With their roster already filled with names of players new to their positions and roles, UW was dealt another blow last week when the NCAA’s Committee on Satisfactory Progress denied defensive back Carlease Clark’s eligibility appeal.

“We were prepared if in fact the decision was what it is, and we’ll just move forward,” UW head coach Barry Alvarez said.

UW made the appeal after Clark performed well in his summer courses, recording a 4.0 GPA in 11 credits.

“It doesn’t make any sense for me to make any statement to say whether or not I think it’s fair or unfair or anything else,” Alvarez said following the decision. “We felt obviously it was a good appeal.”
Wisconsin is going to appeal the NCAA’s decision again, but the earliest the NCAA would respond to UW’s request is Sept. 5. Clark will be able to practice with the Badgers until at least Sept.5, but he had to sit out the games against Virginia and Oregon.

“We’re prepared for [the decision],” Alvarez said. “We’re always prepared for the worst, and our players are prepared. We’ll make the proper adjustments and we’ll move forward.”

In the absence of Clark, who played five games at free safety for the Badgers last season, UW moved senior Joey Boese from his spot at cornerback over to the free safety slot against Virginia. This move left B.J. Tucker to play as cornerback.

“We thought Joey was the most versatile,” Alvarez said. “We felt that Joey could make the easiest transition, which he did. I thought actually Joey was the player of the game on defense, as named by his coaches, because he really played an excellent game. He played with a lot of confidence.”