Phenomenal Freshmen: ‘We’re just doing what we love’
November 10, 2017 | Football, Men's Basketball, Volleyball, Andy Baggot, Varsity Magazine
This year’s newest Badgers are shattering the rookie mold. And they’re just getting started …
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BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — When their paths first crossed in June, Dana Rettke and Jonathan Taylor had no clue that their lives as Wisconsin student-athletes would chart such parallel paths.
Both were true freshmen — Rettke a middle blocker for the volleyball program; Taylor a tailback for the football team — who were in Madison to take part in conditioning sessions and attend summer school with other newcomers in men's and women's basketball and hockey.
Both were heralded newcomers — Rettke for her 6-foot-8 frame and tantalizing potential from Riverside, Illinois; Taylor for his sprinter's speed and record-setting resume by way of Salem, New Jersey — who arrived with modest personal expectations about their roles and playing time.
Both rose quickly through the ranks — Rettke thought about sitting out the 2017-18 season as a redshirt; Taylor opened preseason drills slotted fifth on the depth chart at tailback— to become dominant forces.
Both have become go-to centerpieces for their teams — Rettke has earned a Big Ten Conference-record seven freshman of the week awards; Taylor has won a school-standard five — while putting themselves in the discussion for national honors.
Both Rettke and Taylor have emerged as headliners for an eye-catching crop of true freshmen, one that figures to entertain Badgers fans for years to come.
Some UW teams have multiple true freshmen on the marquee, most notably men's basketball (guard Brad Davison, guard Kobe King and forward Nate Reuvers), women's soccer (defender Sammy Kleedtke, forward Cammie Murtha and forward Lauren Rice) and men's hockey (center Tarek Baker, wingers Jason and Sean Dhooghe, defenseman Wyatt Kalynuk and winger Linus Weissbach).
Rettke, meanwhile, is joined by true freshman setter Sydney Hilley — they both enrolled in January of 2017 — and Taylor has first-year starting wide receiver Danny Davis as a classmate.
This year's newest Badgers are shattering the rookie mold And they're just getting started... ???? http://go.wisc.edu/varsity-8-11
— Wisconsin Badgers (@UWBadgers) November 9, 2017
It's cool that the two wunderkinds, Rettke and Taylor, have become casual, supportive friends given their similar storylines.
"We hang out," Rettke said.
Members of the football and volleyball teams share the same Camp Randall Stadium footprint for practice, training table, weight training and academics, so there's ample opportunity for interaction.
"We always talk when we see each other inside the stadium," Taylor said of Rettke.
But just because the basketball and hockey teams are headquartered primarily at the Kohl Center, the bond between UW true freshmen has no boundary.
Rettke and Taylor have gotten to know Davison, King, Reuvers and others through shared friends or teammates.
"All those boys are just the humblest, nicest kids you're ever going to meet," Rettke said, adding Davis to the list.
"I know those guys," Taylor said of his basketball peers. "They're really good people."
King shares a dorm address with Taylor and Davis and said he got to know Rettke during the summer.
King and Rettke said they've caught Taylor's considerable act from the student section at Camp Randall this season.
Taylor leads the Big Ten in rushing with 1,368 yards and touchdowns with 12 for the sixth-ranked and unbeaten Badgers (9-0 overall, 6-0 in league play) heading into their home duel with Iowa Saturday.
Taylor has a decent shot at joining Ron Dayne and Melvin Gordon as the only backs in program history to top 2,000 rushing yards for a season, a quest that has put Taylor in the discussion for the Heisman Trophy.
?? ?? Game 2 ?? ?? ?? Game 5 ?? Game 6 ?? Game 7 ?? ?? Game 9 Jonathan Taylor: 5x Big Ten Freshman of the Week
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) November 6, 2017
"He's been amazing," King said of Taylor. "I see how special it is, him as a true freshman taking college football by storm. I watch him in awe most of the time. You see freshmen can really have an impact in a college sport."
King and Taylor have made their way to the Field House to watch Rettke and Co. in action for 10th-ranked Wisconsin (16-7 overall, 7-7 in the Big Ten).
Rettke is on pace to set the UW single-season standard for hitting percentage and has led the team in kills in 10 matches.
"From a freshman-to-freshman standpoint you're rooting for her," Taylor said. "You get excited because you see another freshman doing well."
Taylor wasn't aware of Rettke's streak of Big Ten honors until recently.
"That's great for her, definitely showing that she's working hard," he said. "She was here during the summer and she was definitely working hard. It's definitely showing."
Still four weeks left in the regular season and @dana_rettke has already set @B1GVolleyball record with 7? Freshman of the Week honors!
— Wisconsin Volleyball (@BadgerVB) October 30, 2017
Rettke, who was recruited to play Division I basketball, said she was at the Kohl Center to watch Davison, King and Reuvers during an 85-56 exhibition victory over UW-Stout on Sunday.
King, a 6-4 combo guard from La Crosse, Wisconsin, said he can't wait to start playing games that count. After two exhibition games last week, the Badgers open the regular season hosting South Carolina State on Friday.
Does King, who led UW with 17 points vs. Stout and was a prime in-state recruit for coach Greg Gard and his staff, feel any pressure seeing his young friends excel in the other sports?
"The one thing with basketball, pressure-wise, it's all good pressure," he said. "It's there, but some of it comes with the game. As the levels go up, the pressures go up."
"This is going to be an enjoyable team to watch" Highlights and reaction from @MattLepay after tonight's win to close out preseason play.
— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) November 5, 2017
King said Rettke and Taylor have responded to that burden.
"That's something they all embrace and that's the pressure," King said. "Wanting the ball in the fourth quarter or hitting the game-winning shot, it's all good pressure. It's what great players want."
King was asked if he'll have to carry the same weight as Rettke and Taylor.
"We'll have to see," he said. "Their seasons have picked up and ours is just starting. I guess we'll just have to wait and see."
King, the Gatorade Player of the Year in Wisconsin and unanimous all-state pick after leading La Crosse Central High School to a state title, said his expectations haven't changed since arriving on campus.
UW isn't ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time since 2010 and some observers wonder if its streak of NCAA tournament berths, which dates back to 1998-99, is in jeopardy.
"I've just wanted to win and try to do everything I can to help the team win, whether that's scoring, playing defense, rebounding, anything," King said. "I never thought we couldn't do big things. I still think that."
Rettke and Taylor are in a different place because their expectations — and competitive lives — have changed.
"I came here in the spring and said, 'I'm going to work as hard as I can and see where it takes me,'" Rettke said.
Greatful to be doing what I love along side great athletes, but even better people. Blessed to call them my friends ?????
— Dana Rettke (@dana_rettke) November 9, 2017
UW coach Kelly Sheffield initially thought about redshirting Rettke, but that talk soon quieted.
"I really started to see how much impact I could have for this team," Rettke said. "My expectations have risen a lot very quickly."
Paul Chryst, the UW football coach, made Taylor his starter the second week of the season and Taylor hasn't disappointed.
Taylor got to 1,000 yards in seven games — tying the NCAA record for freshmen — and has topped 200 yards in a game three times.
"They definitely have changed," he said of his expectations. "At first coming in here I just wanted to be ready whenever my number was called.
"Now that my number's being called every game, my mentality is, 'What am I going to do when my number's called? Am I going to make a play? Am I going to do my job?'
"Now my mentality is making sure that I complete my assignment to the fullest every single play."
Taylor said there's a shared mindset with his fellow true freshmen.
"It's just something fun to see, other freshmen in there with the older guys, doing their thing," he said
"We all love being here and we all love our team. We love Madison. We're having fun going through this process together."
Rettke said there's a shared reality among her fellow first-year standouts.
"JT, Kobe, Brad, Danny, Syd, we all go through that same thing," she said. "We're people who are very driven and want to accomplish things in life and have those goals set."
Rettke said one prominent lesson stands out for all the true freshmen.
"It would be pursuing excellence in everything you do," she said. "We all really want to do well in school and we're held to pretty high standards here and it doesn't matter what grade or what age."
Rettke said it was "awesome" and "humbling" to be on such a big stage with so many friends.
"We're just doing what we love," she said.
ROOKIE WATCH
Names to know among the Badgers newest class of freshmen
Men's Golf
Griffin Barela, from Lakewood, Colorado, was named Big Ten Conference Golfer of the Week after his first tournament for UW.
Men's Hockey
Defenseman Wyatt Kalynuk, from Virden, Manitoba, quarterbacks the No. 1 power-play unit and is among the national freshmen leaders in blocked shots.
Men's Swimming
Backstroke specialist Matt Novinski, from Grand Island, Nebraska, is a four-time state champion who already ranks third in the Big Ten in the 100-yard event.
Women's Basketball
Guard Niya Beverley was ranked as the No. 22 point guard in the country by espnW and is expected to immediately contribute to the Badgers.
Women's Hockey
Winger Brette Pettet, from Kentville, Nova Scotia, became the first NCAA Division I player to score three goals in a game this season.
Women's Soccer
Forward Cammie Murtha, from Kensington, Maryland, is second on the NCAA tournament-bound Badgers in goals and points and joined UW defender Sammy Kleedtke and forward Lauren Rice on the Big Ten all-freshman team.
Women's Tennis
Lexi Keberle, from West Bend, Wisconsin, was the No. 1 recruit in the state who already leads the team in wins and knocked off the nation's 41st-ranked player this fall.
Women's Track & Field
Discus thrower Josie Schaefer, from Baraboo, Wisconsin, is the state record-holder and a two-time WIAA state champion.
