MADISON — Wisconsin men's basketball head coach Greg Gard's ninth annual Garding Against Cancer event is expected to surpass $11 million raised for cancer research and patient care across the state.
The event, which is personal for Gard after he lost his father to cancer in 2015, drew more than 100 attendees at a private event the night before and is expected to sell out again with more than 500 in attendance.
"The response has been tremendous, but it's been the people behind it, the relationships that we've been able to create and foster and continue to build across the state because all of us in some way, shape or form are touched by cancer," Gard said.
Watch: One-on-one with Coach Greg Gard before Garding Against Cancer Gala
"Someone you know, so someone, maybe you're going through it yourself personally, we're all affected by it. So our mission is to really help all corners of the state. And obviously, we've been able to have a platform here and a voice to be able to do that. But the response we've had from the people that have welcomed us with open arms across the state has been amazing," Gard said.
Gard reflected on how the event grew far beyond its original vision.
"We never initiated this with a financial number in mind or with a how many people we wanted to put in the call center. We were gonna start this in a tent in our backyard, you know, but it got so big so fast. But it's the relationships of the people. And I think with anything in life that adds an extra layer of quality to it. And quite frankly, it's through sharing each other's cancer story journeys," Gard said.
Wisconsin women's hockey head coach Mark Johnson said the event has become a meaningful opportunity for coaches to connect.
"We all get busy in what we're doing. And so when the season's going on, you know, you don't get a chance to just, you know, let your hair down and just relax, get to talk to one another. So on a night like this, it's become special because you can do that," Johnson said.
On the basketball side, Gard addressed the challenges of navigating the NIL era, with six returning players on the roster and several new additions, while also losing guard John Blackwell.
"Well, it's new. It's challenging if you make it challenging, right? But if you embrace it and you run to it and you're equipped to handle it and you have a great staff around you and you have resources that you can maximize and optimize and you're very diligent and intentional with how you put together a roster, you can have success like we have," Gard said.
"I think we've navigated this probably as well as anybody in the country in terms of how we've embraced the change, you know, change some things ourselves. Obviously, the offensive evolution sticks out. We've also changed a lot of things behind the curtain, so to speak, and evolved. And you have to, if you want to, in anything in life, you either change or you get left behind. So, we've all done a really good job within our program of evolving and adapting and growing into this new era," Gard said.
Gard also weighed in on the search for a new athletic director at Wisconsin.
"It's a very important time for our athletic department. It's a very crucial time in college athletics. I mean, we've seen just so many changes every single day that are happening. This is really, really important. I think the next leader of our athletic department has to be somebody that can embrace all those things that have made Wisconsin so good for so long," Gard said.
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