In the world of sports, being hated is generally a good thing.

It often means you’re winning, and when you win, competitors tend to become envious of that success.

UW’s growing rivalry with Ohio State has been a point of discussion recently with the Badgers’ wins over the top-ranked Buckeyes in both football and basketball. OSU wideout DeVier Posey’s tweet stating, after the Badgers’ victory over the Buckeye basketball team, that he “hates” Wisconsin and his athletic director’s twitter response saying, “feel ya bro!!!” speaks to the kind of hatred opponents are starting to feel toward Wisconsin.

But the Buckeyes aren’t the only team who’ve been pained by the Badgers’ success.

You can add Purdue football to the list. Here’s why:

UW head football coach Bret Bielema announced that he has filled one of his two assistant coaching vacancies with DeMontie Cross.

Cross worked in the NFL with the Buffalo Bills for the past five years and will serve as safeties coach and special teams coordinator with the Badgers.

But just days ago, Cross was getting adjusted to life in West Lafayette, Ind., working under Purdue head coach Danny Hope. That is, until Bielema decided he wanted Cross on his staff.

So right before the start of spring football, the Badgers swooped in and lured Cross away.

Hope was not too pleased with UW’s new hire, nor the system.

“There has been a tremendous amount of turnover in college coaching this year, and we are seeing what I consider an unprecedented number of coaches accept a job and leave soon after for another one,” Hope said in a statement. “DeMontie wasn’t here long enough to make a difference, and we will get to work immediately on finding someone who will.”

Some strong words from coach Hope.

But is he on to something? Has he uncovered another new problem with college football?

No. Sorry, coach. This is the way it works. Young coaches work for promotions – that’s the way it’s been, and that’s the way it will always be.

Bielema knows all about losing assistant coaches. Take a look at the current offseason for UW.

The Badgers lost defensive coordinator Dave Doeren to Northern Illinois, where he will take over as head coach.

Running backs coach John Settle left for the same job with the Carolina Panthers one day after signing day.

And defensive assistant Greg Jackson left for a job with the San Francisco 49ers.

Programs everywhere are dealing with this kind of staff turnover.

For Wisconsin, the on-field success played a huge part in the staff’s restructuring. NFL teams want college coaches from winning programs. After a Rose Bowl appearance and Big Ten title, UW assistants suddenly look a lot more impressive.

But that success also works in the Badgers’ favor. Exhibit A: Coach Cross.

“I’m very thankful for the chance to join coach Bielema’s staff and become a part of the Wisconsin family,” Cross said in a statement. “The program is obviously headed in the right direction and competing for championships. I’ve worked hard to get to this position in my career and am excited for the opportunity.”

The second part of that particular quote is key.

Cross compared Purdue with Wisconsin and saw a sizable gap between the two programs. Sure, the Badgers have outperformed the Boilermakers on the gridiron pretty regularly over the past decade, but is there enough of a gap to jump off Hope’s train just weeks after taking the job? Was the position with the Badgers that big an upgrade?

Now it is. At the moment, UW is the superior program.

A program that Cross used in the same sentence as ‘championships.’ That sure doesn’t sound like a middling, occasionally above-average Big Ten program anymore.

And as much as Rose Bowls and conference titles brew the opposition’s hatred, they also create interest from prospective coaches and players alike.

Like Cross, had the Badgers not had a stellar 2010 season, Kenosha running back Melvin Gordon would almost assuredly be wearing Iowa colors as a freshman next season. But the UW staff continued to recruit Gordon after he committed to Iowa throughout the year, and it paid off.

“I think Melvin Gordon is a guy that, yeah, if we didn’t have a special year, I don’t know if he would’ve switched courses and gone our way,” Bielema said on national signing day.

Now Gordon, an electrifying, highly regarded tailback, is preparing for his first season at UW.

Just another reason for a Big Ten foe to hate the Badgers.

It all comes back to winning, and with wins comes the envy from your peers.

The most widely hated team in the Big Ten – the Ohio State Buckeyes – is despised because it always wins. In both football and basketball, OSU brings in top talent and competes for national championships. That’s why fans around the country hate the Buckeyes. They’re envious of the constant success.

Wisconsin hasn’t achieved that national status yet, but within the conference, the bull’s eye on the Badgers’ back is growing bigger.

You can bet that’s a price of winning the Badgers are more than willing to pay.

Max is a senior majoring in journalism. Think other teams in the Big Ten are building up more hatred for Wisconsin? Think it’s justified? E-mail him at [email protected].