Last fall, the Wisconsin Athletic Department rolled out a five-course social media scheme surrounding the return of Heisman finalist Montee Ball. A Youtube video was released, centering the attention of an entire university on one man.
Next came the city buses emblazoned from front to back with a picture of Ball, accented by the catchy hashtag “#ThisFallBelongsToBall.” It was almost as if the basketball team didn’t exist or the defending national champion cross country team had disappeared. Thankfully, that was 2012, and this is 2013.
2013 has no social media center of attention, and many Wisconsin athletes are doing social media right. Simply following these accounts will bring you closer to Wisconsin athletics. In 2013, I say “#ThisFallBelongsToAll.”
Beau Allen (@beau_allen), Football
Now a senior, Allen is known on the football field for stuffing running backs and playing in every game since he stepped foot on campus. He’s one of just nine Badgers to have never redshirted. He’s also known for something else.
Allen unintentionally mooned a healthy portion of the Rose Bowl audience this past January when his pants were yanked below his rear during Wisconsin’s third-consecutive defeat in Pasadena. It was a near-perfect moment because not many people would be able to simply laugh it off. Allen could because he laughs a lot of things off. His Twitter account is about 90 percent hilarity.
Most of his tweets are laden with sarcasm, but just about every one comes from his day-to-day life. This includes outdoor sports in the summer and just about anything that comes to his mind, including notes about his awful golf game.
He may not have the 10,000-plus followers James White has, but his account is probably worth that many.
Sam Dekker (@samdek1), Men’s Basketball
Dekker has only spent one year on campus, but in the short time, the campus got well acquainted with him. It’s kind of hard not to.
The Sheboygan native invites his 19,000-plus followers into his daily tasks, which – in the fall – seem to include little more than practicing basketball and watching the Milwaukee Brewers. Dekker is extremely committed to displaying himself and his life on Twitter and Instagram, even throwing in the occasional Vine video of him tossing water on point guard Josh Gasser (@JPGasser21).
No other Badger exposes the life of UW student athletes quite like Dekker. Plus, he’s also very good at basketball.
Drew Conner (@drew_conner1), Men’s Soccer
Like Dekker, Conner has spent just one year on campus at UW, but his short time has been met with no shortage of Vines.
He may have less than 500 followers on Twitter but he is one of the most active Badgers on Vine. When he’s not scoring goals, he’s likely chronicling every abnormal step in his life through the looping video app.
It’s goofiness pieced together with creativity and it’s pretty great.
Luke Kazmierczak (@MartinLutherKaz), Men’s Soccer
Probably owning the most creative handle of Wisconsin athletes, “Kaz” is surprisingly followed by just more than 100 people on Twitter. For any freshmen set to arrive in Madison from the Massachusetts or the Northeast, Kaz is definitely your guy.
He’s a Boston native and an avid New England sports fan. He’s also not afraid to show it on Twitter, live-tweeting every big Bruins, Celtics or Patriots game with as much emotion as 140 characters allows.
The men’s soccer reserve hasn’t seen much playing time on the field, but that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t have at least 200 followers. If something important is on TV, Kaz is likely tweeting about it, whether it’s game seven of the NBA Finals or the ever-compelling Miss America competition.
John Gullberg (@j_gullberg, jrgullberg on Instagram), Men’s Golf
At times, Twitter can be brash. Thankfully, Kevin Systrom and Mike Kreiger created Instagram. And for the golf lovers out there, Gullberg is likely the best Badger to follow on both social media outlets.
Gullberg definitely doesn’t tweet as much as the other athletes mentioned, but he posts photos to Instagram just about every day. You’ll find classic golfer shots of whichever course he’s currently playing, but the obvious fan favorite are photos of his three dogs. Rightfully so, they seem to find their way to his Instagram just as often as the fairways.
This group offers a taste of life as a UW athlete. And if they can’t satisfy the social media needs prompted by Wisconsin fans and students, hopefully The Badger Herald can. Follow us @BHeraldSports for updates on all things UW athletics. You could also take singer Uncle Kracker’s advice and “Follow Me” at @sean_zak or Sports Editor Nick Daniels at @np_daniels.
