Wisconsin continues to build their poweful line with in-state recruits and I am happy to see it. Going back now in recent years Wisconsin has produceda number of NFL players. Joe Thomas, Kraig Urbik, Casey Rabach, Mark Tauscher, andGabe Carimi and John Moffit will be drafted thisyear.
Take a look at a young linemen who isslated to start a Left Guard for the Badgers next year.
<H1>UW football: Left guard Travis Frederick is trying to develop a mean streak</H1>
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TOM MULHERN |
tmulhern@madison.com | 608-252-6169 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting608-252-6169end_of_the_skype_highlighting madison.com |
No Comments Posted | Posted: Friday, March 25, 2011 5:00 am
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http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/madiso...isions/4d8952a7806e0.hires.jpg&pps=buynowWisconsin's Travis Frederick (72) runs through a drill during the first day of spring practice for the Badgers on Tuesday. M.P. King/State Journal
<DIV style="DISPLAY: none" class="loading-block img-loading" jQuery1301266686707="29">s a football player, offensive lineman Travis Frederick has always been among the smartest and the strongest.
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He also has been among the nicest.
The first two qualities translate well onto the football field. The third one? Not so much.
Frederick was smart enough to become the first offensive lineman in University of Wisconsin history to start the season opener as a true freshman in 2009 when he played center against Northern Illinois.
He is bright in the classroom, too, with a double major in computer engineering and computer science. Frederick said UW doesn't let any more than 32 students into the computer engineering program.
The 6-foot-4, 326-pound Frederick is also one of the strongest players in the offensive line and is closing in on the team offensive squat record of 770 pounds, set by former fullback Chris Pressley.
Pressley did it with a calculated weight, meaning he did a lower weight but lifted it more times. Frederick prefers to do one repetition with a maximum weight.
He wouldn't say exactly where he is, but said UW coach Bret Bielema's recent statement of 780 pounds was a little high.
"We're going to keep that downstairs" in the weight room, Frederick said. "I'm getting close (to the record). It's better than last year. I've gotten a lot stronger, especially in this offseason."
Then there's the nice-guy image, fostered by the way he conducted his business at Walworth Big Foot High School as well as his cooperation and pleasantness in dealing with the media.
Frederick's coaches were always telling him he was too nice and needed to play with more aggression.
"They talk about flipping a switch, to being mean," Frederick said. "In high school, I never could do it. When I first came here, I never could do it."
While his teammates got fired up before games, Frederick wanted to calm down. It was part of his cerebral approach to the game.
"Your parents teach you when you're young, ‘Calm down, let it go,'" Frederick said. "I've always done that. Before games. I didn't listen to hard-core rock music. I listened to music that would calm me down. I wanted to think clearly, I wanted to have an open mind when I went in the game."
After four starts as a freshmanâ€" two at center and two at left guard â€" Frederick was redshirted last season due to a glut of quality linemen. He'll be a third-year sophomore, and he's going through spring practices for the third time after enrolling early in January 2009.
He spent game days last season charting plays, including down and distance, the play, the defensive alignment and any adjustments.
"You had to watch the game almost from a coach's standpoint," Frederick said. "I was able to step back from the game. Instead of saying, ‘This was my assignment on this play,' I could look at the offense as a whole, learn more about wide receiver blocking and things generally an offensive lineman doesn't really care about."
And with no games to play, Frederick had time to hone his technique.
"I feel like when you go and play a game, you lose things," he said. "You do things just to get them done and you have to make adjustments on the run. By not playing a game for 12 months and working on all technique, I don't have to think about it."
Still, the biggest thing Frederick got out of missing the games during the Badgers' run to the Rose Bowl was how to finally "flip the switch."
Part of it was watching senior left guard John Moffitt, whom Frederick is expected to replace in the starting lineup. Moffitt was known for his sense of humor and congeniality off the field, but he was tough and nasty on it.
Not playing in games made Frederick appreciate them all the more. In turn, he learned how to focus his energy, frustration and anything else he could find to his benefit on the field.
"Everybody knows it's tough and it grinds all season," he said. "But when you don't get to go out and play, it makes you appreciate what time you have.
"Going out and practicing every day, knowing you're not going to play the whole year ... you just get worn down and it starts to come out. I've learned how to channel that and use it on the field. I think that has helped me become a lot better player."
