[Coaching Profile] Barry Alvarez

[EnviedOne]

Barry Alvarez
Head Coach / Director of Athletics
College Coaching Experience: 25 Yrs (13 with Badgers)
School: Nebraska
Born: Dec. 30, 1946, in Burgettstown, Pa. (age 56)

Coaching Summary

Coaching Career: Wisconsin Head Coach (1990-present), Notre Dame Assistant Coach (1987-89), Iowa Assistant Coach (1979-86), Mason City (Iowa) High School Head Coach (1976-78), Lexington (Neb.) High School Head Coach (1974-75), Lincoln Northeast High School Assistant Coach (1971-73)

Awards: Big Ten Coach of the Year in 1993 and 1998; College & Pro Football Newsweekly National Coach of the Year in 1993; Bobby Dodd Foundation National Coach of the Year in 1993; American Football Coaches Association National Coach of the Year in 1993; Victor Award's National Coach of the Year in 1999; finalist for ESPN College Coach of the Decade in 1999; "One of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics" by Hispanic Business in 2001

Noteworthy UW-Madison items: Alvarez and his wife, Cindy, endowed a football scholarship at the UW in the spring of 2000. "I thought it was a small way for me to say thanks to the UW-Madison," Alvarez said of his family's $250,000 gift to the UW Foundation. Babcock Hall, which houses the UW-Madison's nationally acclaimed dairy school, developed an ice cream flavor in honor of the Badger coach in 1994. It was named Berry Alvarez, and the flavor was a mixture of raspberry, strawberry and blueberry.

When sizing up Barry Alvarez' coaching accomplishments at Wisconsin, consider some of these statistics:

• Alvarez is the winningest coach in school history (92-61-4);
  His teams have won at least a share of three Big Ten championships (1993, 1999, 2000);
• Alvarez has registered a 7-1 (.875) bowl record, the second-best winning percentage in college history for coaches with at least seven appearances (John Robinson was 8-1 at USC and UNLV);
• He coached the four winningest teams in the modern era at Wisconsin;
  Alvarez is one of three coaches (joining Bob Stoops and Steve Spurrier) to win two Bowl Championship Series Games;
• The 2003 season will be his 14th on the UW sidelines, the nation's sixth-longest streak at one school;
• Alvarez' teams won back-to-back league titles in 1998 and 1999, something the Badgers hadn't done in 99 years;
• He is the only coach in Big Ten history to coach consecutive Rose Bowl championship teams (1999-2000);
• Alvarez and Ohio State's Woody Hayes are the only coaches in Big Ten history to win the Rose Bowl at least three times;
• He coached three players that won five national award winners, including Ron Dayne (Heisman Trophy, Doak Walker Award and Maxwell Award), Kevin Stemke (Ray Guy Award) and Jamar Fletcher (Jim Thorpe Award);
• Alvarez coached six consensus first-team All-Americans, two Big Ten MVPs, 84 Academic All-Big Ten selections and 40 National Football League draft picks.

Coaching Bio

Barry Alvarez began his head football coaching duties at Wisconsin in 1990, and in April of 2004 began a dual role when he assumed the responsibility of Director of Athletics.

Alvarez has been at the forefront of the revival of the Badger athletic program during his entire tenure in Madison. He has guided Wisconsin to three Big Ten and Rose Bowl titles (including back-to-back in 1998-99) en route to becoming the winningest football coach in school history (99-67-4 record).

His 7-2 (.777) record in bowl games with the Badgers is second-best in college football history among coaches with at least seven bowl appearances. The 1993 national coach of the year, he is a two-time (1993 and 1998) Big Ten coach of the year and was a finalist for ESPN's coach of the decade (1990s) honor.

Alvarez is a 1969 graduate of the University of Nebraska, where he played linebacker and went on to earn his master's degree. He received a Distinguished Alumnus Award from his alma mater in 2003.

Alvarez and his wife, Cindy, are the parents of three grown children: daughters Dawn (Mrs. Brad Ferguson) and Stacy (Mrs. Mike Delzer); and son Chad. Barry and Cindy are grandparents to Joe and Jake Ferguson, and Grace and Jackson Delzer.

Alvarez’ Coaching Record

Year School W L T Conf Bowl Results
1990 Wisconsin 1 10 0 10th –––
1991 Wisconsin 5 6 0 T8th –––
1992 Wisconsin 5 6 0 T6th –––
1993 Wisconsin 10 1 1 T1st Rose (defeated UCLA 21-16)
1994 Wisconsin 8 3 1 3rd Hall of Fame (defeated Duke 34-20)
1995 Wisconsin 4 5 2 T7th –––
1996 Wisconsin 8 5 0 7th Copper (defeated Utah 38-10)
1997 Wisconsin 8 5 0 5th Outback (lost to Georgia 33-6)
1998 Wisconsin 11 1 0 T1st Rose (defeated UCLA 38-31)
1999 Wisconsin 10 2 0 1st Rose (defeated Stanford 17-9)
2000 Wisconsin 9 4 0 5th Sun (defeated UCLA 21-20)
2001 Wisconsin 5 7 0 T8th –––
2002 Wisconsin 8 6 0 T8th Alamo (defeated Colorado 31-28 OT)
2003 Wisconsin 7 6 0
13-year total 99 67 4

[AlbuquerqueIrishFan]

Landing Alvarez would be outstanding, but he has built a great program in Madison and I doubt he would leave the Badgers.

[no_apologist]

On one hand, Barry Alvarez is a coach with Notre Dame connections, even though it was as an assistant coach on his way up the career ladder. He is also someone who has made a name for himself at a school in a major conference where the competition is fierce week in and week out. On the other hand, he has built quite a position in Madison being both the head coach AND athletic director. Talk about job security. I would guess that it would be hard to give up that amount of power once one had become accustomed to it. Unless he sees an A.D. here that has one foot on a banana peel and one out the door...

Another thing, looking at his coaching record it looks a lot like Mike Price's record out at Washington State. A couple of great years, some mediocre years, and some bad years. No real consistency. Could he do better at a school like ND where the academic standards are more stringent, and where he would have to start from scratch?