Charles,

Since taking on the Wisconsin head coaching job, I’ve scoured the country for players who fit our new program, the culture we’re creating, and who can contribute from day 1 - and you’re it.

I can promise you Madison will be the most rewarding college and campus experience of all the schools you’re considering. I don’t want you to take a late 30-some year old’s word for it, though. Below is the commentary from one of your own; fellow Texan Abdullahi Lovedale from Longview. Abdullahi just finished his freshman year starting for our team and given he’s from not far from where you’re at in Fort Worth, figure you hear from him about what your experience on campus will be like.

Lovedale: I didn’t know what to expect when I got to campus; I had taken a school visit but that was only for a weekend of course. After a year of being here…man, this place is unreal. Madison’s cool because it’s an urban center in the Midwest; you’ve got a ton of businesses here and they all care about NIL and helping out student athletes. The campus is outrageous. I know you’re in Fort Worth where TCU is. The University of Wisconsin is FOUR times bigger than TCU. You’ve got other young people here for days, and the student body is more diverse than you’d expect - over half of my class was from other states besides Wisconsin. Greek life is a ton of fun, and even though you probably won’t have time to pledge, athletes basically have access to it all. The frats are lined up near Camp Randall (the stadium), which makes tailgating for football games a blast. Wisconsin isn’t just a football school, it’s an athletics school in general. Football’s consistently top 15, volleyball is currently #1, rowing’s #1, and the fans show out. Even for us, given our team hasn’t been good for a while, we still get great support. Academics are challenging but the professors are really good to student athletes, they get our time constraints. But man, given where we’re from, this place is straight up gorgeous. The campus is beautiful year-round (you’ll appreciate the novelty of a white Christmas); rivers, a cool downtown, and the campus is super walkable. You’ll love it here.

I didn’t tell Abdullahi to write that but when he found out I was recruiting you, he wanted to chime in. He alluded to academics and Wisconsin holds its own in the Big Ten as one of the top academic universities in one of the top academic conferences in the nation. As a student athlete you have access to top-notch resources at the The Fetzer Centers - a network of learning centers and computer labs. Student athletes are provided advisors, learning specialists, and mentors to ensure your academic success.

Let’s talk ball. I know you’re looking for a place to shine, and no other university can offer you the immediate playing time that I can. Every spot is up for grabs, we do not currently have ANY high–major talent on the roster, especially at center. Our center is a junior who was thrust into a starting position and got outrebounded by our SF. Obviously, we need help. You’re going to get significant burn, to the tune of at least 20 minutes a game as a freshman. There aren’t any programs that play in a conference of our caliber that can offer you the kind of opportunities we can to showcase your talents early and often. In terms of how I plan on using you, it’s clear that you bring a rare offensive skillset with range to the 3-point line. We want to take advantage of you as a stretch big. We’ll certainly need to work with you on shot selection but running an inverted offense where you can pick and pop, run out to the wings and corners and keep the lanes unclogged thanks to your shooting…you’ll be a dangerous threat.

I know you have pro aspirations as well. Wisconsin’s got a longstanding pipeline of college-to-pro ranks, with 83 players from our university making it to the NBL. You’ve got what it takes to be #84 if you work and stay committed to us for 4 years. We think you have a great chance of getting drafted as you work with our staff and keep improving.

And our staff is committed to you and this university. I signed a 3-year deal and have jumped in headfirst to rebuild this program. I’ll be your coach the entire time you’re at the university, I’m not going anywhere and I bleed Badger Red.

We want to win here as well. We had one win last year before I arrived; by the time it’s said and done, we’ll have gotten to ten wins at a minimum before you leave the university, and I anticipate at least doubling our win total from a year ago.

While some things are new about this program, like the coaching staff, players, routines - the legacy of this institution remains. This is a proud program that’s competed for a national championship, has a legacy of selling out the Kohl Center, and competing in the most prestigious conference in America. We’ve had 3 HOFers walk the halls of our institution and we’re proud of our heritage.

Let’s build this.

Coach Dave