The Milwaukee Panthers (also known as the UWM Panthers) are the athletic teams of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. A total of 15 Panthers athletic teams compete in NCAA Division I. Panthers have now won the McCafferty Trophy Horizon League's all-sports champion for three straight and four of the last six years, ranks eighth in the nation among non-Division I-A programs and second among institutions that do not sponsor football at any level. [1]
History
UWM's athletic teams are nicknamed the Panthers. (UWM has had three mascots and nicknames: Green Gulls (1910-1956), Cardinals (1956-1964), and Panthers (1964-present).[2]) Before 1990, the University's athletics program spent the majority of its history at the NCAA Division III and II levels, as well as several years at the NAIA level. All non-Division I sports moved to the NCAA Division I level for the 1990-91 academic year.
From 1998-2007, the Milwaukee Panthers have qualified for NCAA Tournaments at the team level a total of 24 times in six different sports, making Milwaukee the second most successful college athletic program in the state of Wisconsin (trailing only the Wisconsin Badgers of the Big Ten Conference).
The Panthers received national media attention with an appearance in the Sweet Sixteen of the 2005 Men's Basketball NCAA Tournament. Other sports that Milwaukee competes in include baseball, women's volleyball, men's and women's cross-country, men's and women's Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field, men's and women's Swimming and Diving, and women's tennis.
In 1988, the current Athletic Director Bud Haidet came to the school and quickly moved the program from NAIA to NCAA Division I. Milwaukee currently ranks 64th out of all 336 NCAA Division I schools in this years NACDA Director's Cup standings conducted by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics(NACDA).[1] Formerly known as the Sears Directors' Cup, the annual contest awards points for NCAA post-season appearances and performances in all sports. Milwaukee, which has now won the McCafferty Trophy as the Horizon League's all-sports champion for three straight and four of the last six years, ranks eighth in the nation among non-Division I-A programs and second among institutions that do not sponsor football at any level. [1] The Panthers have earned 75 total points through the fall and are just 3 points behind North Carolina State University. Milwaukee currently sits tied with several schools, including the University of Missouri, and holds a 2 point lead on Northwestern University. After picking up 50 points in women's soccer (NCAA Tournament 2nd round) and 25 points in women's volleyball (NCAA Tournament 1st round) in the fall, Milwaukee looks to maintain its edge on cross-city rival Marquette University (91st place) and catch Horizon League leader Youngstown State (66th) this spring.[3]
Teams
Men's basketball
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The Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball team has flourished under the helm of Athletics Director Bud Haidet and his knack for finding successful head coaches. In 1999, Haidet hired then UW-Platteville head coach Bo Ryan. In Ryan's two seasons (99-00 and 00-01) he led Milwaukee to its first back-to-back winning seasons in eight years before accepting the head coaching position at UW-Madison.
In 2001, Bruce Pearl was hired to replace Ryan and continue the success of the previous two seasons. It took Pearl only two seasons to take Milwaukee to its first ever "Big Dance" in March 2003, where the Panthers came only a missed buzzer-beater away from pulling off a come-from-behind "12-5 upset" over Notre Dame. UW-Milwaukee lost, 70-69, and Notre Dame went on to advance to the Sweet Sixteen in impressive fashion over fourth seeded Illinois. The following year, Pearl would lead Milwaukee to its first ever Division I postseason victory in men's basketball in the 2004 NIT with a crushing home victory over Rice, 91-53 at the U.S. Cellular Arena.
In March 2005, Milwaukee's men's basketball program entered the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament as the 12th Seed in the Midwest regional bracket. After ousting fifth-seeded Alabama in the first round and fourth-seeded Boston College (coach Bruce Pearl's alma mater) in the second round, Milwaukee entered for the first time ever the "Sweet 16". The Panthers would go on to lose to the top-seeded eventual tournament runner-up, Illinois, 77-63 in its Sweet Sixteen matchup. It was an Illinois team that included future NBA players Deron Williams, Dee Brown, James Augustine and Luther Head. Milwaukee's entrance into the Sweet Sixteen was due in part to Pearl's full court press playmaking style, or as the Boston Globe would call it, the "UWM Press". After their appearance in the NCAA Tournament, Bruce Pearl was hired away by the University of Tennessee.
In March 2006, for the third time in four years, Milwaukee won the Horizon League Championship to enter the NCAA Tournament as an 11th Seed under first-year coach Rob Jeter. In the first round, the Panthers faced the sixth-seeded Oklahoma Sooners in Jacksonville, Florida, and won easily, 82-74. The Panthers never trailed against the Sooners, and led by as much as 14 late in the 2nd half. Milwaukee bowed out of the 2006 NCAA Tournament in the second round at the hands of the eventual National Champion Florida Gators.
Beginning with the 2007-08 season, Milwaukee Panthers basketball radio broadcasts moved to AM-1130 WISN, the former home of cross-town rival Marquette University. [1] The move gives the Panthers the largest listening audience in the city of Milwaukee for their games. [2]
The saying on the door of the locker room in the Klotsche Center reads "Take care of the little things." It was added in conjunction with the renovations of the men's basketball locker room at the Klotsche Center. It follows in the tradition of other university teams posting sayings on the way to the playing field, such as "Play like a champion today" at Notre Dame or "The Road to the Rose Bowl begins here" at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
| Milwaukee basketball |
| NCAA Championships (0) |
|
| NIT Championships (0) |
|
Conference Titles (10)
*indicates shared title |
1913 • 1934 • 1940* • 1941 • 1943 • 1948 • 1960
2004 • 2005 • 2006 |
NCAA Tournament
Appearances
*Final Four appearance
^vacated by NCAA |
2003 • 2005 • 2006 |
Women's basketball
After leading the Lady Panthers to their first regular-season title since 2001 and second NCAA Tournament appearance in school history, Milwaukee women’s basketball coach Sandy Botham was named the 2006 Horizon League women's basketball coach of the year. Botham had been voted the league’s top coach two times previously in her 10 years at Milwaukee.
Affliations
| AIAW |
1971-1978 |
| AIAW Large |
1978-1979 |
| AIAW Division III |
1979-1980 |
| MAIAW Division II |
1980-1982 |
| NAIA |
1982-1990 |
| NCAA Division 1 |
1990-Present |
Conference Affliations
| Independent |
1971-1973 |
| WWIAC |
1973-1974 |
| WWIAC Large |
1974-1978 |
| WWIAC Division III Large |
1978-1979 |
| WWIAC Division II |
1980-1983 |
| WWIAC South |
1983-1984 |
| Independent |
1984-1992 |
| Summit League |
1993 |
| Horizon League |
1994-Present |
Men's soccer
The Milwaukee men’s soccer team has a rich history of achievements in its 34 years as a Division I program. Milwaukee is regularly ranked in the top 25 of the country, and was as high as eighth in 2002. Milwaukee men's soccer began the 2006 season ranked 24th in the nation. [4] Since first fielding a team in 1973, Milwaukee men's soccer has compiled an impressive all-time record of 396-223-53 and an all-time NCAA Tournament record of 4-7-1 in eight appearances. [5] Milwaukee has won four of the past five Horizon League Tournament Championships and four of the past six regular season crowns, as well as qualified for five consecutive NCAA Tournaments (2001-2005). In the second round of both the 2004 and 2005 NCAA Tournament, Milwaukee fell to the #1 team in the nation in either double overtime (2004, #1 UC-Santa Barbara), or in a penalty kick shootout (2005, #1 New Mexico). Both those teams eventually advanced to play in each year's national championship game. On September 13th, 2006, Milwaukee smashed their previous home attendance record by more than 30% as they hosted their first-ever night match under the newly installed lights at Engelmann Field on the Milwaukee campus. Milwaukee's come-from-behind victory over Marquette, 3-2, allowed them to retain possession of the coveted Milwaukee Cup, and moved their all-time (Division I) record vs their cross-city rival to 25-7-2. The standing-room only record crowd of 3,256 broke the Engelmann Field attendance record by over 1,000. The previous mark, set in 1990, had been 2,250 fans.[6]
- Playing Facility: Engelmann Field
- Head Coach: Jon Coleman
- Most Victories: 19 in 2002
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 8
- Last NCAA Appearance: 2005
- All-Americans: 6
- Panther Professionals: 6
Affliations
Conference Affliations
| Independent |
1973-1982 |
| Wisconsin Intercollegiate Soccer League (WISL) |
1983-1988 |
| Big Central Soccer Conference (BCSC) |
1987-1990 |
| Independent |
1991-1992 |
| Summit League |
1993 |
| Horizon League |
1994-Present |
Women's soccer
Milwaukee's women's soccer team has also been a regular at the NCAA Tournament in recent years, including advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year in 2006.
- Playing Facility: Engelmann Field
- Head Coach: Michael Moynihan
- Most Victories: 16 in 2006
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 5
- Last NCAA Appearance: 2006
- All-Americans: 4
- Panther Professionals: 0
Affliations
Conference Affliations
Baseball
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As the only Division I college baseball team in the state of WI, the Milwaukee Panthers have seen much success, including posting six 30-win seasons in the last nine years. They have also qualified for three NCAA Tournaments since 1999, including a win over #1 ranked Rice in the first round of the 1999 NCAA Tournament.
- Playing Facility: Henry Aaron Field and Miller Park
- Head Coach: Scott Doffek
- Most Victories: 39 in 2001
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 3
- Last NCAA Appearance: 2002
- All-Americans: 1
- Drafted Players: 1
- Players In The Majors: 0
Football
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Milwaukee's now-defunct football program competed at the NCAA College Division (now Division II) level; due to lack of funds and a long string of losing seasons, they dropped the sport after the 1974 season. A club team exists known as Milwaukee Panther Football.
- Most Victories: 6 in 1973
- Bowl Appearances: 0
- Last Bowl Appearance: N/A
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 0
- Last NCAA Appearance: N/A
- All-Americans: 0
- Drafted Players: 0
- Players In The NFL: 1
Wrestling
Founded in 2002 the team has had 10 national qualifiers in the National Collegiate Wrestling Association. The wrestling team currently competes in the North Central Conference in the NCWA.
Affliations
Women's volleyball
The women's volleyball team at UW-Milwaukee has also enjoyed national success in recent years, qualifying for six of the last nine NCAA Tournaments and compiling an all-time record of 867-477-7 through the end of the 2006 season.
Affliations
Conference Affliations
Swimming and diving
Both the men and women have been very successful since the sports beginning. They are currently coached by Dave Griffore.
Men's Affliations
Women's Affliations
Club sports
Club sports at Milwaukee include: men's ice hockey, men's lacrosse, wrestling, American football, men's volleyball, men's rugby union, and women's rugby union.
The Milwaukee men's rugby union team, for the first time since its creation in 1983, won a Midwest Conference Championship and advanced to the NCAA Division II National Tournament for the 2005-06 season. Having beaten the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Ohio University to qualify, the fourth-seeded Panthers competed in the 2006 USA Rugby Collegiate Championships. [7] In 2007-2008 season the men's rugby club beat Purdue in pool play and went to the Division I playoffs for the first time since the club's creation in 1983. The women's rugby club made it to the Division II final the same year.
Notable athletes & sports figures
Soccer
Baseball
Basketball
Football
Notable coaches
Athletic Directors
- Ran by the Physical Education Department (1885-1949)
- Herman Kluge (1949-1970)
- Albert Negratti (1970-1971)
- Thomas P. Rosandich (1972-1975)
- Jim Harding (1975-1980)
- Daniel I. Harris (Associate Director for Men's Athletics, 1980-1983)
- Daryl A. Leonard (Associate Director for Women's Athletics, 1980-1983)
- Daniel I. Harris (1983-1988)
- Bud K. Haidet (1988-2009)
See also
External links
References
- ^ a b c Milwaukee Ranks 64th in Current U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup Standings, Horizon League website, Retrieved on Dec 29, 2006.
- ^ UWM Library Archives, Golda Meir Library. Retrieved on Oct. 23, 2007.
- ^ 2006-07 NCAA Director's Cup final fall standings, Retrieved on Dec. 29, 2006.
- ^ Milwaukee Ranks 64th in Current U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup Standings, Milwaukee Panthers website, Retrieved on Dec. 29, 2006.
- ^ Milwaukee Panthers History, Milwaukee Panthers website, Retrieved on Dec. 29, 2006.
- ^ Milwaukee 3; Marquette 2, Milwaukee Panthers website, Retrieved on Dec. 29, 2006.
- ^ Men's Collegiate Division II - 2006, USA Rugby Collegiate Championships. Retrieved on Dec. 26, 2006.
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