Wisconsin
Wisconsin La Crosse chancellor unanimously fired after filming online porn videos with wife: ‘Abhorrent’
The University of Wisconsin chancellor who previously paid a porn star thousands of dollars to speak to students on campus was canned Wednesday — after it was revealed he films his own adult content with his wife and posts the X-rated videos online.
The Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents decided unanimously to fire longtime UW-La Crosse Chancellor Joe Gow, citing his “abhorrent” conduct in a vague statement.
“In recent days, we learned of specific conduct by Dr. Gow that has subjected the university to significant reputational harm. His actions were abhorrent,” UW President Jay Rothman said in a statement.
Gow — La Crosse’s second-longest serving chancellor — appears in various online porn videos with his wife, Carmen Wilson, using “Sexy Happy Couple” as their public account name.
The films, which sometimes feature well-known porn stars, appear on sites like OnlyFans as well as Pornhub.
UW System Regent President Karen Walsh accused Gow, 63, of showing a “reckless disregard for the role he was entrusted with.”
“We are alarmed, and disgusted, by his actions, which were wholly and undeniably inconsistent with his role as chancellor,” Walsh added.
As a tenured faculty member who has served as chancellor since 2007, Gow will be placed on paid administrative leave as he transitions into his faculty role.
However, Rothman said he filed a complaint Wednesday evening with interim Chancellor Betsy Morgan asking that Gow’s status as a tenured faculty member be reviewed.
An outside law firm has been hired “to undertake a fulsome investigation of the matter,” Rothman said.
The former chancellor claimed that although his face was shown in the videos, he never revealed any connections to his prestigious university position.
“There’s nothing said about the University of Wisconsin; there’s nothing said about the chancellor (on the videos),” Gow told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel after his firing.
“So someone else would have to make those associations. And then someone would have to say those are problematic.”
He pointed out that no school funds were used to create the content, which explores consensual adult sexuality and falls within his right to free speech under the First Amendment, he said.
Gow also claimed he was not contacted ahead of the Wednesday meeting and questioned whether the board afforded him due process.
Earlier this month, Gow and his wife launched a YouTube cooking channel dubbed “Sexy Healthy Cooking” in which they invite adult film stars to cook vegan meals — occasionally ending with Gow and his wife walking suggestively offscreen with their guest.
Their X account more blatantly directs their followers to view their LoyalFans and OnlyFans sites “for fully explicit scenes.”
One of their videos features adult film legend Nina Hartley, who landed Gow in hot water in 2018 after he paid her $5,000 in discretionary La Crosse funds to give a 90-minute speech assuring students it’s “OK to like porn.”
After severe backlash, Gow apologized and promised to reimburse the school from his own bank account.
“She seemed like a person who had a life experience dramatically different than the rest of us,” Gow said of Hartley at the time.
But the educator apparently has had a good amount of experience in her line of work.
Gow and Wilson — who met after she chaired the search committee that selected him to lead the university — wrote two books together detailing their untraditional relationship in the porn industry, though they were written under pseudonyms.
They published “Monogamy with Benefits: How Porn Enriches Our Relationship” in 2015 followed by “Married with Benefits: Our Real-life Adult Industry Adventures” in 2018.
In one of the books, the couple note they were “fairly certain a scandal would ensue if our peers were to know about what we’ve been doing.”
Gow told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel he previously hid this part of his life but made a recent decision to reverse course and “be a little bit more open about these free speech issues.”
The former chancellor had announced in August his plans to retire at the end of the 2023-24 academic year and return to the faculty as a communications professor.
At the time, Gow told the student paper, the Daily Cardinal, he was looking forward to spending more time with his wife and working on a cookbook and “video” to “maybe put up on the internet.”
Republican legislators in Wisconsin have proposed a bill allowing candidates to withdraw their names from election ballots, following an incident involving Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Kennedy attempted to rescind his name from the presidential ballot in Wisconsin and six other swing states after ending his independent campaign in August and endorsing Donald Trump. While Kennedy succeeded in Pennsylvania and other key states, Wisconsin law only permits removal of candidates if they die, one of the strictest policies in the nation.
The proposed bill would enable candidates to remove their names by submitting a formal declaration and paying a small fee to the Wisconsin Elections Commission. However, this change would not apply to major-party presidential candidates due to their unique selection process. To enact the measure, it must gain approval from the Republican-controlled Legislature and be signed by Democratic Governor Tony Evers, whose team has yet to comment.
Though Kennedy’s attempts to alter the ballot in Wisconsin and Michigan were blocked by the US Supreme Court, Trump won in both states, with Kennedy capturing less than 0.5% of the vote. Trump has since nominated Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. (This story was generated by Newser’s AI chatbot. Source: the AP)
LOS ANGELES – Max Klesmit couldn’t wait to add one more steal to his afternoon’s work
Standing courtside at the Galen Center following No.24 Wisconsin’s 84-69 victory over USC, not far from the basket where he hit a three-pointer that crippled the Trojans’ comeback hopes, senior Kamari McGee spoke passionately and honestly about the work he put in during the offseason, overhauling a mindset change that has made him one of the Badgers’ integral pieces.
McGee barely finished answering the question when Klesmit interjected, unprompted, slung his arm around McGee’s shoulder and preached.
“We came in together, transferred in together, and the growth that this dude has shown makes me happy,” Klesmit said. “He’s really grown as a leader for this team. It makes me really happy that this young man has become a grown man, it’s awesome. It’s what you dream of as a teammate and as a friend.”
Klesmit’s sentiment rings true throughout the program, as No.18 Wisconsin (15-3, 5-2 Big Ten) has seen McGee develop into one of the best reserves in the conference.
Entering tonight’s game against UCLA (12-6, 3-4) at Pawley Pavilion, McGee is doing everything for the Badgers. He has elevated his scoring from last season (2.1 to 7.3) and has the best assist-to-turnover ratio on the roster (3.27, 36 assists to 11 turnovers). More eye-popping is his shooting numbers.
The Badgers are 18 games into the season and McGee is still shooting at 54.0 percent from the field, including 56.4 percent from 3-point range (22-39). That latter number ranks third nationally. Those shots aren’t throwaway makes either.
After USC cut Wisconsin’s 15-point lead down to three in the second half, McGee delivered a fast-break layup. After Wesley Yates’s jumper tried to stall the momentum, McGee answered with a corner three-pointer, pushing the run to 13-5 and effectively ending the Trojans’ comeback changes.
“I feel like every time I shoot the ball it’s going on,” said McGee, who finished with 10 points against USC, improving UW’s record to 6-0 when he reaches double figures. “Even when it looks a little off, it still finds its way in there. I just keep trusting that. Honestly, I just hold my follow-through each game. That’s what I tell myself going into each game … It feels good every time it comes off my hand.”
It’s a mindset that wasn’t routinely present in past years. McGee believed his offseason workouts put him on par with every point guard in the country, but his mental work was off. He couldn’t put his finger on as to why, only that his eligibility clock was running out.
“I was putting all the work in as any other point guard in the league, in the conference, in college basketball,” McGee said. “It was just a mindset thing. The strong-minded guys make it far.”
“In all my workouts, at the end of each workout, I made sure I was shooting a lot of jump shots until my arms were hurting, until I made sure I built that confidence in me. These guys, my teammates, and my coaches, they keep instilling that confidence, and I feel like a good shooter because of the reps and all the stuff I’ve been getting done.”
Not only has the perimeter shooting been there, McGee is doing things he hasn’t done since he was a freshman at Green Bay, scoring off the dribble and shooting step-back jumpers. It’s always been in his arsenal, but the only difference is that he hasn’t felt the need to do it with Wisconsin since he’s surrounded by more scorers than he was three years ago.
The shooters are still there for the badgers, only now he knows he’s one of them.
“He’s continued to work on his game, work on his craft,” head coach Greg Gard said. “You never are too old to get better and he’s continued to get better as a senior. He’s taken really good shots, too. I think he understands the speed of the game, how he needs to play, all those things, and we’re the benefit of his upper trajectory.”
Preview: No.18 Wisconsin Looks for LA Sweep When It Takes On UCLA
No.18 Wisconsin (15-3, 5-2 Big Ten) vs. UCLA (12-6, 3-4 Big Ten)
Date/Time – Tuesday, January 21, 8:30 p.m.
Arena – Pawley Pavilion (13,800)
Watch – Peacock (Ted Robinson and Darren Collison)
Radio – Badgers Radio Network (Matt Lepay and Brian Butch), Sirius 106 or 195, stream online on iHeartRadio.
Series – UCLA leads 5-2 (UCLA leads 2-1 in Los Angeles)
Last Meeting – UCLA won, 72-70, on November 21, 2017, in Kansas City, Mo.
Follow Online: The Badgers’ Den
Twitter: @Badger_Blitz
Betting line: UCLA -3.5
Projected Starting Five (Wisconsin)
Player to Watch: During UW’s seven-game win streak, Crowl is averaging 15.2 ppg & 6.0 rpg while shooting 71.4 percent (7-15 3FGs).
Projected Starting Five (UCLA)
Player to watch: Bilodeau has scored in double figures in 13 of 18 games, having reached the 20-point plateau in three contests. Last month in New York City, he totaled a career-high-tying 26 points in a loss to North Carolina. He is shooting 50.5 percent from the field and 38.8 percent from 3-point distance.
Series Notes
Tuesday will mark the eighth meeting between Wisconsin and UCLA in a series that dates back to 1948, but this will be the first meeting since the Bruins joined the Big Ten.
The Bruins have won the last 5 meetings including neutral wins in the 1995 Maui Invitational and the 2017 Hall of Fame Classic most recently.
UW and UCLA haven’t played at either school’s home site since a 94-53 UCLA win in Los Angeles in 1972.
UW has won 6 straight in Los Angeles, including Saturday’s 84-69 win at USC.
Wisconsin Notes
The Badgers have matched their best 18-game start under Greg Gard, also doing so in the Sweet 16 2016-17 season and UW’s 2021-22 Big Ten championship season.
A win at UCLA would be Wisconsin’s sixth-consecutive Big Ten win, the longest conference win streak since ending the 2019-20 season with eight straight Big Ten wins.
The Badgers are 8-3 against the top 2 quadrants of the NET rankings, including 3 Quad 1 wins and zero losses outside of Quad 1.
Wisconsin is 5-2 away from home.
Including a Kohl-Center record 116 points vs. Iowa (1/3) and the 84 points Saturday at USC, Wisconsin had hit at least 80 points in 11 of 18 games, the team’s most since the 2014-15 season (11 times).
UCLA Notes
The Bruins have gone 8-1 in Pauley Pavilion this season, now in their 59th campaign playing in the longtime UCLA basketball venue.
UCLA has gone 1-4 in January after compiling a 5-1 record through December.
UCLA ranks No. 6 in the nation in turnovers forced per game (17.0) and eighth in turnover margin (+5.1).
The Bruins rank No. 19 in the nation in scoring defense (63.7 ppg), limiting the opposition to 65 points or fewer in eight of 18 games this season.
A Pac-12 All-Defensive team honoree the last two seasons at USC, Johnson has totaled 190 steals in 109 career games (1.74 spg) since traveling this season. The Milwaukee native enters tonight with a team-best 34 steals (Skyy Clark has totaled 23), having registered 1.9 steals per game in 18 contests as a senior
Prediction
USC coach Eric Musselman is new to the Big Ten and new to playing Wisconsin, but he perfectly encapsulated why this version of the Badgers is giving teams headaches.
“It’s really hard to rotate when you have all red shooters out there,” Musselman lamented. “When they go in the first 7 of 15 (from three), you have to stay attached to the shooters … It’s the first team we’ve played, including Iowa, that we felt had five guys who can all make a three whether they had their starters in or their subs. So you give and take something. You can’t take away the three and the dribble drive unless you are a great defensive team in the NBA. You got to decide what you’re going to do.”
“When you come into a game, you do have to game plan for their leading scorer. Well, he has zero points. I can’t plug 99 holes in a 40-minute game. I’d love to, but I’m not that smart.”
Tonje was held scoreless for the first time in his Wisconsin career, but the Badgers were leading by 15 points at halftime and calmly rebuilt that lead after the Trojans made things interesting in cutting the deficit to three. Blackwell had 28, Klesmit had 18, UW’s starting frontcourt combined for 22 on 9-for-11 shooting, and the bench contributed 17 points and seven assists. Without Tonje’s 18.2 ppg, the Badgers averaged 1.254 points per possession.
“It shows leadership,” Blackwell said. “When Tonje is not scoring, the next man up steps up.”
The Bruins are offensively comparable to the Trojans. Both are separated by 1.23 points in scoring average and 0.4 points in adjusted offensive efficiency, but the Bruins are far superior defensively. UCLA has the top-scoring defense in the conference at 63.72 points per game and is ranked 12th nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency. Despite ranking ninth in the league in field goal defense and 12th in three-point defense, the Bruins play a slower tempo (260th nationally) to limit possessions. The Bruins held Iowa on Friday to 70 points (the second-fewest of the season for the league’s top-scoring team), only 1.148 points per possession, and 38.1 shooting percentage in the first half, leading to a 33-point halftime edge.
UCLA coach Mick Cronin has made headlines recently with his comments railing against the conference’s scheduling and the challenges his team is having with traveling to road games and unbalanced days off. But Cronin was blunt with his team entering the Iowa game, saying that they haven’t adequately adjusted to the play in the league compared to the old Pac-12.
“We have struggled in Big Ten basketball,” Cronin said. “Our two wins were against teams we were familiar playing against (Oregon and Washington). The truth of it is, Big Ten basketball is different. It’s a much more physical game.”
UCLA has struggled to defend without fouling (295th nationally in fouls per game (18.5)), isn’t great at rebounding, (averaging a league-worst 22.11 per game), and has struggled guarding pick-and-roll actions
This game sets up well for Wisconsin defensively and should allow the Badgers to expose some things offensively. And considering Tonje is too good of a player to get shutout in consecutive games, the Badgers have a great chance to complete the LA sweep.
Worgull’s Prediction: Wisconsin by seven
Record: 15-3 (13-5 ATS)
Points off Prediction: 149 (8.3 per game)
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