Torvik and I were talking at the first round NCAA games this spring, and the topic came up about Gard's results, especially as it related to what we thought the possible outcomes could be on Dec 15th, 2015. At that time, Bo Ryan had just retired and while coming off back to back Final Fours, the team was reeling at 7-5 with embarrassing early season losses to UW-Milwaukee and Western Illinois at the Kohl Center. At that moment, it seemed like this could be the end of an era. Gard was known to Wisconsin Badger basketball fans, but was hardly a hot coaching candidate here or anywhere else.
A return to the pre 1994 era of desolation seemed very possible, although the improvements of the last couple decades to the basketball program and Badger brand in general made it not likely. An improvement over the Ryan era while theoretically possible, seemed like a 1% chance or less. Falling somewhere in between where NCAA tournaments are no longer guaranteed, championships rare, and really bad seasons are again possible seemed most likely. Torvik and I came to the conclusion that from that moment in Dec 2015, what has occurred is a top 10% result of what we imagined was possible.
Gard is 177-95 overall and 98-61 in Big Ten play over his 10 years (well 9 and 2/3). He has won 2 Big Ten regular season Championships, has 7 NCAA tournaments (would be 8 with COVID season), and 2 sweet 16s.
Where does he rank among coaches in the history of Badger basketball? Third. The answer is third.
Doc Meanwell and Bo Ryan are #1 and #2 in some order. It is difficult to compare eras, and which is which is a topic for another blog post. Gard is third. Dick Bennett and Bud Foster have an argument here for third largely based on their miraculous post season runs which Gard has yet to duplicate. Foster won the 1941 NCAA championship, but had a losing record at 265-267 overall and 143-182 in the Big Ten over his 25 seasons. Dick Bennett had just a 6 year run in Madison which culminated in that amazing run to the Final Four. He was 93-69 overall, and 39-45 in Big Ten play. We'll never know what might have happened if Dick had not burnt out and retired. He may have led many more Badger teams to greatness, but all we'll ever know is that it led to Bo Ryan, and greatness nevertheless.
As the Badgers yet again exited the tournament before the Sweet 16 this year, the narrative around Gard persists. His only 2 Sweet 16s came in his first 2 seasons, with players from the Bo Ryan era. Some will call his 10 years a failure because he has failed to return to the second weekend of the tournament. I am not one of them. All seasons end with a bitter taste in the mouth except for one team.
Gard is just 54 years old, and with deep ties to the state it seems likely he could stay at UW for another 10 years or more. I think Paul Chryst thought the same thing at one point, so obviously anything can happen. A couple bad seasons and any coach is gone. The NIL and transfer era is filled with uncertainty, and all the strong fundamentals the Badger brand has been built on could all be destroyed by the new system. That said, I'm more optimistic about the future for Badger basketball now than I was on Dec 15th 2015. The possibility of a return to 1948-1993 desolation seems less than 1%, the greatness of Conference Championships and deep tournament runs don't seem like a pipe dream. If the next 10 years include 2 Big Ten Championships, 2 Sweet 16s, and 177 wins, it will again be a great outcome.
I hope Gard makes a deep tournament run some day, because selfishly those runs are so much fun. There are so many great coaches that never get there though. I watched Gene Keady win tons of games and never get there, but the joy he brought to Purdue fans with all that winning is worth so much more. Perhaps I'm soft now that I'm old, but the joy of the journey is so much more valuable than the outcome of the final game. When your team is in the hunt, every game matters. When every game matters every game is fun. When your team is in the hunt, the dreams of what could be in between games brings fans and friends together. That journey almost always ends in pain, but that journey is amazing and I hope Gard gives me many more over the next decade.
