Simply UW’s best
Heisman winner tops ranking of Badgers football players since 1995
MADISON – The 1995 college football season was my first opportunity to cover Wisconsin full-time.
UW finished 4-5-2 under Barry Alvarez, just two seasons after a victory over UCLA in the '94 Rose Bowl capped a memorable 10-1-1 season.
Suffice to say, Alvarez was frustrated with the sub-.500 finish and I wondered about the direction of the program.
Because of the ongoing pandemic, no coach, player or administrator can be certain the 2020 season will start on time and be held in its entirety.
UW is scheduled to open Paul Chryst's sixth season as head coach Sept. 4 against visiting Indiana. One task the Badgers face is replacing All-American tailback Jonathan Taylor,
who won the Doak Walker Award as a sophomore and junior and was selected by Indianapolis in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft, the No. 41 pick overall.
Taylor no doubt is among the top 10 players in program history and he is among the top 10 UW players I have covered since that ’95 season.
So in an effort to give our readers more ammunition with which to question my scouting acumen, here is a list of 10 UW players who have been the most productive/dominant since ’95.
1. Ron Dayne
The massive tailback from New Jersey sits atop this list for myriad reasons. He remains the program’s alltime rushing leader with 7,125 yards and would still hold the national mark if NCAA officials would get off their collective rear ends and take the time to incorporate bowl yardage into their alltime marks.
Dayne was the outstanding player in the 1999 and 2000 Rose Bowls. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1999.
Most important, he helped get the program back on track after the ugly ’95 season in which UW rushed for 1,418 yards.
Remember that Dayne averaged 1,781 rushing yards per season at UW. His lowest output came in 1997, when he managed only 1,457 yards. That was still 39 yards more than UW rushed for in ’95.
He remains the most important recruit in the history of the program.
2. Joe Thomas
The standout left tackle from Brookfield Central High School was used as a jumbo tight end as a freshman in 2003 and then started all 38 games over the next three seasons. Thomas was a firstteam All-American in 2005 and ’06 and won the Outland Trophy as a senior in ’06.
The way Thomas moved his feet to stymie opposing rushers was a thing of beauty. Watching him sprint to the perimeter on a quick pass play an level an unsuspecting defender was frightening.
The most enduring image, however, was seeing Thomas running the Camp Randall Stadium steps in April 2006, a little more than three months after he suffered a torn ACL while playing defense in the Capital One Bowl.
Freak.
3. Jim Leonhard
The numbers are remarkable for the walk-who contributed on special teams as a freshman and then started the final 39 games at safety.
Leonhard finished with 21 interceptions, tying the program record. He left UW as the Big Ten leader in all-time punt return yards (1,347), though that mark was broken in 2006 by Michigan’s Steve Breaston. He finished with 50 passes defended, including 25 in his sophomore season. He recorded 11 interceptions that season to lead the nation and tie the Big Ten single-season mark. He was named All-American three times.
4. Jonathan Taylor
Taylor made the right call by turning pro after rushing for a mind-boggling 6,174 yards and 50 touchdowns in just three seasons. Had he returned for his final season of eligibility he would have needed only 951 yards to tie Dayne’s program mark.
Heck, had he played Nebraska one more time he might have gotten that mark in one game.
Taylor broke the 2,000-yard mark in 2018 and ’19, was a first-team All-American in those seasons and became the first college player to rush for at least 6,000 yards in any three-year span.
The only shame? Taylor was never invited to New York for the Heisman Trophy ceremony.
Really?
5. Jamar Fletcher
One of the top two cover corners in program history along with Troy Vincent, Fletcher owned the No. 1 mark for confidence.
Fletcher paired with Mike Echols in 1998 to give UW a pair of indefatigable cornerbacks, both of whom were redshirt freshmen.
Fletcher left UW as a three-time All-American and with 21 interceptions, including a Big-Ten record five for touchdowns. He was the Big Ten defensive player of the year in 2000 and won the Thorpe Award gven to the nation’s top defensive back.
UW fans likely will remember his legendary battles against Purdue quarterback Drew Brees. Fletcher returned interceptions for touchdowns in victories over Purdue in 1998 and ’99.
6. Melvin Gordon
The standout from Kenosha Bradford High School would have made this list had he played in just one game for UW – Nov. 15, 2014 against Nebraska at Camp Randall Stadium.
Gordon carried just 25 times in three quarters yet finished with four touchdowns and an NCAA-record 408 yards. His per-carry average was 16.3 yards. Based on that average, Gordon would have needed just six carries in the fourth quarter to reach the 500-yard mark. Fortunately for the Cornhuskers, UW coach Gary Andersen had mercy.
Gordon, arguably the best overall tailback in UW history, finished that season with a program-record 2,587 yards. That is 393 more than Taylor’s best mark (2,194) and 478 better than Dayne’s best mark (2,109.)
7. Russell Wilson
A graduate transfer from North Carolina State, Wilson put together the best season by a quarterback in UW history in 2011 by completing 72.8% of his passes for a program-record 3,175 yards. He threw 33 touchdown passes and only four interceptions, one every 77.3 attempts.
He also rushed or 338 yards and six touchdowns and provided UW with a dual-threat quarterback capable of making plays against any defense.
Can you imagine pairing Wilson with some of the defenses UW has fielded in recent seasons?
8. Montee Ball
As a freshman in 2009, Ball finished with modest numbers (98 carries, 391 yards and four touchdowns). As a sophomore in 2010, Ball was behind John Clay and James White and briefly wondered about his role in UW’s offense. He finished that season with 996 yards and 18 touchdowns, however, and then reshaped his body in the offseason.
That transformation resulted in Ball putting up impressive numbers in 2011 and 2012 when he combined to rush for 3,753 yards and 55 touchdowns in his final two seasons.
He left UW with FBS records for rushing touchdowns (77) and total touchdowns (83) and the most consecutive games with two or more touchdowns (13).
9. Lee Evans
The best wide receiver in program history? The numbers say he was.
Evans, whose hand strength was as impressive as his speed and leaping ability, still holds UW records for alltime receiving yards (3,468), all-time receiving touchdowns (27), receiving touchdowns in a game (five) and season (13) and receiving yards in a season (1,545). He also holds the No. 2 mark (1,213).
Evans’ best day in a UW uniform came in 2003, after he missed the 2002 season because of a torn ACL. In a 56-21 victory over Michigan State, Evans caught 10 passes for 258 yards and five touchdowns. The scoring plays covered 9, 75, 18, 70 and 18 yards.
10. Tom Burke
UW fans have been spoiled in recent seasons because of talent the defense has fielded, particularly at linebacker.
Anyone who missed Burke play defensive end for UW, particularly in 1998, missed a wrecking ball. Burke that season led the nation in sacks (22) and tackles for loss (31) – in just 12 games.
He was named the Big Ten defensive lineman of the year, the Big Ten co-defensive player of the year and a firstteam All-American.
The native of Poplar finished second in program history in all-time sacks with 32, one behind Tarek Saleh, and third in tackles for loss with 54. That was four behind Saleh and three behind Mike Thompson.