loss and issue. Contact sports are memory inextricably linked with clinical depression. The Journal traumatic brain injuries. Milwaukee reported In a report on non-fatal Sentinel traumatic brain injuries 15-year-old Josh Inhof’s in adolescents, the Center experience with sportsfor Disease Control and related brain injuries. Prevention found that Inhof, recovering from concussions emergency room visits multiple for TBIs almost doubled he was diagnosed with after being knocked between 2001 and 2009. An analysis of the CDC unconscious in a high-
school football game a week ago, continues to have headaches and still can’t watch television or read. Concussions have a cumulative effect on the brain, and symptoms become progressively more severe as subsequent concussions are sustained. For Inhof, this may have been the reason behind the severity of his concussion — he probably got one concussion during practice earlier in the week that was never diagnosed, and a second, possibly a third, during a game a few days later. Because the symptoms of repeated concussions are so severe, these undiagnosed concussions represent a serious danger for youth athletes. This legislation is an important measure to protect kids from the inherent dangers of contact sports, which are often overlooked by parents and coaches,
and of which youth athletes are rarely aware. This is only half of the solution. The other half is education and awareness; contact sports can teach young athletes important life lessons, but none of these is worth the lifelong repercussions of a brain injury. Even as youth sports become more and more competitive and demanding every year, parents, coaches and the athletes themselves must be conscious of the fact that health and safety is a priority. It is the responsibility of Wisconsin lawmakers, athletic directors, coaches and parents to make sure traumatic experiences like the Inhofs’ are avoided, through handling concussions with all the caution and attention that they deserve. Charles Godfrey (cwgodfrey@wisc.edu) is a sophomore majoring in math and physics.
THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE BITCHY A roundup of some of the more thought-provoking (or thoughtless) comments left on badgerherald.com In response to the 10/20 column:
FLAME ad promotes negative stereotype of Muslims by Sami Ghani
The ad promoted hateful language, and thus a non-rational (read: emotional) response was justified. The crux of real democracy is more [than] fact and reason, as can be seen within any protest, democracy is highly emotional... The writer makes the distinction between free-speech and responsible-speech, it is NOT contradictory, and he is NOT confused. The Badger Herald should be more careful in printing such ads. We all have a common interest in this newspaper. What is so difficult about that? In response to the 10/20 column:
The Dalai Lama: more figurehead than expert by Ryan Plesh Taylor Nye The Badger Herald
… Even though [the Dalai Lama] might not be a certified expert in some field doesn’t mean he’s got to zip the lip about the topic. I could easily apply your logic to get out of a paper I have to write for class -- I’m no expert, so I can’t talk about it!! In response to the 10/19 column:
Better answers required to justify holistic admissions process by W. Lee Hansen
The CEO’s study doesn’t have enough data to draw firm conclusions about statistical discrimination, but it does lead readers to conclude that a better analysis with more data (like Lee proposes here) should be done. Only then can we have a better idea of whether UW’s admissions unjustly favor one group over another. Your Opinion · Send your letters to the editor and guest columns to oped@badgerherald.com. Publication is based on space and takes into account relevance and quality. Letters should be sent exclusively to the Herald. Unsigned letters will not be published. All submissions may be edited by the Herald for length and style. Reader feedback on all articles and columns can be posted at badgerherald.com, where all print content is archived.
Comics
Jokes Now Recycled from Funnier Publications Noah J. Yuenkel comics@badgerherald.com
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The Badger Herald | Comics | Monday, October 24, 2011
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MIKE BERG
NONSENSE? Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x3 box contains 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9. What? You still don’t get it? Come, on, really? It’s not calculus or anything. Honestly, if you don’t know how to do a sudoku by now, you’ve probably got more issues than this newspaper.
TWENTY POUND BABY
DIFFICULTY RATING: Stealing all them laffs
HERALD COMICS
PRESENTS
K
A
K
U
R
O
baby@badgerherald.com
STEPHEN TYLER CONRAD
YOURMOMETER
LAURA “HOBBES” LEGAULT
C’EST LA MORT
PARAGON
yourmom@badgerherald.com
HOW DO I
KAKURO?
I know, I know. Kakuro. Looks crazy, right? This ain’t no time to panic, friend, so keep it cool and I’ll walk you through. Here’s the low down: each clue tells you what the sum of the numbers to the right or down must add up to. Repeating numbers? Not in this part of town. And that’s that, slick.
paragon@badgerherald.com
The Kakuro Unique Sum Chart Cells Clue 2 3 2 4 2 16 2 17
DIFFICULTY RATING: Paying all them legal fees
REHABILITATING MR. WIGGLES
Possibilities { 1, 2 } { 1, 3 } { 7, 9 } { 8, 9 }
3 3 3 3
6 7 23 24
{ 1, 2, 3 } { 1, 2, 4 } { 6, 8, 9 } { 7, 8, 9 }
4 4 4 4
10 11 29 30
{ 1, 2, 3, 4 } { 1, 2, 3, 5 } { 5, 7, 8, 9 } { 6, 7, 8, 9 }
5 5 5 5
15 16 34 35
{ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 } { 4, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 }
6 6 6 6
21 22 38 39
{ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 } { 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 }
7 7 7 7
28 29 41 42
{ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8 } { 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 }
8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8
36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44
{ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 }
www.neilswaab.com
NEIL SWAAB
MADCAPS
HERALD COMICS 1
2
3
4
PRESENTS 5
13
6
pascle@badgerherald.com
28
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random@badgerherald.com
ERICA LOPPNOW
25
33
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38 39
34
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47
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48 50
60
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58
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59 61
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62 64
45
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Puzzle by Julian Lim
CLASSIC PRIMAL URGES
MODERN CONSERVATIVE MOVEMENT
THE SKY PIRATES
primal@badgerherald.com
ANDREW MEGOW
COLLIN LA FLEUR
DENIS HART
mcm@badgerherald.com
skypirate@badgerherald.com
Across 1 Common interjection on 27-/44-Across 5 Corn, wheat or soybeans 9 Mobile downloadables 13 Ark builder 14 Amours 16 Underground part of a plant 17 Where plankwalkers end up on 27-/44-Across 20 Often-purple flowers 21 500 sheets 22 Big bird Down Under 23 “It’s the ___ I can do” 25 “Hold it!,” on 27-/44-Across 27 With 44-Across, annual celebration on 9/19 31 That woman 32 Yours, in Tours 33 Never, in Nuremberg
41
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CROSSWORD 35
31
43
RANDOM DOODLES
12
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40
57
11
19
30
36
10
16
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32
46
9
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RYAN PAGELOW
8 15
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BUNI
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madcaps@badgerherald.com
MOLLY MALONEY
34 Gog and ___ (enemies of God, in Revelation) 36 Deep-toned woodwind 38 Bird in a “tuxedo” 40 Malevolent spirit 41 Cushion 42 Actress Swenson of “Benson” 43 Asian electronics giant 44 See 27-Across 46 Treasure on 27-/44-Across 48 Sometimessprained joint 49 Pretend 50 Watch sound 52 Playmate of Tinky Winky, Dipsy and Po 57 “I don’t believe it!,” on 27-/44-Across 60 “___ la Douce” 61 Ultimate authority 62 “The Art
of Fugue” composer 63 Onetime competitor of Nair 64 Glowing gas 65 Hello, on 27-/44-Across Down 1 “I’ve fallen … ___ can’t get up!” 2 Surf sound 3 Sitar player Shankar 4 John ___-Davies of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy 5 Get near to 6 Harry Potter’s best friend 7 Be a foreman of 8 Onetime money in Spain 9 Curve 10 Do some investigating 11 Sonnets and haikus 12 Peacock’s walk 15 1970s radical org.
Get today’s puzzle solutions at badgerherald.com
18 Set, as mousse 19 Resident of Nebraska’s largest city 24 Related (to) 26 ___ burger (meatless dish) 27 Key on the far left of a keyboard 28 Not much 29 Take immediate steps 30 Destiny 34 Award hung on a chain or
47 51 53 54 55
56 58 59
ribbon Prefix with byte Immature egg cell The “P” of PRNDL Aye’s opposite Ocular inflammation also known as conjunctivitis Dotchomping character in a classic arcade game What there’s no “I” in Place to wash up Autumn hue 1040 org. “Mamma Mia” group Jacob’s first wife Californiabased oil giant Like a used barbecue pit Winery container General on a Chinese menu
Rocky the Herald Comics Raccoon™
That was not how 300 was supposed to end.
ArtsEtc. Editor Sarah Witman arts@badgerherald.com
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The Badger Herald | Arts | Monday, October 24, 2011
ArtsEtc.
Paranormal prequel uninspired, predictable Acting within third ‘Activity’ film shaky as its ‘Blair Witch’ style videography Shelby Lewis ArtsEtc. Writer It’s hard to imagine that anything new, interesting or exciting could possibly happen in the “Paranormal Activity” series’ third attempt at a decently scary film. The biggest shock in the theater this year wasn’t the overused demon motif or the cheesy, superficial acting. The surprise was the large crowd that flocked to watch the movie. Despite the overwhelming predictability due to the two previous films, “Paranormal Activity 3” tried its best to stir up a new plot line, setting and cast of characters. The film once again chronicles Katie and Kristi, two sisters with a haunted past and a whole lot of problems, this time flashing back to their family home in 1988. Like many curious and rambunctious children, the two make good company with an invisible friend.
Unfortunately, the invisible friend turns out to be an insidious demonic entity whose only agenda is to possess and terrify the family members. The entity, dubbed “Toby” by young Kristi, sets off a series of creepy and mysterious events no one in the household can seem to explain. This, of course, causes their father to take heroic initiative by setting up video cameras to capture the strange encounters on tape and prove to his stubborn wife that something really is wrong. The lack of plot or character development gave the film a very quick pace that became difficult to follow at times. With a duration of only 80 minutes, the film had to rapidly present audience members with information, themes and characters that were succinct, but hardly explained. Much of the plot could have been elaborated on, and key background details that offered important information to all three of the installments were hardly given any attention at all. As such, the movie lacked resolution, and the most dominant emotion the ending stirred
Photo courtesy of Blumhouse Productions
‘Paranormal Activity 3,’ which opened in theaters last week, is a decent effort but takes far too many cues from its predecessors. was curiosity. Unless filmmakers are up for a fourth round of the paranormal, some activities will just remain a mystery. The reoccurring scare tactics used throughout the “Paranormal” trilogy remain fun to watch but have become far too predictable. The infamous “home video” recording technique that gave movies like “The Blair Witch Project” their own moments in the spotlight only served to show audiences what they had
already seen numerous times before: ceiling lamps that swing on their own, hanging picture frames that fall for no reason at all and doors that open and slam shut as if by an invisible hand. Allowing moviegoers to always know what to look for and what to expect was a good way for filmmakers to keep everyone’s eyes on the screen but a bad way to keep things spontaneous and fresh. One interesting twist was the addition of
humor in unexpected places. The ‘80’s setting worked particularly well with this idea, serving up numerous glimpses of faded jean jackets, Bill Cosby sweaters, side ponytails and brick-sized telephones amongst an array of demonic spirits and ghostly apparitions. It was hard not to chuckle when the sisters’ parents decided to make a sex tape one blustery evening, only to have the evil entity ruin their sultry plans with a miniature earthquake in
their bedroom. Similarly, another comical scene depicts a teenage babysitter fleeing the scene after her own ghostly encounter and leaving the sleeping sisters alone with the evil entity (it’s the golden rule of babysitting — always leave the children behind if you fear danger). Although at times it was hard to take the movie too seriously — especially after reveling in the missteps of the first two films — it was quite delightful to find that laughter and video footage of realistic demonic possessions can indeed coexist. Overall, “Paranormal Activities 3” wasn’t too much of a dud. Despite being almost an exact replica of the first two films and leaving little room for the unexpected, the film was consistently suspenseful and didn’t fail to provoke some gasps of horror from the viewers. The movie was far better than the second installment, but still couldn’t beat the freakiness and disbelief of the first.
½
Paranormal Activity 3 Henry Joost, Ariel Schulman
Fourth album lacks cohesive creativity Jane’s Addiction disappoints ’90s era fanbase with poor lyrical style, unmemorable artistry Jacob Fricke ArtsEtc. Writer Jane’s Addiction has never really been comfortable with its place in music. Emerging in the late ’80s, its style never fit the “grunge” label. Embraced by hipsters and critics, the group released two albums before band infighting tore its members apart. Intermittent reunions over the next decade eventually led to a mediocre third album in 2003. After another breakup, reformation and four bass players, Jane’s Addiction has released their fourth album, The Great Escape Artist. Jane’s Addiction’s style hasn’t changed much since they hit the scene about 20 years ago. Bombastic Led Zeppelin-inspired
riffs are accompanied by heavy bass and a thick drum sound. Layered over the top are Perry Farrell’s high-pitched vocals. While often fitting, they occasionally stray to be annoying, especially on this album. The Great Escape Artist lacks identity. Guitarist Dave Navarro is stellar, as always, and his solos steal the show on nearly every track. The drums, pompous and loud, are similarly well done. The problem emerges when you add in Farrell’s strained vocals and extraordinarily poor lyrics. While he has never been a fantastic writer, his passionate delivery made up for it. Not so in this case. Often, Farrell sounds like he’s eager to get to a paycheck waiting at the end of a song.
Photo courtesy of Capitol Records
Jane’s Addiction has been a balancing act between metal and alternative rock since the late 1980s and has monotonously failed to stray from that sound on ‘The Great Escape Artist.’ The bass on this album is played by TV on the Radio’s Dave Sitek. As such, it lacks the cohesion and creativity of someone who is truly comfortable with his bandmates. While not necessarily bad, the bass guitar was always a highlight on the first two records. Having it be so mediocre here is
truly disappointing. Jane’s Addiction was clearly influenced by contemporary bands on this record. However, its members’ intermittent time together over the past two decades has revealed that the band is being pulled in too many different directions — there is not one distinct
“great song.” Perhaps if the band’s members can stay together this time, their next record will finally reveal what they are all about. But here they deliver an album that is just present. Neither good nor bad, The Great Escape Artist’s biggest problem is that it is not memorable.
The Great Escape Artist Jane’s Addiction
ARTS CORNER
Jumping into the Frey: Reality, art inextricably linked Lin Weeks ArtsEtc. Content Editor In his famous painting “Self Portrait 1907,” Pablo Picasso stares intensely out of the canvas at the viewer. Or one of his eyes does, anyway. The other is shades lighter and less filled in, imbuing the Spanish artist with an unfocused air, like a man who’s just removed his glasses or perhaps smoked a nice batch of opium. Picasso’s forehead juts forward at an impossible angle from his scalp, which is covered by a hairstyle that can only be described as Rihannaesque. It then turns down severely, creating several corners on the side of his face. Picasso’s nose takes up most of the page. Art scholars will tell you the portrait may have been influenced by
Picasso’s obsession with African masks, that it has early signs of the cubist era that would follow. In all, it’s a remarkable work, one that demands an emotional response. But it doesn’t look like Picasso. It doesn’t look like any human being. So, then, is it a lie? That’s the question posed by James Frey in a combative interview with John Richardson. Richardson’s piece, recently published in Esquire, is a survey of Frey’s publishing company that prizes trendiness and production speed above all else — Richardson calls it the “Hollywood model” of publishing. But somewhere along the way the two get sidetracked into discussing what truth means. Richardson says what you’d expect a journalist to say, which is that some things are true, and lying to people is wrong if they expect the truth. Frey, of course, knows all about the consequences of
messing with traditional definitions of fact and truth. The book for which he became famous, “A Million Little Pieces,” was published as a memoir, but was later found to be — at best — highly exaggerated or — at worst — spun from whole cloth. After Frey frames the fabrication as purposeful, a “conscious art decision” (Richardson’s words), Richardson makes the (totally valid) point that the content of his book (which is about recovering from alcoholism and drug abuse) magnifies the harm of any lie told within. But I’m more interested in Frey’s larger point. Are facts and falsity irrelevant to endeavors like writing, painting and film like Frey claims? Or, as Richardson would have it, is truth a part of art? Neither is correct. Or rather, both are, but neither recognizes the full picture. Take Frey’s claim to its logical extreme: Imagine a world in which all art in every medium has a completely neutral truth value. Pictures,
songs, movies — none of them have any bearing in relation to the real world; no conclusions can be drawn from well-framed photographs and no moral arguments can be recognized in novels. In this imagined scenario, art is a completely separate entity from reality, and it’s intended only to entertain. The problem is, it wouldn’t. Without the underpinning of objective reality, entertainment would be meaningless. Think about it: Would onscreen explosions seem cool if we couldn’t connect them to a real event? The reason things like that are fun to watch is that a real explosive would do massive amounts of damage to people and property. The thrill an audience feels is the joy at being able to watch something that would cause all sorts of consequences were it to happen outside of the movie. The effect goes the other way as well — without an objective reality
backing art, there would be no differentiating between the absurd and the mundane. “Pan’s Labyrinth” would seem exactly as realistic as a black and white film reel showing a fly buzzing around a vase. And because there’d be no basis for comparison, both would be equally boring. So truth and fact assuredly have important effects on entertainment and art. Still, Frey does have a point — an obsession about whether a specific work is “true” is pedantic and, yes, irrelevant. Would Kevin Carter’s iconic photograph of an emaciated child in Sudan trailed closely by a vulture be any less powerful if Carter had created it by placing a rotting animal carcass behind his lens, thus attracting the bird? Of course not — the feeling is derived from the image itself, not the specifics of the situation. Frey is right about that, but the important thing, again, is the additional
knowledge that makes the photograph true regardless of whether it’s staged. In 1932, Carl Jung published an article that, though it stopped short of diagnosing the artist, identified Picasso’s cubist work as a “schizophrenic form of expression.” Of the man who had lost a sister at age 14 and who constantly struggled to express himself on the canvas, Jung asked: “What quintessence will he distil from this accumulation of rubbish and decay, from those half-born or aborted possibilities of form and color? What symbol will appear as the final cause and meaning of all this.” Take it as a psychological response, then, that the distorted image is packaged and sold as a self portrait or a memoir. When it’s a deeply personal scenario that leads to a lie, claims of truth’s irrelevance suddenly sound like a defense mechanism: In all reality, what could be truer than that?
To place an ad in Classifieds: Roshni Nedungadi rnedungadi@badgerherald.com 257.4712 ext. 311
7
The Badger Herald | Classifieds | Monday, October 24, 2011
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ASO to professors who schedule exams the monday after Halloween weekend. Why must you suck the fun out of one of the best weekends of the year? ASO to the drunkards outside of Hawthorne last night who tipped over all the garbage cans and fucked with my car (that clearly had a badger bumper sticker on the window), screaming about trying to start a riot. I’m sorry the badgers lost. WE ARE ALL MAD AS FUCK TOO, but that shit’s unnecessary. Get a grip.
Sports
Badgers show resiliency with sweep Goaltending shines, Wisconsin shows maturity in wins over North Dakota Brett Sommers Statistics Editor From the outside looking in, the Wisconsin men’s hockey team appeared to be facing plenty of adversity stemming from youth and power play struggles, but the team clearly failed to take notice, sweeping No. 5 North Dakota for the first time since 2006 at the
MOMENTUM, from 8 an additional 44 on the ground, including a 22yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. Running back Montee Ball, who was briefly sidelined with a head injury, completed the game with 144 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns, while Abbrederis led UW with six catches and 91 yards. The Hail Mary nullified a fourth-quarter comeback by the Badgers, who scored two touchdowns in the final eight minutes of regulation to tie the game at 31-31. Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson ran for a 22-yard touchdown with 8:10 remaining and, two possessions later, hit running back Montee Ball for a 2-yard score with 1:26 to go. “The defense did a great job in the second half of getting us the ball back and giving us chances,” Wilson said. “We capitalized on those chances near the end.
FIAMMETTA, from 8 Deficits that extend into the second half always provide obstacles that are arduous to overcome, but the Badgers rebounded from their abominable second quarter and ultimately found themselves tied 31-31 with 1:26 remaining in the game. Alas, it wasn’t all the special teams’ fault. Bielema’s usage of Wisconsin’s three second-half timeouts in the fourth quarter drew the ire of many Badger fans following the game, and perhaps they were justified. All three were called on the Spartans’ final drive, and the first came after defensive end Brendan Kelly sacked MSU quarterback Kirk Cousins with 42 seconds to go. The second generated the most controversy, as after a 12-yard completion from Cousins to wide receiver B.J. Cunningham, Bielema called another timeout, electing to give his team a chance to win or get to overtime. “What we wanted to do is get the ball back,” Bielema said in
One of the biggest highlights of the night was a shorthanded goal by UW junior defenseman John Ramage 4:25 into the second period, giving the Badgers a 3-1 lead. However, the Fighting Sioux had a comeback in store for the Badgers. UND Forward Danny Kristo scored two goals, one halfway through the second period and the other midway through the third to erase Wisconsin’s lead and tie the game, 3-3. The Badger offense responded quickly, taking a 4-3 lead with a goal by Mark Zengerle just minutes later. And with
Kohl Center with a 5-4 win Saturday and a 5-3 win Friday. Saturday’s game two featured nine goals, but goaltending was the real story and determining factor for the game’s outcome. Wisconsin goalie Joel Rumpel gave up a misleading number of goals, facing intense pressure for the entire game. North Dakota outshot Wisconsin 42-15, giving Rumpel 38 saves compared to 10 by the Fighting Sioux’s Aaron Dell. “He gets the game puck,” head coach Mike
Eaves said. “Without his effort in the net we don’t have a chance. I thought that he competed really hard for loose pucks, he fought the puck. … It was a pretty complete game for a young freshman.” North Dakota struck first with Taylor Dickin’s goal just before the midway point of the first period. But the Badgers didn’t take long to respond. Less than three minutes later, freshman forward Joseph LaBate tied the game with a power play goal, and 55 seconds later Wisconsin took the lead on a goal from Ryan Little.
That’s the main thing. It’s a shocker.” That gave the Spartans the ball back for the final drive with 1:19 seconds and three timeouts. MSU ultimately completed the drive in nine plays. But in an effort to regain possession with enough time to score, Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema used three timeouts on Michigan State’s final possession. In the end, however, the Badgers never got the ball back, and their timeouts only aided a Spartan offense scrambling for a score, especially on a 3rd-and-8 play with 30 seconds left. “We were going for the win,” Bielema said. “I looked to their sideline to see if they were going to call one, and I realized they were going to go nohuddle. [We] were trying to get our punt return unit [back on the field].” But a chance at overtime was ripped away from the Badgers, who spent the entirety of the second half
playing catch-up after a dismal second quarter that left UW down 23-14 at the half. On the ensuing drive that followed an MSU safety, Michigan State’s Keyshawn Martin scored on 34-yard end-around to bring the score to 14-9. The Spartans then blocked a field goal attempt on the following possession and turned that into an eight-play, 80-yard drive that resulted in a 35-yard pass from Cousins to Cunningham on 4th-and-2. And then, just 38 seconds before the break, MSU’s Bennie Fowler recovered a blocked punt in the endzone, giving the Spartans a nine-point lead going into the locker room. In just 13 minutes, Wisconsin saw its 14-0 lead disappear as Michigan State scored 23 straight points without being stopped once on a drive. “The second quarter is what killed us. We were never really able to rebound from that,” Bielema said.
explanation of calling the timeout. “If we got the ball back with less than 30 seconds or somewhere around there, we were going to go for the block just because we thought we’d have to use the last timeout to get the punt team out there or to stop the clock. Obviously, they converted and had the opportunities there at the end. We were going for the win.” Well, following the timeout, Cousins completed two more passes for a combined 20 yards that brought Michigan State to Wisconsin’s 44-yard line with 10 seconds remaining. The Spartans called a timeout, and after an incompletion, Bielema called his last timeout. From there, the rest really was history. Ultimately, it all boils down to the fact that Wisconsin ultimately suffered one of the top five most brutal losses of all-time. They stormed out of the gates in the first quarter, relinquished the lead in the second, drew closer in the third and gave back the momentum in the fourth
before throwing everything to the wind with a raucous two-touchdown comeback. Then, they lost, and that play doesn’t need much retelling. Fortunately — and don’t lose sight of this, Badger fans — Wisconsin still very much controls its own
under four minutes to go in the game, Joe Faust gave the Badgers another multigoal lead. The Wisconsin defense held strong until the closing minute when North Dakota’s Brock Nelson scored, aided by an extra attacker after the Fighting Sioux pulled Dell from the goal. “We were like a big weeping willow tree being blown by a mighty wind. We didn’t break,” Eaves said. Saturday’s win was preceded by a muchneeded victory for the Badgers Friday after being swept on the road
SHOCK, from 8 receiving the football with 3:32 remaining in the third quarter, the Spartans unfurled a 13play, 80-yard drive that was capped by a 15-yard touchdown pass from Cousins to wide receiver Keshawn Martin. Cousins played arguably his finest game of the season, completing 22 of 31 passes for 290 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. The touchdown, which came at the 10:58 mark in the fourth quarter, extended Michigan State’s lead to 31-17 and seemed to deflate a Wisconsin team that had seen the proverbial wheels fall off the wagon after a quick 14-0 start in the first quarter seemingly took the air out of the Spartan Stadium crowd. “It’s just a shocker,” quarterback Russell Wilson said. “It’s one of those things where
destiny. Win out (which is pretty manageable) and Wisconsin has a tremendous opportunity to reach the inaugural Big Ten Championship game in Indianapolis — where they very well could get a rematch with Michigan State.
we’ve got a great team, we’ve got great players on this team and great character. We believe.” Shockingly, the Badgers had plenty of reason to believe even though they ultimately squandered the early two-score lead. Wisconsin’s first score came on the first drive of the game, with Wilson finding tight end Jacob Pedersen in the endzone on a nineyard pass that capped a an 11-play, 80-yard drive. Wilson completed 14 of 21 passes for 223 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Michigan State returned the ensuing kickoff to its own 25-yard line, where running back Edwin Baker took the handoff from Cousins on the next play and fumbled after a hit by Wisconsin linebacker Mike Taylor. Cornerback Marcus Cromartie recovered the football, and the Badgers took advantage three
As painful as this one was, no individual player or unit can be blamed. Just as the whole Wisconsin team lost this one, all three phases of its game will recover if the Badgers are indeed bound for postseason glory. Feel free to grieve this week, but
by Michigan Tech in the previous series. As with the losses, Eaves was taking a conservative approach in what the game one victory meant for the Badgers going forward. “This early in the season, with this young of a team, I don’t think it’s a huge measuring stick,” Eaves said. “I think it’s a nice step, and there are a lot of good things I hope people are proud of, but to say it’s a measuring stick, we’re still too young of a team to say we measure up to that team and what they’ve done. I think it’s a nice step, and we’ll try to build off it.”
plays later as running back Montee Ball rushed for a nine-yard touchdown. “Some of [the loss] was due to mistakes, some of it Michigan State made plays,” linebacker Chris Borland said. “We’ve got to continue to improve. We didn’t perform very well today, but they’re a good team, so they took advantage of that.” The most crushing miscue came with only 37 seconds remaining in the second quarter, when the Badgers elected to punt on a 4th-and-5 from their own 36-yard line. However, linebacker Kyler Elsworth came off the left edge completely unblocked and blocked Brad Nortman’s punt, ricocheting the football back to Wisconsin’s goal line, where wide receiver Bennie Fowler pounced on it for a MSU touchdown. Suddenly, it was halftime, and Wisconsin trailed 23-14.
remember — Bucky’s still in the driver’s seat. Mike is a senior majoring in journalism. What did you take away from Saturday night? Tell him on Twitter @ mikefiammetta and be sure to follow @BHeraldSports.
Sports Editor Mike Fiammetta sports@badgerherald.com
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The Badger Herald | Sports | Monday, October 24, 2011
SPORTS
Cheating sudden death
Megan McCormick The Badger Herald
Wisconsin wide receiver Jared Abbrederis (4) got a piece of Kirk Cousins’ desperation heave on the final play of Saturday night’s 37-31 Michigan State victory. The ball eventually made its way to Keith Nichol (7), who saved the Spartans from overtime with the Badgers.
GAMER
After momentum swings back, forth, MSU brings down UW on Hail Mary Elliot Hughes Sports Content Editor EAST LANSING, MICH. — Any hopes the Wisconsin football team had of playing for a national championship almost certainly ended Saturday night after Michigan State wide receiver Keith Nichol grabbed a miraculous, last-second and bobbled Hail Mary bomb to cap off what will surely go down as an instant classic of Big Ten football. After a late push to tie the game by No. 6
SIDEBAR
Wisconsin (6-1, 2-1), No. 16 Michigan State (6-1, 3-0) brought down the Badgers, 3731, on a 44-yard heave from quarterback Kirk Cousins. Cousins’ pass was initially batted down by UW wide receiver Jared Abbrederis, who was put in as a third safety to knock the pass out of the air. But after making contact with Abbrederis, the ball bounced off another player and into the arms of Nichol, who stood a yard away from the goal line. Replays confirmed that Nichol crossed the plane with the ball as Badger defenders desperately tried to stop him. “To have the last play of the game decided on by a review, it’s crazy,”
linebacker Chris Borland said. “I felt terrible. Just to sit there and watch it on film, it’s heartwrenching.” Cousins completed 22 of 31 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns, while wide receiver B.J. Cunningham finished with six receptions for 102 yards and a touchdown. Cunningham also hauled in a two-point conversion after a fourth quarter MSU score. For Wisconsin, quarterback Russell Wilson went 14-of21 with a pair of touchdowns and interceptions each. He finished with 223 yards passing and complimented that with
MOMENTUM, page 7
Shock overcomes Badgers as carpet gets pulled out from underneath Mike Fiammetta Sports Editor EAST LANSING, MICH. — Football people like to talk about the football gods as if what happens on the field is a matter beyond the observed strategizing and execution, as if the events of a game were predestined to develop as they do. Saturday night at Spartan Stadium, regardless of whoever decides football outcomes and however they do it, it seemed quite clear the football gods were not
on the side of the No. 6 Wisconsin Badgers (61, 2-1). Despite digging themselves out of a stunning 14-point fourth quarter deficit in front of one of the most rabid crowds in Michigan State history, the Badgers were defeated by the No. 16 Spartans (6-1, 3-0) on the final play of a 37-31 alltime classic. MSU quarterback Kirk Cousins capped a stellar day with a miracle 44-yard Hail Mary heave to wide receiver Keith Nichol, who caught the football amid a total scrum at the goal line off a deflection and hammered his way into the endzone as time expired. Nichol was initially ruled down at the oneyard line, but an official review overturned the
call on the field, spurring the euphoric Spartan sideline onto the field in celebration while the incredulous Badgers raced to their locker room as if they could not get off the field fast enough. “It doesn’t make sense right now, what they just went through and what they just experienced, but it will over the course of time,” head coach Bret Bielema said. “As coaches, we’ll kind of put the pieces together for them.” The stunning, quickstrike nature of the final play was monumentally crushing for the Badgers, but the matter in which the final quarter unfolded also undoubtedly magnified the postgame disbelief and disappointment. After
SHOCK, page 7
UW shows weaknesses Mike Fiammetta Mike’d Up Saturday night, in quite possibly the cruelest way possible, the nation discovered what perhaps we should’ve known all along — the Wisconsin Badgers are not perfect. Russell Wilson, heroic as he almost was Saturday night (and boy, was he close), is not perfect. Bret Bielema, confident and calculated as he has been this season, is not perfect. UW’s special teams unit, improved as it has been so far in 2011, is not perfect. Once Michigan State wide receiver Keith Nichol caught that oncein-a-lifetime deflection and scored the gamewinning touchdown, Wisconsin was struck by the football equivalent of a harsh kick to the groin. Immediate instincts conjured memories of last year’s misery in East Lansing, a 34-24 affair in the Big Ten opener that seemed to smack a dent in Wisconsin’s BCS bowl hopes. But even aside from the
fact that UW ultimately rebounded to reach the Rose Bowl, this year’s loss hurt more — much more. Wilson’s Heisman Trophy hopes went from brimming with life to being placed on life support (though they’re not dead yet), and Wisconsin’s national title hopes were dashed (those, however, are in fact dead). Critics will target Wilson’s two interceptions as the principal reasons the Badgers lost, but they’ll likely overlook how close he was in atoning for his mistakes and bringing his team back. Wilson’s zero-to-nearhero effort was too uneven to give Wisconsin the win Saturday night, but it was far from the only reason the Badgers lost. The special teams unit — after showing marked improvement in the season’s first six games following an inconsistent effort in 2010 — allowed one costly blocked field goal and an absolutely brutal blocked punt. The latter bounced 36 yards back toward the Badgers’ goal line, whereupon several Spartan defenders pounced on the football to extend Michigan State’s lead to 23-14 with barely a minute left until halftime.
FIAMMETTA, page 7