CORNERBACK GOINS LEAVES BADGERS

University of Wisconsin football coach Bret Bielema confirmed Monday that cornerback Mario Goins, who started six games last season as a redshirt freshman, has left the program. "Mario won't be with us," Bielema said. Goins' mother, Beverly Carter, said Monday her son decided during a trip home to Texas for spring break that he wanted to transfer because he wasn't happy at UW. Goins was sent home while the Badgers were preparing for the Champs Sports Bowl last December in Orlando, Fla., after being declared academically ineligible for the game. That suspension carried over to spring practice because Goins hadn't met the NCAA's guidelines for academic progression. "He wasn't doing what he needed to do grade-wise, and he knew that," Carter said. "He missed home and he missed his (2-year-old) son, and it just wasn't going to work." Goins, who split time with Niles Brinkley at the cornerback spot opposite Allen Langford, missed three games last season due to concussions. Carter believes the two concussions sustained by Goins during the season were a significant factor in his academic struggles. Goins will enroll at a junior college in California to regain his NCAA eligibility, according to Carter. He plans to resume playing football in 2010, she said. "He needs to work on grades and not football right now," Carter said. "He knows what he has to do. He's not blaming (UW) for him not passing." Carter said her son left UW on good terms with the coaching staff. "They were very cooperative in the transfer process," she said. Bielema, who had hoped some of his younger players would take advantage of Goins' absence and make strides during the spring, said Monday he's pleased with the team's depth at cornerback. Sophomore Aaron Henry, who sat out last season with a knee injury, was listed as the starter at one cornerback when Bielema released a post-spring practice depth chart in May. Brinkley, a junior who started seven games last season, and sophomore Devin Smith were listed as co-starters at the other corner spot. Sophomore Antonio Fenelus and redshirt freshman Marcus Cromartie also were listed on the depth chart. UW vs. San Jose State? Bielema wouldn't confirm published reports that the Badgers will play San Jose State in 2010. The Arizona Republic reported Sunday that San Jose State dropped its game against Arizona State, scheduled for Sept. 11, 2010, apparently because it had received a better offer to play UW in Madison. "We're in talks with about five different schools," Bielema said. "Some of them are long-ranging, some of them are as early as 2010. But there's a lot of different scenarios that haven't panned out yet." UW has two openings on its 2010 schedule. The Badgers open the season on Sept. 4 at UNLV and host Arizona State two weeks later. Bielema had expressed concern in January that the Arizona State series - the Badgers are scheduled to play in Tempe in 2012 - was in jeopardy. But it appears the series is on solid ground. "I think that's OK," he said. "They had to work something out on their end." If San Jose State is added to UW's schedule, it will be the second meeting between the programs. Ron Dayne rushed for 254 yards and three touchdowns in the Badgers' 56-10 victory in San Jose State in 1997. Dippel update Bielema said Tyler Dippel , an incoming recruit from Slinger, should be ready to practice when UW opens preseason camp Aug. 10. Dippel, a defensive lineman who played at Hartford High School, sustained a lower leg injury earlier this month while playing for Team USA at the International Federation of American Football Junior World Championship in Canton, Ohio. "He might be limited," Bielema said. "It's a lower leg injury and they still haven't gotten all the answers that they wanted to."