Gets me riled up in this NIL era? The death of the walk on. I remember when we built entire teams around kids from Wisconsin farm towns who showed up unannounced with a duffel bag and a chip on their shoulder. Barry Alvarez built this program on walk ons. Joe Panos walked on and became an All American. Mark Tauscher walked on and played a decade in the NFL. That culture is gone now because every kid with a pulse gets offered a scholarship or a bag before they even hit the weight room.
I saw the search committee for our new AD has Chris Ballard and Michael Finley on it and I hope they understand this. We need an AD who remembers what made us special. It was not flashy recruiting rankings or portal hauls. It was finding a 240 pound kid from Stevens Point who wanted to run through a wall for the W on his helmet. The walk on program was our identity. It separated us from every fancy shcool down south.
Now? Kids would rather sit on a bench at some SEC school for a check than earn a spot the real way. The portal killed the walk on. I guarantee you Barry is sitting at home shaking his head watching what this program has become. We need to bring that culture back or we are just another school trading jerseys for cash.