Despite missing New Year's Day bowl, excitement high at Wisconsin

MIchael Caputo (7) on playing in the Holiday Bowl: "It doesn't matter if we're playing next week for some bowl game that no one's ever heard of. It wouldn't really matter. It's still football. It's still fun to play."MADISON, Wis. -- The way Wisconsin safety Michael Caputo sees it, if a bowl committee had pegged the Badgers for a backyard game in an abandoned field, his team would still show up with the same zest to destroy its opponent. Location. Date. Prestige factor. Sure, those are important elements to some.

In the end, however, what really matters is the opportunity to play one more game, to extend the careers of seniors like Caputo, and to be rewarded for hard work during a successful…