The reactions to plays a quarter apart were remarkably similar from University of Wisconsin football fans sitting at two different bars.
It looked like the Badgers defense was getting off the field in the second quarter after holding Alabama to 12 yards on third-and-15. Then the yellow flag indication went up on the five large TV screens showing Saturday’s game in the bar area at Monk’s Bar and Grill in Sun Prairie.
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Alabama got a first down thanks to a Wisconsin penalty for roughing the passer. Ryan Antony put his head down on the bar and uttered, “Oh my god.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” said Lisa Antony, seated to his left.
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It was the same story a while later at Pooley’s Sports Bar and Event Center on Madison’s far east side. A 41-yard Alabama touchdown pass in the third quarter elicited moans of “Oh my god” and “Are you kidding me?” from the dozens watching.
Wisconsin fans watching in the Madison area had a few moments of excitement Saturday but more opportunities to shake their head during the Badgers’ 38-14 loss in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Ken Eeg watched from a barstool at Pooley’s, pausing a conversation to lament an offside penalty on the Badgers. Being with a crowd was more fun than staying home, he said.
“You’re with people,” said Eeg, who’s from Madison. “You can commiserate with them when something goes wrong. When you come here, it seems like most of the people are positive. Like, let’s show them today. I like that. The negative Nellies can stay home or sit behind me at Camp Randall.”
Tom Hanser of Madison sat to Eeg’s left at the bar, wearing a gray hat with a Motion W logo. He said he has been disappointed by the hype around coach Luke Fickell’s team.
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“I understand that it takes more time,” Hanser said. “Everybody wants instantaneous gratification where we’re going to be good. It takes time to develop a team. I’ve got to give him a little leash.
“As long as I can see improvement throughout the year, then I can handle it. But if he’s going to be telling us, oh, we’re going to be really good and then he’s not preparing them — a lot of stupid penalties, that kind of thing — those are the kinds of things that you’re kind of, well, is this the guy we want here or not?”
Ryan Antony said he’s a fan of the coaching staff changes Fickell made last offseason. First-year offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes “has brought it back to what we recognize as Wisconsin football,” Antony said.
He got to Monk’s in time for Saturday’s 11 a.m. start. He and his wife, Lisa, were two of eight people watching in the bar area halfway through the first quarter. The bar was busier around the noon hour, and tables in the restaurant filled up, too.
Whose call was it to watch the game from a bar instead of from home? Lisa Antony pointed the finger at herself. They went to the Sun Prairie Farmers’ Market in the morning and wanted to stay out.
“He would love to sit at home in the basement and watch it because he’s got all his TVs,” Lisa Antony said, motioning at her husband. “I’m like, no, we need to get out of the house. It’s a beautiful day, even though we’re sitting in a bar.”
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Dan Feeney lives near Camp Randall Stadium and took some friends visiting Madison to SconnieBar on Regent Street. They sat at the bar as time ticked away in the fourth quarter with the game out of reach for the Badgers.
“I thought there’d be a bigger crowd, but it’s a beautiful day outside,” Feeney said. “The Badgers could be playing a better game, I think.”
He said some games broadcast on streaming services have brought crowds out to Regent Street bars in enough numbers to make it hard to find a seat. Saturday’s game was on over-the-air TV.
Feeney’s a lifelong Badgers fan and said he thinks better days are coming for the football team.
“How many lean years did we have? We still cheer for the Badgers,” he said. “You learn how to roll with the punches when you’re a Badgers fan.”
Back at Pooley’s, Eeg had a similar take. He said he almost gave up his season tickets for games at Camp Randall before the 2024 season but said he’s seeing movement in the right direction.
“The kids are still competing,” he said. “I’m hopeful.”
The result Saturday was close to expectations: Alabama was favored by 20½ points and won by 24. A difficult schedule was on Hanser’s mind when he talked about expectations for the Badgers’ season.
“I don’t know if you can judge that season on wins and losses,” he said. “If they make a bowl, that would be a good mark for them.”
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