Today I feature the online interview I conducted with Badger Athletic Director Pat Richter. Before I post the interview, I would just like to publicly thank Mr. Richter for taking time out of his busy schedule to answer a few common questions that we "regular ole Badger fans" have from time to time.

BM: What is your position on Big Ten expansion? There doesn’t seem to be a logical willing candidate who will supply the Big Ten with the reciprocal benefits that a Penn State appeared to. Is it dead for the time being? If so, under what conditions might it arise again?

PR: Wisconsin and the Big Ten were in favor of Notre Dame joining the Big Ten. Since that is dead, I don’t see much happening near-term with regard to expansion. There are really no other schools that individually could bring as much to the table as Penn State or Notre Dame. Jim Delany, Commissioner of the Big Ten, made public comments recently that Big Ten expansion at present is "on hold."

BM: How do you feel about the newest proposals to improve the academic achievement of the students in college athletics, namely freshman eligibility? Sports Illustrated had a brief piece a month or so ago that claimed that there were proposals that increased scholarships based on graduation rates or did not grant new scholarships for students who flunk out (until that student’s class graduated). Thoughts?

PR: The wide range of differences with respect to the individual school’s academic curriculum would make this virtually impossible. The academic difficulty of course work chosen by the student-athlete has to be taken into consideration. This, in many instances, would be an apples-to-oranges comparison that would hurt the schools with higher requirements. In particular, it would affect the Big Ten Conference due to the academic standards it has had in place for a long time.

With regard to freshman eligibility, I don’t think it’s a bad concept, in general. Getting your feet more solidly on the ground academically as a freshman makes sense. I believe it worked well when I came to Wisconsin in 1959 but the world is a much different place. It is being looked at for certain sports but unless it was across the board, it likely won’t be acceptable. And, across the board isn’t desirable because it is not necessary in a lot of our varsity/Olympic sports programs.

BM: What does the future hold in terms of stadium expansion? Is it on the agenda? If so, how might it progress? Would it probably be a filling of the lower bowl by the Fieldhouse or might a limited upper deck on the McClain Center side be considered (realizing there are structural issues)?

PR: Currently, there is a $100,000 study of Camp Randall that was approved by the State Building Commission.

The study is intended to look at all aspects of the Stadium and determine what needs to be done to upgrade the facility. It also will look at the possibility of enclosing the South endzone. Anything that is proposed, in my opinion, must have a solid payback. It must pay for itself as we cannot afford to take on any more debt that would have to be absorbed by the Athletic Department.

BM: What are your thoughts on increased revenue generating scenarios given the need/desire for expansion? Might we see things such as seat licensing in the future?

PR: We have made football fans aware for several years that a consistent annual preferential seating/scholarship program will need to be updated. In 1982, a plan was implemented and became ineffective when the Badger football program took a nosedive. It will be very important for us to implement a consistent and logical program similar to that already in place for men’s/women’s basketball and men’s ice hockey.

We are moving on a track to implement such a program for the 2001 football season; however, there still is a lot of work to be done with regard to communications, etc.

We will not be implementing what was done for men’s basketball in the Kohl Center. That program had a one-time payment for the seat license as well as an annual scholarship payment.

BM: How do you feel about the seemingly inevitable evolution to a football playoff? Are there ways to improve the BCS system as it currently exists?

PR: We are sill in favor of the BCS system. It already has undergone some improvements with regard to selection and rating and I’m sure it will continually looked at and hopefully improved.

It is possible that we could eventually end up with a playoff, but I believe that such a result would seemingly benefit the traditional programs. At the present time, the BCS works well for schools like Wisconsin and many others, and we will continue to support that format.

Football is a funny game. We have seen "upsets" in the Super Bowl and it would likely happen in any collegiate playoff championship. The game really doesn’t answer who the "best" team is; it is only who was best on that day. In some respects, we can currently make those judgments after the BCS Championship game. I just don’t think it provides real answers as to who the best team is for that year.

BM: Can the Wisconsin football or basketball programs be expected to be nationally elite programs? Or, are the population/recruiting and tradition factors too difficult to consistently overcome? Coach Alvarez has expressed a desire to build another Nebraska type program and take the Badgers to another level? How can the administration help in this endeavor? Can Wisconsin be expected to join schools like OSU, UM, or PSU for an extended period of time?

PR: It will always be a challenge for us to compete with the traditionally elite programs around he country. It’s not just a matter of who attracts the talent but why they get certain players. We will always have challenges in admitting students-at-risk. Wisconsin does not have a "track" or easy curriculum to offer and it’s understood that there are schools in the Big Ten and around the country that would admit some student-athletes that would not be accepted at Wisconsin.

That is why we are extremely proud of the job that Barry, Dick, Jane, and others have done since coming to Wisconsin. They understand the challenge and have done a terrific job in elevating our competitiveness even under such circumstances. This is Wisconsin and we are proud of that reputation the school enjoys and have no plans to exchange that for a win-at-all cost philosophy.

Coaches with that "special" ability will allow us to be as competitive as possible.

BM: What is Wisconsin doing to increase its visibility nationally--or does it not desire positive publicity? For instance, some feel the PR portion of the AD has downplayed Ron Dayne’s Heisman run. I realize that the coaching staff often has a large say in issues such as this, but do you think Wisconsin could do more to increase its national visibility?

PR: I don’t know how much more visible you can be than what Wisconsin did in the 1999 Rose Bowl. the recognition of the program in its national ranking and the media interest in Ron Dayne was outstanding. I can assure you that the Sports Information Office of this Athletic Department is very much on top of the publicity effort for Ron Dayne. This is a once-in-a-lifetime situation for the PR people and they will do their part. Obviously, Ron has a big part in this effort, as well.

BM: What is your set of criteria for evaluating a coach in a program? For instance, Coach Bennett has come under some criticism for the performance late in the season last year. Some believe that he has done an admirable job in getting the most out of what he has, but will not be able to continue the progression to the next level? What is a realistic expectation for the basketball program or any particular team at Wisconsin?

PR: We evaluate our coaches annually and mutually agree on what the goals and objectives should be for the coming year.

BM: Specifically, how about Jeff Sauer and the hockey program? Is this a key year for him?

PR: Ice hockey is a sport that has a rich tradition and we believe that we should be consistently competitive. I know that Jeff has not been satisfied with the past few years, just like our loyal Badger fans. We anticipate that we will return to the prominence we have experienced and that is a common goal and expectation shared by everyone.

BM: Where does Wisconsin stand in the Title IX issue? Does further progress need to be made to gain full compliance? Under what circumstances might a return of baseball for instance be feasible? Is such an addition even on the back burner or is the program considered completely dead?

PR: We have been dealing with the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) for about ten years and still do not have resolution. We do believe that we have a plan that will satisfy the OCR and that involves roster management. In other words, we must have maximum roster numbers for women. The alternative is to add another woman’s sport and we absolutely cannot afford to do so.

With regard to baseball, I would have to say it’s on the back burner. We do not have any philosophical objections to returning to any sports; however, it will be very difficult from a practical standpoint. First, we must receive the word from the OCR that roster management worked and we are considered to be in compliance. If you were to then consider adding baseball or any men’s sport, you would have to add a similarly funded sport on the women’s side with comparable participants.

Thus, you can see that the costs are virtually prohibitive for adding a women’s sport, let alone both a men’s and women’s program. Hopefully, it might be possible some day but I don’t think it will be in the near future.

BM: What is the future of the WIAA tournament at the Kohl Center? How will the inevitable scheduling conflicts be handled?

PR: As you may have heard, recently, we just jointly announced a resolution of our scheduling conflicts for the next two years. There was give and take on both sides and I believe we arrived at a fair solution. During the 1999-2000 academic year, men’s ice hockey will host the WCHA final round, if they qualify. WIAA girls’ basketball will then move to the Field House. Also, the UW women’s basketball team, if selected, could host the post-season NCAA tournament in the Field House and the WIAA boys’ basketball tournament would be held at the Kohl Center.

The next year, UW men’s hockey moves to the Coliseum and the WIAA girls’ tourney is at the Kohl Center. The UW women could host the NCAA in the Kohl Center and the WIAA boys’ basketball tournament would be in the Field House.

Hopefully, beyond those dates, we have fewer conflicts due to a change in the WCHA tournament schedule and the possibility of the NCAA moving to predetermined sites for the women’s tournament first-round.