|
|
||
|
Print this page
Email to a Friend
Digg This Article
Purchase this Issue
|
ConversationRose Bowls & Pink Locker Rooms |
For more than 35 years, Barry Alvarez spent autumn afternoons on a football field with a coach’s whistle around his neck. He began his career as an assistant coach with winning teams at alma mater Nebraska, Iowa and Notre Dame. Then the University of Wisconsin came calling in 1990 with a head-coaching offer. Alvarez accepted the challenge, which meant trying to turn around a program that had gone 9-36 the previous four years. It wasn’t easy at first, but by the time Alvarez had retired from coaching at the end of last season, he had created a legacy unmatched in Wisconsin history and, in some cases, the Big Ten.
His 1998 and 1999 teams won back-to-back Big Ten titles—the first time it had been done at Wisconsin in 100 years. The same two teams won their Rose Bowl games, making Alvarez the only Big Ten coach ever to win in Pasadena in consecutive years. He retired at 59, the winningest Wisconsin coach ever (118-73-4). The good news for Wisconsin fans, going into the 2006 season, was that Alvarez still would be overseeing the football program, along with Wisconsin’s 22 other intercollegiate sports. He had combined the athletic director’s job with his coaching duties for two years, and now he would become a full-time AD. Alvarez is a part-time Naples resident, and we talked to him about all this just before the season started, as he sat in his office overlooking the football field at Camp Randall Stadium.
Q: I understand you’ll be an analyst for Fox Television at the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 1 and the Bowl Championship Series final game on Jan. 8. How did that come about?
A: Fox contacted me in March to see if I’d be interested. First, I had to get permission from my chancellor, who turned out to be all for it. So we set up an audition in New York. I sat down with Thom Brennaman, who’s going to do the play-by-play, and producer Mike Burks. Thom and I put on headsets, rolled the first and third quarters of an old game, and Thom and I called it. Burks said, "OK, that’s enough. We can evaluate from there." Fox ended up giving me a one-year contract with a four-year option.
Q: How does it feel beginning your network career with the biggest game of the year? Most guys have to wait a long time before they get there.
A: (laughing) That’s what Brad Nessler said. He’s a good friend and has done a lot of our games on ABC and ESPN. He said, "Do you realize how competitive this business is, and here you are starting at the top!"
Q: Everyone has a position on the Bowl Championship Series versus a true playoff system. What’s yours?
A: I like the Bowl games as they are. I think we can continue to tweak the BCS and the playoffs and get a little closer to a true national champion, maybe by seeding four teams instead of just the top two. You’d play one additional game—pairing No. 1 against No. 4, No. 2 vs. No. 3. But I like bowl games. They’ve been good to us.
Q: Let’s talk about your day job as full-time athletic director. When did you decide that you didn’t want to coach into your 60s or beyond?
A: When I had a chance to take the athletic director’s job three years ago, I did because it was an opportunity to do things my way. I figured I’d do what Bob Devaney at Nebraska did: take over as director and still coach for a while. But I began to realize that both jobs just wear on you. Sooner or later I was going to cheat one of the jobs, and I didn’t want to do that. I felt comfortable with one of the assistants I had on the staff—Bret Bielema, my defensive coordinator—and I thought it would be an easy transition for the players, an easy transition in recruiting, and I could protect more of my other assistant coaches.
Q: If you see something happening on the field that you would do differently, do you say anything?
A: I won’t hesitate at all. I’ll go directly to Bret. See, we have to keep this stadium filled. We’ve got 23 sports and a $78 million budget, and to make it run smoothly the engine has to be strong. The engine’s the football program. I’ve got too much experience to ignore something that needs to be adjusted.
Q: And I assume Bret is OK with that?
A: You know, Bret is very good. I’ve tried to stay out of his way, but we talk every day. When you get one of these jobs, you don’t realize what crosses your desk until you sit behind it. There’s just a multitude of things. Everyone needs a sounding board, someone they can go to. I used to call Lou Holtz, my head coach at Notre Dame, and just ask his opinion. You need different guys. So Bret has one, a hundred yards away.
Q: Speaking of your former bosses, I know that Hayden Fry could keep things loose at Iowa. Were you there when he feminized the visiting locker room by painting the walls pink?
A: I was. One of my senior associate athletic directors here, whom I brought with me, was the painter.
Q: I’m sure your team’s locker room walls are red and white, but what color are the visitors’ walls at Wisconsin?
A: Well, I learned that the penal system studied colors, and they found that pink creates a very calming effect. So does powder blue. I didn’t want to be a copycat, so we’re powder blue. (laughs) Psychology can play a big role in football, and you’re always looking for an edge. I think we’ve only lost one game here since we renovated our stadium two years ago and painted the walls blue. I don’t know if that had anything to do with it, but it didn’t hurt.
Q: Looking back after all these years, what do you consider the biggest change in your profession?
A: A lot of the change has to do with the Internet. It’s changed recruiting and increased the amount of pressure that’s put on coaches. And you have stay on top of it. In the old days you could recruit three different quarterbacks and they each could be told they’re the No. 1 quarterback. Nowadays, you go to someone’s home—before you’re in your car, there’s a report on the Internet of what you said, what he said, how he ranked you. And sometimes it’s bogus information. And the pressure that can be put on a coach, the bandwagon effect—someone wanting to attack a coach. Somebody loses a $5 bet, and the coach can be the dumbest guy in the world, according to someone in a chat room, and pretty soon the thing just snowballs. So that part of it has really changed our business.
Q: You’re probably a long way from retirement, but does Naples figure in the picture when you do retire?
A: It certainly does at this point. In fact, looking to the future, I’m involved with the Liberty Bank down there. We have two branches in Naples, and one on Bonita Beach Road.
Q: How did you get into that?
A: I have a friend, Bill Krause, whom I got to know when I was coaching at Iowa. He’s head of the bank, which is based in Iowa. He’s also a part-time Naples resident, and he got me involved in 2000 as an investor in the Iowa banks. Later Bill and I agreed that I should take all my Iowa investment and put it into Naples. As he said, "When you retire, you won’t retire in Des Moines, but you probably will in Naples." I agreed with him.
Q: How did you settle on Naples as a part-time or future residence?
A: When I became head coach at Wisconsin, [athletic director] Pat Richter and I went down for a fundraiser. They always had one during spring break. And every time I went down I stayed a little longer. We enjoyed it more and more, and got to know people. So we decided to buy a place in Pelican Bay. And we just love it. I relax, and play golf at Old Collier. I’m an 18 handicap—a bad 18!
Q: I know you have a lot of speaking engagements. How many, roughly?
A: Between 50 and 100. We have alumni clubs all over the country, and I’ll move around. This year I did one in New York, always do one in Naples, did one in L.A., one in Las Vegas.
Q: So the day you leave the university, you’ll have your TV and speaking engagements and in between you can play golf and make sure Liberty depositors are happy?
A: That’s right. Always gotta keep busy.
