Ex-Ohio State Player Laments Spreading Rumor of Ex-Wisconsin Coach Barry Alvarez’s Death
Former Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez is a) a two-time Big Ten Coach of the Year, b) the Badgers’ program savior and c) alive and kicking.
Reports of Alvarez’s demise circulated around social media Wednesday morning, fanned by a tweet from former Ohio State defensive lineman Matt Finkes.
“Football lost a legend today,” Finkes wrote. “Barry was a pillar of the sport & a great guy.”
That tweet spurred Jim Polzin of the Wisconsin State Journal to confirm Alvarez’s continued earthly existence with Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh.
“Despite a rumor this morning on Twitter, former Badgers coach and AD Barry Alvarez is alive,” Polzin wrote. “Chris McIntosh told me he just got off the phone with Alvarez.”
Finkes then apologized.
Alvarez, 77, coached Wisconsin from 1990 to 2005. In 16 full seasons with the Badgers and two one-off interim appearances in ’12 and ’14, he went 118-75-4 and won three Rose Bowls.
