Bernie Wyatt, a critical member of Barry Alvarez's first Wisconsin staff, passes away at 84

MADISON – When Barry Alvarez decided he was ready to leave his post at Notre Dame and accept the challenge of taking over the University of Wisconsin football program, one of the men he targeted to join his first UW staff was Bernie Wyatt.

Alvarez had worked with Wyatt at Iowa before joining the Notre Dame staff in 1987 and he knew Wyatt’s recruiting ability, specifically his ties to the Northeast, would be critical.

Wyatt and Dan McCarney were in Madison on Jan. 2, 1990, the day Alvarez was introduced as UW’s head coach.

Wyatt served as an assistant from 1990-96 and then took over as director of football operations and on-campus recruiting coordinator.

Wyatt died Saturday in Iowa City after a brief illness. He was 84.

Wyatt coached tight ends and was responsible for helping UW sign several talented players from New Jersey.

His best tight end at UW was Mike Roan, an all-Big Ten pick in 1993 and 1994 who was taken in the fourth round of the 1995 NFL draft by the Houston Oilers.

Two of the key players Wyatt helped bring to UW from New Jersey were tailback Ron Dayne and wide receiver Lee DeRamus.

Dayne helped UW win the 1999 and 2000 Rose Bowls and was the 1999 Heisman Trophy winner. DeRamus was a key member of UW's 1993 team that won a share of the Big Ten title and defeated UCLA in the 1994 Rose Bowl.

Wyatt was born in Brooklyn and attended Amityville High School in New York. He competed in football, basketball and track.

As a tailback in 1956, he scored 170 points to break Jim Brown’s scoring record for Long Island high schools.

He is survived by his wife, Barbara, and their sons, Brad and Barry; grandsons Gunnar and Luke; and three great granddaughters, Ada, Windsor and Linden.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Bernie Wyatt, assistant under Barry Alvarez at Wisconsin, dies at 84