Summer temperatures are rising throughout the Midwest, and with Russell Wilson now a Badger, Wisconsin especially can look forward to more heat.

In a press conference Tuesday, UW football head coach Bret Bielema expressed his excitement for what his new quarterback’s presence on campus will mean for the team.

“He’s very dedicated, very serious, on task with everything he does,” Bielema said. “I’ve learned that over the last couple of months, recruiting him and talking with him. I’m very excited to have him in our program.”

Bielema is confident Wilson will have a quick transition into Wisconsin’s style of play. While learning the playbook and terminology will take some time, getting to know the team and meshing with his new teammates will be the biggest challenge for Wilson.

“Once he gets on campus, our players will be the best coaches,” Bielema said. “He learns things very quickly, not only graduating in three years at N.C. State, but also I think it’ll carry over into the football field”

“N.C. State’s version [of football] and Paul Chryst’s version are two totally different things,” Bielema added. “Football language takes on a unique environment in each place that you go to. The transition will go quicker than you think, but the biggest challenge will be in the locker room, getting to know guys for the first time.”

Some of the first players Wilson will interact with will be the rest of the quarterbacks, most notably redshirt sophomore Jon Budmayr, who was previously anticipated to be under center this fall.

With Wilson now on the team, Budmayr told Bielema it “wasn’t going to change the way [he] prepares for this upcoming season.”

Bielema, meanwhile, is looking forward to the competition Wilson’s presence should foster at the position.

“[Wilson] wasn’t promised a starting job, but obviously I told him as a guy with one year of eligibility, I’m not bringing him in with the intention of seeing how you sit on the bench,” Bielema said. “[Quarterback] was an area everyone was looking at as a sign of weakness. To me, it’s going to become a position of strength because there’s going to be great competition.

“We’re not going to change what we do,” Bielema added. “We’re going to approach fall camp the exact same way. Obviously there’s a competition thing there we’re going to have to work through, we’ve done that before.”

Madison can expect some competition at quarterback, although Wilson already has a step on Budmayr after three years as a starter and a bowl game victory to his name.

“There’s a maturity factor,” Bielema. “A guy that’s started so many games and played in environments and played in big games and his competitive nature. I love the fact that he’s graduated in three years while playing football and baseball.”

Wilson’s experience under center, coupled with the strengths the Badgers already possess, has created some great expectations. UW boasts one of the deepest and most talented running back duos in the nation with Montee Ball and James White, and despite losing two mainstays of the offensive line in left tackle Gabe Carimi and left guard John Moffitt, the Badgers’ offense is loaded for a repeat attempt at matching last year’s Rose Bowl season. Whispers of conference titles, a triumphant return to Pasedena and possibly even a run at the national title have begun to surround Wisconsin in just the short 24 hours Wilson has been a Badger.

To Bielema, the hopes and expectations are typical.

“I totally understand it and I know why people are naturally going to go down that path,” Bielema said. “One of the things I try to do is temper not only coaches expectations, but fan expectations. “The proof is in the pudding in the end, but as far as getting a great kid in our program that I think helps bolster our competition, it’s worth every minute of it.”