Storied stadiums are nothing new for a team that calls Camp Randall home and makes stops around the tradition-rich Big Ten Conference on a yearly basis. Still, there's a mystique about legendary Lambeau Field that's hard to put into words. Three former Badgers who have taken turns on the turf in Titletown gave it their best shot. | From Varsity Magazine
BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
Scott Tolzien has experienced Lambeau Field as a favorite son, as an enemy and as a fan, so who better to gauge this moment.
Who better than Tolzien, a former Wisconsin captain, to tell Badgers players what to expect Saturday when they step inside that football shrine in Green Bay to face fifth-ranked LSU.
Who better than Tolzien, a one-time Packers quarterback who also has made NFL rosters in San Francisco and Indianapolis, to provide the 21 Wisconsinities in the UW two-deep a primer on the emotions they'll feel playing on that hallowed ground.
Who better than Tolzien, who grew up in Illinois a diehard Green Bay fan and often trekked to Lambeau as a kid, to provide relevant perspective on the most unique season opener in Badgers history.
"I just think about all the moments when I was a kid growing up that I had seen take place at Lambeau Field," Tolzien said. "To be able to play on that same turf made it special.
"It's a special place to play from the fans to the facility to the organization – everything involved."
Tolzien's voice is distinctive in this exercise. Though he played in a Rose Bowl with Wisconsin in 2011 and was in uniform for a Super Bowl with the 49ers two years later, no venue stirs his emotions quite like Lambeau Field.
His hands-on knowledge of the stadium's history and his exposure to the inner workings of the Packers – the people, the philosophy and the vibe from having played there from 2013 to '15 – give Tolzien uncommon insights.
But he's hardly alone.
"It's a special place. Every time you walk into a stadium you soak it up, but when you walk into Lambeau, there's a lot of emotion, a lot of other things that go into your mind. You realize it's a special occasion, especially for these guys."
Jared Abbrederis and Mark Tauscher also played major roles for the Badgers and made their way to Green Bay as draft picks in 2014 and 2000, respectively.
Their resumes are augmented by the fact that, like 53 players on the current UW roster as well as head coach Paul Chryst, Abbrederis and Tauscher were born and raised in Wisconsin. So getting a chance to play a game at Lambeau Field is a fantasy come true.
Abbrederis, a wide receiver from Wautoma, is currently vying for a spot on the 53-man roster after being chosen in the fifth round of the NFL draft.
"Obviously there's a lot of history and with a large percentage of guys being from the state it's special to play in there," he said.
"Growing up you watch the Packers, you watch the Super Bowls, it's kind of cool to think you're playing on the same field that they played on."
Tauscher, a tackle from Auburndale, played his entire 134-game NFL career in Green Bay from 2000 to '10. In addition to starting on a Big Ten Conference and Rose Bowl championship team at UW in 1999, he won a Super Bowl ring with the Packers in 2010.
"The first thing you always think about is the history and the tradition when you walk in the place," Tauscher said. "I view it as one of the cathedrals of sport.
"It's a special place. Every time you walk into a stadium you soak it up, but when you walk into Lambeau there's a lot of emotion, a lot of other things that go into your mind. You realize it's a special occasion, especially for these guys."
As such, a complicated balancing act awaits the Badgers.
On one hand they're being implored to savor every sight and emotion related to the first major college football game being staged at Lambeau Field. That's especially the case with the Wisconsinites.
"It's an opportunity of a lifetime, one not many people get to experience," Tolzien said.
"For a lot of these guys it'll be their only opportunity to play up there," Tauscher said. "It's a game that every one of those guys will remember and that's a pretty special thing."
On the other hand, UW players are being warned not to let their emotions get the best of them.
Yes, the season-opener will feature a top-five opponent from the Southeastern Conference.
Yes, there will be the pomp and circumstance that goes with having the ESPN Game Day crew on site.
Yes, there will be the excitement of playing a real opponent for the first time since the Badgers recorded a 23-21 victory over USC in the Holiday Bowl on Dec. 30, 2015.
"At the end of the day it's a football game and you can't make it too big," Abbrederis said.
"It's almost like the moment in 'Hoosiers' when they go into Hinkle Field House and they measure the basketball hoop to make sure it's 10 feet," Tolzien said, referencing the iconic movie of a small-town Indiana high school that won the state boys' basketball championship in 1954.
"It's the same thing here. You've got to treat it as just a game. You can't make it bigger than what it is because you don't want your nerves to get to you when the game comes."
Tauscher speaks from experience. Asked what he remembers most of his Lambeau debut – he faced the New York Jets in a preseason game and Philadelphia in Week 3 of the regular season as a rookie – he blurted out one word.
"Nerves," he said, adding that he tried to settle in but "didn't do that as much as I'd hoped.
"That first regular-season game you have a sense of responsibility to play well. That was a good lesson for me my first start. That emotion didn't stay in check like I tried to do for the most part in my career. It's a very overwhelming experience.
"The in-state kids that have been Packers fans, getting those emotions in check it is a big deal," Tauscher said.
"There's not a lot of stadiums that have stood the test of time like Lambeau has. You sense that history, you feel all that and you see that this is one special opportunity that not a lot of people get an opportunity to do."
Abbrederis lauded Chryst, a Madison native, for staging a spring practice in Green Bay in April. The Badgers bussed from campus and stayed at the same downtown hotel they will be headquartered in this week. In addition to practicing indoors at the Don Hutson Center, players and coaches changed in their assigned locker room at Lambeau Field, had a meal in the facility, checked out the playing surface and toured the Packers Hall of Fame.
Abbrederis said those potential distractions for UW players have been minimized.
"Now when it's time to play they can just focus on the game," he said.
Lambeau Field debuted as City Stadium in 1957. It's situated in the middle of a tree-lined neighborhood. With a capacity of 81,435 the facility temporarily becomes one of the most densely populated locations in the state on game day.
In some respects, Lambeau is a lot like Camp Randall Stadium, an 80,321-seat facility where the Badgers have played since 1917.
The idea of coming out of both those tunnels to a partisan roar must be an incredible sensation.
"Both equally are those moments in time you'll never forget," said Tolzien, a starter for the Badgers in 2009 and '10.
But there's a sense of reverence that sets Lambeau apart.
"It's amplified because of the history," Tauscher said. "Camp Randall's a great place. Both places are great, but Lambeau has that added historical part. It's one of those places people have on their bucket list. It is special. You feel all of that.
"There's not a lot of stadiums that have stood the test of time like Lambeau has. You sense that history, you feel all that and you see that this is one special opportunity that not a lot of people get an opportunity to do."
Tolzien can relate.
"You think about all the unbelievable moments in history and players that have come out of that tunnel," he said of Lambeau Field. "But I'll always view Camp Randall as a special place, too; a lot of good memories there."
Tolzien has walked both sidelines at Lambeau. His first visit as a pro came with San Francisco in 2012, serving as a backup to Colin Kaepernick and Alex Smith.
That was followed by what he said were the "three of the best years of my life" as a backup to Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay.
Tolzien, now a backup to Andrew Luck with Indianapolis, will return to Lambeau with the Colts on Nov. 6.
"Obviously it was a little more welcoming as a member of the home team," Tolzien said.
Abbrederis, a two-time all-Big Ten Conference first-team pick, remembers his first appearance at Lambeau. It came during the final preseason game of 2015 vs. New Orleans. He heard the public address announcer say his name as he dropped back to return a punt.
"The crowd went crazy, so it was a pretty cool experience for me," Abbrederis said. "That moment right there helped me … think that I've been there before and can play at this level."
The Badgers are about to find out where they fit in the college football hierarchy. Their emotions will become more intense as the 2:30 p.m. kickoff approaches.
"It's going to build, build, build and crescendo when the ball's kicked off," Tolzien said. "There will be a lot of nerves in the air.
"But once the first couple plays get out of the way you'll kind of forget your surroundings because you're so encompassed in the game that, other than the play clock for the quarterback, you don't really notice your surroundings.
"It's more about managing the nerves before the game. Once you get the first couple plays under your belt it'll feel like a normal game."
One with big implications.
"This is why you come to Wisconsin," Tauscher said. "This is a football game you want to go win, but you can also enjoy the experience."
