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Former Packers LeRoy Butler and Charles Woodson Named HOF Semifinalists

By Adam Roberts – 11/25/2020

Two relatively recent Green and Gold legends are up for nomination to the 2021 NFL Hall of Fame class.

Defensive backs LeRoy Butler and Charles Woodson each were named modern-era semifinalists yesterday, making it now four consecutive years Butler has made it this far (he was a finalist last year). For Woodson, its the first time he’s made the semifinals, but it’s also his first year of eligibility for Canton.

During his 12 seasons with Green Bay, Butler became the first defensive back in NFL history to eclipse 20 interceptions and 20 sacks, finishing his career with 38 interceptions, 20½ sacks in 181 regular-season games. But he is perhaps most remembered for his one giant leap for Titletown kind in 1993 after returning an Oakland Raider fumble to the house after receiving a lateral from Reggie White.

Woodson holds franchise records for the most touchdowns on interceptions (nine) and the most defensive touchdowns (10), and was selected to four straight Pro Bowls from 2008 through 2011. During that time, he also led the league in interceptions twice (’09, ’11).

Bucks Ink Two-Way Contracts With Adams; Diakite

By Adam Roberts – 11/25/2020

More offseason deals for the Bucks to report this morning.

Milwaukee is signing guard Jaylen Adams and forward Mamadi Diakite to two-way contracts. Adams spent last season with the Wisconsin Herd, the Bucks’ G League affiliate, averaging 21.5 points, 5.7 assists and 5.1 rebounds and was also the G League MVP runner up. Diakite spent the last four years at Virginia, averaging 13.7 points and 6.8 rebounds last season.

Meanwhile, the wait continues to see what Giannis will do with his super max currently on the table. Earlier this week the Bucks officially signed Jrue Holiday and Sam Merritt from the New Orleans Pelicans, and also brought back Pat Connaughton after signing draft pick Jordan Nwora.

Wisconsin-Minnesota Football Game Cancelled (COVID-19)

By Adam Roberts – 11/24/2020

The COVID big has bitten the Badger football team once again. This time, though, it’s the Badgers’ opponent dealing with a virus outbreak.

Despite Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck’s assertions this week that the teams would play their scheduled game this Saturday, the news has broken this evening that the game will be cancelled. The decision was made by an administrative group led my Minnesota A.D. Mark Coyle on the heels of more likely positive test results for the program, which has already had nine student-athletes and six staff members test positive.

Per Big Ten policy, the game is a no-contest and will not be made up. Minnesota is hoping to return December 5th against Northwestern, while Wisconsin now appears to be ineligible for the Big Ten Championship Game with their third cancellation.

this will be the first time since 1906 the Badgers and Golden Gophers won’t play in a season, making it only the second time since 1890 they won’t face off.

Golden Gophers Practice Virtually While Waiting For COVID Results

By Adam Roberts – 11/24/2020

Wisconsin-Minnesota, a tradition spanning over a century between the two programs, could be in jeopardy this weekend.

The Golden Gopher football team practiced virtually today while awaiting the results of COVID-19 testing of its players. The hope is to resume in-person practice tomorrow ; the decision was made to go virtual after an unspecified number of players tested positive on Monday, but test results waiting to confirm those cases had not been returned. Head coach P-J Fleck said Monday that any decision on whether to play Saturday’s game would be made by medical professionals in conjunction with the school’s administration and the Big Ten Conference.

“We’re game planning” Fleck said at his virtual conference yesterday. “Right now, our whole thing is we plan on playing.” Those comments came prior to the program’s Monday night announcement about practice going virtual for Tuesday.

Coverage from Camp Randall can be heard Saturday on ESPN La Crosse 105.5 and streaming in the Coulee Region at espnlacrosse.com!

Opening Weekend Gun Deer Numbers Up From 2019

By Adam Roberts – 11/24/2020

Clearly, people have been looking for an excuse to get out in nature. Given the mantra of staying home as the best way to prevent COVID-19, the itch to hit the woods for the gun deer season was likely to be strong this fall, and the numbers don’t lie.

Preliminary figures from the Wisconsin DNR show that 810,233 deer licenses across all weapons have been administered as of November 23rd, up 3.2 percent from last year. Of those 810,00-plus, 559,591 were for gun privileges only. Harvest numbers also indicate an uptick in deer activity; in total the DNR reports that 95,257 deer were harvested by gun during opening weekend, up from 93,155 in 2019. The 2020 total includes 49,025 bucks, up about 800 from last year. Several factors likely contributed to the uptick, including excellent hunting conditions with cool temperatures, high visibility and low wind which countered the lack of snow for tracking and frozen marshlands for increased land access.

The 169th Wisconsin gun deer season continues through November 29th. For more details on opening weekend, visit the DNR’s press release.

La Crosse Loggers Reveal 2021 Schedule

By Adam Roberts – 11/24/2020

The hope is that the upcoming 2021 Northwoods League schedule will look a little more normal. Part of that normalcy is the release of the 2021 schedule, which will feature many more familiar opponents than last season.

The Loggers will tentatively open the season May 31st against the Mankato Moondogs, and will conclude things on August 14th against the Waterloo Bucks. Weekend home series this year include June 4-6, June 18-20, July 9-11, and August 7-8.

Check out the full schedule below!

Bucks Games Will Be Played Without Fans

By Adam Roberts – 11/23/2020

For anyone who thought that Milwaukee Bucks games in the 2020-21 season would feature even a few fans, those rumors were squashed today.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Matt Velazquez tweeted today the team’s announcement that their home games next season will be held without fans until further notice. The team will play games at Fiserv Forum as opposed to the bubble format installed for the resumed regular season and postseason this past summer.

The regular season is scheduled to begin December 22nd.

UWL/Viterbo/WTC Suspend/Cancel Athletics

By Adam Roberts – 11/23/2020

Two La Crosse colleges officially cancelled any plans athletic competitions for the foreseeable future.

In two separate statements, both UW-La Crosse and Western Technical College suspended athletics, with UWL saying sports are on hold for the rest of the fall semester and WTC cancelling both their winter and spring sports seasons.

“In accordance with the Coulee COVID-19 Collaborative recommendation to cancel all in-person sports for schools and universities for the next 30 days, the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse will be following this guideline.” the UWL statement read. “The current COVID-19 pandemic in the La Crosse community is concerning, so with that in mind, all athletically-related activities will be suspended for the rest of the fall semester. UWL Intercollegiate Athletics looks forward to returning to the field of play as soon as possible.”

UWL has not played an organized NCAA athletic event since March 15th.

**UPDATE** Viterbo has joined UWL and WTC in suspending athletic activities; the V-Hawks will pause athletics until December 27th.

Bucks Sign Forbes, Craig

By Adam Roberts – 11/23/2020

It’s safe to say the start of the 2020 offseason has not been kind to the Milwaukee Bucks. While Jrue Holiday is certainly a nice addition to the starting five, the collapse of the Bogdanovic deal and his subsequent signing with the Atlanta Hawks is certainly not the look the front office wants to present to Giannis in perhaps one of the most critical periods in franchise history when it comes to re-signing a star player.

Still, you have to try and make the best with what’s available. The Bucks have reached agreements with free agent guard Bryn Forbes and free agent forward Torrey Craig.They signed Forbes to a two-year deal with a player option available in the second year. Forbes averaged 11.2 points and two rebounds last season with the Spurs. As for Torrey, Milwaukee has reached an undisclosed deal with Craig, who averaged 5.4 points and 3.3 rebounds for the Nuggets last season.

As for whether or not the organization will go after any other big fish in the free agency pond, there aren’t exactly a ton of big name free agent shooters available at the moment. Also, there’s been little to no news on progress towards getting a Giannis super max signed, and several teams in the East such as Miami and Toronto have notably kept money off their books for next season. It is important to remember, however, that despite free agency moving like a sprint, the Giannis situation is more likely to play out like a marathon, with many believing he won’t sign anything before the regular season begins later next month.

Mertz Throws 3 INTs; Badgers Lose 17-7 to #19 Northwestern

By Adam Roberts – 11/23/2020

After his first two starts, many assumed the upward trajectory of Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz would continue last Saturday against #19 Northwestern. After all, the Wildcats, though unbeaten, recently have had some close calls; conversely Wisconsin marched with relative ease to wins in their two games. But the offense sputtered against Northwestern, particularly in the third quarter where the Badgers gained just 47 total yards and punted four times before turning it over on downs to end the quarter. Couple that with three Mertz interceptions and a duo of fumbles, and the Badgers’ 17-7 loss shouldn’t come as much of a suprise.

The lack of weapons for Mertz to work with also manifested itself this week. Apart from the Chimere Dike touchdown pass, there was no real big play threat on the field for Wisconsin. Jake Ferguson led receivers with 58 yards on 7 catches, but Dike’s 49 yard scoring play was the only offensive play to go for more than 25 yards, both through the air or on the ground.

Defensively, the Badgers actually held their own. Northwestern scored just once in the second half on a 32 yard Charlie Kuhbander field goal, but a defense can only do so much before the offense has to simply bow up and put points on the board. The ineptitude on that side of the ball ensured Wisconsin would fall for the first time this season.

The loss drops the Badgers to 18th in the AP as they prepare for the Golden Gophers next Saturday. It will be critical for Wisconsin to win out for any shot at the Big Ten Championship game, since they’ll need the Wildcats to lose two of three against 1-3 Michigan State, 2-3 Minnesota, and 2-3 Illinois to jump the Cats in the standings.