Wisconsin Sports Headlines – 6/16/2020

The Latest Sports Headlines: 

>>Next UW Football Recruiting Class May Be Best Ever

(Madison, WI)  —  It’s still more than a year before they are making any tackles or scoring touchdowns, but the Wisconsin Badgers’ recruiting Class of 2021 could end up being the best in the program’s history.  The Class of 2020 holds the record with its 26th-place ranking.  The next group is ranked 13th as of this week.  In the Big Ten Conference, Wisconsin is fourth – but that has more to do with the number of players than it does with their quality.  Ohio State is ranked number-one in the country and not likely to be caught, but both Michigan and Iowa have more recruits than the Badgers and are just narrowly ahead on points according to 247Sports-dot.com.

 

>>Brewers Busy Signing Undrafted Free Agents

(Milwaukee, WI)  —  The two-day dead period just ended when the Milwaukee Brewers announced the signing of two undrafted free agents.  Infielder Drew Smith from Grand Canyon University is a solid hitting prospect with a lot of power, while pitcher T-J Shook from South Carolina is being projected as a reliever.  Smith pounded 29 home runs in two years at the junior college level, then nine more for Grand Canyon before coronavirus shut things down.  Shook had an earned run average of three-point-04 for the Gamecocks, with 92 strikeouts in 74 innings.  This spring college batters were hitting just .107 off the righthander.

 

>>Big Ten Commish:  Athletes Will Be Allowed To Kneel During National Anthem

(Rosemont, IL)  —  Big Ten Conference Commissioner Kevin Warren says athletes will be allowed to kneel during the national anthem if sports are played this fall. Warren says he has started the Big Ten Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism Coalition, composed of about 180 student-athletes, coaches and officials from the 14 conference schools.  The Big Ten is currently running a voter registration drive, trying to make sure every conference athlete is registered to vote in the November 3rd presidential election.  Giving those athletes the day off to cast their ballots is a topic expected to come up as the coalition meets in the coming weeks.  A decision about allowing spectators in Big Ten stadiums hasn’t been made yet.

 

>>Bucks In Good Shape To Continue Quest For NBA Title

(Milwaukee, WI)  —  Even though the Milwaukee Bucks lost their last four games before the NBA season was stopped, it doesn’t mean opponents had figured them out.  The Bucks are still the favorites to claim this season’s NBA title.  All four of those games were on the road and all four opponents were solid teams.  In the loss to Denver, the Bucks were playing without Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Brook Lopez and solid bench performer Donte DiVincenzo.  Milwaukee will lean on a solid defense which was number-one in the league – and by a wide margin – before the season was sidelined.

 

>>Forward Madison FC Gets Ready For Season – Just In Case It Finally Starts

(Madison, WI)  —  Forward Madison head coach Daryl Shore and his staff have developed a game plan from scratch, with no outside guidance.  USL League One put the season on hold in March.  In recent weeks, the Madison team has checked players’ temperatures every day, making them wear masks when not training, and wiping down all equipment frequently.  The Flamingos can’t do any full-squad drills yet.  The league is currently allowing training sessions of 10 players or fewer.  The league points to July 18th as the potential start date, but that isn’t set in stone.  Madison Forward has been practicing for about three weeks.

 

>>Jordy Nelson: No Interest In NFL Return

(Green Bay, WI) — Not even the Green Bay Packers could convince Jordy Nelson to return to pro football. The former Packers star wide receiver says he’s done with the NFL. Nelson tells ESPN Milwaukee he was interested in rejoining the Packers after the 2018 season, but general manager Brian Gutekunst never reached out. Nelson spent nine seasons in Green Bay, catching 69 touchdowns and emerging as quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ go-to target.

 

>>Packers Pro Shop Reopened

(Green Bay, WI) — Packers fans can buy those Aaron Rodgers jerseys again. The Green Bay Packers Pro Shop has been reopened for customers to make their purchases in the store. The Lombardi Avenue doors are the only ones to be used for entering and exiting. Hand sanitizer will be provided for customers and plexiglass barriers are set up at the counters.