I saw this topic come up on a Badger forum, and I thought it was pretty cool. And since I had so much fun with the All-Time college basketball team, I decided to come up with my own team here and share it with everyone. I only included the players that I have been fortunate enough to witness during my lifetime. That’s no disrespect to the Badger greats of the past like Alan Ameche, Rufus Ferguson, Billy Marek, Elroy “Crazy Legs” Hirsch, Pat Richter, Al Toon, and Ron Vanderkellen.Anyways, here is my team. If you’d like to participate, leave a comment with your all-time team for whomever you might be a fan of.
QB: Brooks Bollinger
I elected to go with Brooks Bollinger who finished his career at Wisconsin with a 30-12 record as a starting quarterback. He also passed for 414 completions, 5,627 yards, and 38 touchdowns. He was a big threat to run with the ball as well as he rushed for 1,767 yards and 26 touchdowns. He started for the Badgers as a redshirt freshman in the 2000 Rose Bowl against Stanford.
Runner up: John Stocco
RB: Ron Dayne, Brian Calhoun
There is a long list of great backs for the Badgers during my lifetime. I have to go with Ron Dayne for obvious reasons. He won the Heisman Trophy, and in my opinion is the greatest college running back of all-time. Brian Calhoun only played one year at Wisconsin, but he was electrifying as he could break out a long run at any time. He also could catch passes out of the backfield, and he may have had the greatest statistical season out of any Badger back.
Honorable mentions: Anthony Davis, Michael Bennett, Brent Moss, Terrell Fletcher
FB: Cecil Martin
Fullbacks never get much glory, but Cecil Martin was outstanding during his time blocking for Ron Dayne. Martin helped Ron Dayne have outstanding freshman, sophomore, and junior years before being drafted in the 1999 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles.
Runner up: for the most part I have disqualified active Badgers from making this list; however Chris Pressley deserves mention, in my opinion. Pressley will be a senior this fall and is amongst the best if not the best fullback in the country.
TE: Owen Daniels
Daniels gets the nod for the time-being. He was recruited as a quarterback before being converted to tight end where he played 43 games and caught 62 passes for 852 yards. Daniels makes it here due to his blocking abilities, which probably also helped him get drafted 98th overall in the 2006 NFL Draft.
Runner up: Travis Beckum is another active player who will probably be considered the best tight end ever for the Badgers when it is all said and done.
OT: Joe Thomas, Chris McIntosh
Both were first round picks in the NFL Draft after having outstanding careers at Wisconsin. Joe Thomas won the Outland Trophy his senior year, and McIntosh was a consensus All-American and won two Rose Bowls with the Badgers.
Honorable Mentions: Joe Panos and Mark Tauscher. Panos was the captain of the 1994 Rose Bowl team. Tauscher was a walk-on who became the starting right tackle that was instrumental to Ron Dayne’s Heisman Trophy-winning season in 1999.
OG: Casey Rabach, Joe Rudolph
Rudolph is the current Tight Ends coach at Wisconsin, but as a guard he helped the Badgers lead the nation in rushing in 1993 and 1994. Rabach currently plays center for the Washington Redskins after being drafted by Baltimore in the 2001 NFL Draft.
C: Cory Raymer
Raymer was a unanimous 1st Team All-American in 1994 at center for the Badgers.
WR: Chris Chambers, Lee Evans, Brandon Williams
All-time there have been some great receivers even when the program was in its down years. During my lifetime, it has to be these three though. Old school, I could have gone with Pat Richter, Al Toon, and Elroy “Crazy Legs” Hirsch. Chris Chambers was the leading receiver on the back-to-back Rose Bowl teams, even though Wisconsin was a running team. Lee Evans finished his career with 26 touchdown catches, more than any other Badger receiver. He even had 5 in one game against Michigan State. He also had the game-winning touchdown against Ohio State in 2003 that broke the Buckeyes 19-game winning streak. Brandon Williams started for four years as a receiver for the Badgers, and was also a great return man during his career.
Runner Up: Jonathan Orr
D-Line: Wendell Bryant, Erasmus James, Thomas Burke, Anttaj Hawthorne
Wendell Bryant is most known in my state as the Arizona Cardinals draft pick, but he won the Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year Award in both his junior and senior seasons. He also had a huge sack in the 1999 Rose Bowl his freshman year. Erasmus James was the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in 2004 and an All-American. In 1998, Thomas Burke led the nation in sacks. Barry Alvarez once said that Anttaj Hawthorne was the best defensive lineman he ever coached. Hawthorne took over the nose guard position late in his freshman year and remained the starter for the rest of his career.
LB: Nick Greisen, Chris Ghidorzi, Tarek Saleh
Greisen started two years at linebacker for the badgers, making First-Team Big Ten Conference both years. His senior year he finished with 167 tackles. Ghidorzi was the leading linebacker on the back-to-back Rose Bowl years. Saleh played from 1993 to 1996 and is the all-time leader in tackles-for-loss in Wisconsin history.
Honorable Mentions: Pete Monty, Alex Lewis
DB: Scott Starks, Jamar Fletcher, Jim Leonhard, Jason Doering
Starks started 48 out of 51 games during his career at Wisconsin. For me, he is best known for returning a Kyle Orton fumble for the game-winning touchdown in 2004 against Purdue. Jamar Fletcher was a lockdown corner, and had a huge interception return for a touchdown against UCLA in the 1999 Rose Bowl. Leonhard was actually a walk-on at 5’8” and 185 lbs, but became the starter and finished with 21 career interceptions. He also had the Big Ten career punt return yardage record until that was broken by Steve Breaston in 2006. Doering was another walk-on who eventually became the team captain and key part to the defensive backfield of the 2000 Rose Bowl team.
Honorable Mention: Troy Vincent
K: Taylor Mehlhaff
P: Kevin Stemke
KR/PR: Brandon Williams
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