The school's strong ice hockey tradition gained another dimension with the addition of a women's team that began play in the 1999–2000 season. Coached by Mark Johnson, son of "Badger Bob" and another member of the men's 1977 title team, the Badger women won their first NCAA championship on March 26, 2006. The dual 2006 titles marked the first time that both the men's and women's Division I NCAA hockey titles were won by the same school in the same year.[127] The women's team repeated as national cha

at the Kohl Center, where the student fans are known as the Grateful Red. In the 2006–2007 season, the Badgers attained their highest AP ranking in school history (#1 Feb. 19–25), garnering 35 first-place votes.[124] The Badgers' earned their only NCAA National Championship in 1941.
Women's basketball[edit]
Main article: Wisconsin Badgers women's basketball
The women's basketball team plays at the Kohl Center. The 2006–2007 season was a record-setting year, with the Badgers recording 23 wins and becoming the WNIT runners-up.[citation needed]
Ice hockey[edit]
Main article: Wisconsin Badgers men's ice hockey


Men's hockey game played at the Kohl Center
Badger ice hockey first became a men's varsity sport in 1922. Although dropped after the 1934–35 season, it again became a varsity sport in the 1963–64 season. The men's team played in the Dane County Coliseum until moving to the Kohl Center (capacity 15,237) in the fall of 1998. The first ice hockey game played at the Kohl was the Hall of Fame game against the University of Notre Dame. The men's team perennially leads the nation in college hockey attendance, and set an NCAA attendance record (averaging 14,430) during the 2006–07 season, surpassing their previous record set the previous year.[125]
Bob Johnson, nicknamed "Badger Bob" by fans, took over the reins in 1966. Johnson coached the Badger men to three national championships in 1973, 1977 and 1981. Jeff Sauer coached the Badger men to two more titles in 1983 and 1990. Mike Eaves, member of the 1977 NCAA title team, coached the Badger men's team to its sixth national championship in 2006. The six Badger titles rank 4th in NCAA men's ice hockey history.[126] Eaves' 2010 squad advanced to the national championship game during the Badgers' 11th appearance in the men's Frozen Four before bowing to Boston College.
The school's strong ice hockey tradition gained another dimension with the addition of a women's team that began play in the 1999–2000 season. Coached by Mark Johnson, son of "Badger Bob" and another member of the men's 1977 title team, the Badger women won their first NCAA championship on March 26, 2006. The dual 2006 titles marked the first time that both the men's and women's Division I NCAA hockey titles were won by the same school in the same year.[127] The women's team repeated as national champions in 2007 with a victory over the University of Minnesota-Duluth on March 18 at Herb Brooks Arena in Lake Placid, NY. With a 5–0 victory over Mercyhurst in the 2009 Women's Frozen Four final in Boston, the Badger women added their third NCAA title.
Rivalries[edit]
The Wisconsin Badgers most notable rivalry within the Big Ten is with the University of Minnesota, which is the most-played rivalry in Division 1-A football.[128] In their annual college football game, the teams compete for Paul Bunyan's Axe. The two universities also compete in the Border Battle, a year-long athletic competition in which each team's wins earn points for their university.
Men's basketball rivalries include Michigan State, Illinois and non-conference, in-state Marquette.
The long-standing football rivalry between the University of Iowa and Wisconsin–Madison was finally recognized in 2004, with the winner of their game being awarded the Heartland Trophy.
The Wisconsin–Madison men's and women's hockey teams' most recognized rivals are the Golden Gophers of the University of Minnesota and the Fighting Sioux of the University of North Dakota. Other rivals include the University of Denver, Colorado College, Michigan Tech, University of Minnesota Duluth, and St. Cloud State.
Mascot[edit]
The school mascot is an anthropomorphized badger named Bucky who dons a sweater affixed with the UW–Madison athletic logo (currently the red "Motion W"). Beginning in 1890, the university's first Bucky Badger was a live, temperamental and unruly badger who was quickly retired. Although the nickname of the Wisconsin teams remained the "Badgers", it was not until Art Evans drew the early caricature version of Bucky in 1940 that today's recognizable image of Bucky was adopted. In 1949, a contest was held to name the mascot, but no consensus was reached after only a few entries were received. In reaction, the contest committee chose the name Buckingham U. Badger, or "Bucky," for s

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