They did have adidas invitational before UW closed it off to high school teams. Besides, there is always the Taj Mahal course nearby (otherwise known as Verona Area HS)
Sure, the XC course was built when Mick was there. But speaking of facilities, now we have just photos and memories of an indoor track. That also happened during Mick's tenure.
Except no local HS teams are allowed to use the XC course. I’m surprised they don’t hold a premiere level HS XC meet there. I wouldn’t blame the indoor track on Mick though, that’s just standard AD politics not knowing/caring about track and field. The unfortunate reality for most schools.
There's something up with UW. Either Byrne lost his fastball, or the AD is working against him; more than likely, both things are true.
No indoor track in Madison? Renting out a storage facility with a tarmac? Traveling to either Whitewater or Gately for practice and meets? Cmon. The B1G has caught up, especially with Washington and Oregon entering the chat.
If I'm Lenn, with 4:01 speed, I'm decommitting yesterday. Same goes for Groetehaus. Putz should also probably hit the road. Bella Greiner might as well pack her bags while the boys are getting out of town.
UW hasn't developed anyone recently. They don't race their young guys, and they're left on the shelf to be replaced by 'Stralians. Wisconsin has a DEEP pool right now. Putz was a non-factor in his few races during cross, and I don't see that changing anytime soon. If that's the path for incoming phenoms, I'd take my talents elsewhere.
There must be some great promises being made as to who is replacing Byrne. There are rumblings that XC and Track could go the way of the Dodo in Madison in the not-so-distant future...
As long as Wisconsin doesn't bring in another coach that's focused on primarily foreign athletes, this is the best thing to happen to Wisconsin. Mick was terrible at developing talent, especially the in-state raw kids that used to be the backbone of the program, he relied on developed studs that he kept them on their path. Many in-state kids would not look at Wisconsin seriously anymore for that reason.
Fortunately the Wisconsin AD stepped down a couple months ago too, so he can't f-up the department anymore