Post by fwp on May 5, 2010 15:23:28 GMT -5
host.madison.com/sports/amateur/article_da9d9958-ad31-5f19-a053-790c3bdb78d6.html
Before the start of the Wisconsin Wolfpack’s 2010 season, Matt Schabert planted a seed with offensive coordinator Dave Mogensen that he had the itch to play for the Continental Indoor Football League team.
The timing wasn’t right. But that all changed just under month ago, when Mogensen desperately went searching for a healthy quarterback after starter Brian Ryczkowski broke his collarbone.
Mogensen found one in Schabert, who had just moved back to his hometown of Elgin, Ill., after leaving his job as a salesman for a marketing company in Minneapolis.
“He called me at the best time,” said Schabert, a former University of Wisconsin athlete. “I told him, ‘I’ve got nothing else to do for the next couple of months. Absolutely, it’d be fun.’ ”
It’s been more fun than Schabert, 27, even imagined. He’s helped lead the Wolfpack (4-1) to victory in all three of his starts, including a 33-32 thriller over the Fort Wayne Firehawks last Saturday at Hartmeyer Arena.
Schabert is one of seven former UW players on the Wolfpack’s roster. He’s joined by offensive lineman/running back Andy Crooks, defensive backs Josh Nettles and James Kamoku, defensive linemen Kurt Ware and Ricky Garner, and offensive lineman Kenny Jones.
There are also five former UW-Whitewater athletes and three former UW-Platteville athletes on the roster.
A commuter league
For $200 per game, Schabert makes the 90-minute drive from Elgin to Madison — “I’ve got that Chicago lead foot,” he said — at least once a week for a two-hour practice on Wednesday and twice if the Wolfpack have a home game.
The indoor football league journeyman — he’s played for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers of af2, the Chicago Slaughter of the CIFL and the Peoria Roughriders of the UIF — doesn’t mind it a bit.
“I’ve been on some teams where guys have a lot of chips on their shoulders,” said Schabert, who has 10 touchdown passes on the season. “They’re stressed out and they’re ornery and they’re mad. The team we’ve got here, I don’t ever see anyone without a smile on their face. You’ll walk into practice and everybody is upbeat, everyone’s laughing and everyone gets along.”
Prior to Schabert’s debut with the Wolfpack — a 34-20 victory over the Marion Mayhem on April 24 — the last time he played in Madison was during the Badgers’ 27-21 loss to Iowa on Nov. 22, 2003.
That game was played in front of 79,931 at Camp Randall Stadium. Now he plays in front of a few hundred fans at Hartmeyer Arena.
That’s not the only big difference.
“Coming from Wisconsin, with the amount of film that we used to watch and the schemes and time commitments we had, now you go and practice once a week for two hours,” Schabert said. “It’s kind of weird for anybody that comes from a program like that. You’re used to doing so much work, and you don’t do as much here. You kind of feel weird — like you should be doing more.
“But this is for guys that want to keep playing. There are still a lot of quality players; there’s a lot of talent in these leagues.”
Two play-calls to remember
Schabert is best remembered from his days at UW for his performance on a rainy night on Oct. 11, 2003, when he entered a Big Ten Conference game in relief of injured starter Jim Sorgi — who had been choked by Ohio State linebacker Robert Reynolds — and helped the Badgers upset the third-ranked Buckeyes 17-10. The loss ended a 19-game winning streak for the defending national champions.
Mention “56 Jerk” and “22 Lonesome” and Schabert is sure to smile.
The first play call led to a 79-yard touchdown pass from Schabert to wide receiver Lee Evans, who found himself wide open after Buckeyes cornerback Chris Gamble bit on an out pattern. Schabert hit Evans in stride and the Badgers’ all-time leader in receiving yards and touchdown receptions did the rest, giving UW a 17-10 lead with 5 minutes, 20 seconds left in the game.
On its next possession, UW faced a third-and-2 deep in its own territory with under 3 minutes left. Schabert got it on “22 Lonesome,” a gutsy call by offensive coordinator Brian White. Schabert made the Ohio State defense bite on a fake handoff to tailback Booker Stanley and ran a naked bootleg for a six-yard gain to get the first down and move the Badgers one step closer to their upset victory.
Schabert laughed when he was asked if he’s recommended either “56 Jerk” or “22 Lonesome” to the Wolfpack coaching staff.
“I’ve been mentioning ‘Lonesome’ on the goal line,” he said. “In indoor football, people are so intent on jumping stuff. If you’re on the 1 and all of a sudden you see a run, guys will attack it. I think the lonesome would work.
“I don’t know about ‘Jerk.’ As soon as the (receiver) made the out cut he would probably just get slammed into the boards and be done for the game.”
When it became clear that John Stocco would be the successor to Sorgi, Schabert decided to transfer to Eastern Illinois for his senior season. But he still cherishes his time with the Badgers, especially those special moments against Ohio State.
“No matter where you play, you always want to come in and do well and win big games like that,” Schabert said. “But it’s not something that consumes me. I’m not the guy that’s going to go out to the bars and bring it up to girls, looking for attention.
“But I will sit and talk about that game with anyone as long as they want.”
Before the start of the Wisconsin Wolfpack’s 2010 season, Matt Schabert planted a seed with offensive coordinator Dave Mogensen that he had the itch to play for the Continental Indoor Football League team.
The timing wasn’t right. But that all changed just under month ago, when Mogensen desperately went searching for a healthy quarterback after starter Brian Ryczkowski broke his collarbone.
Mogensen found one in Schabert, who had just moved back to his hometown of Elgin, Ill., after leaving his job as a salesman for a marketing company in Minneapolis.
“He called me at the best time,” said Schabert, a former University of Wisconsin athlete. “I told him, ‘I’ve got nothing else to do for the next couple of months. Absolutely, it’d be fun.’ ”
It’s been more fun than Schabert, 27, even imagined. He’s helped lead the Wolfpack (4-1) to victory in all three of his starts, including a 33-32 thriller over the Fort Wayne Firehawks last Saturday at Hartmeyer Arena.
Schabert is one of seven former UW players on the Wolfpack’s roster. He’s joined by offensive lineman/running back Andy Crooks, defensive backs Josh Nettles and James Kamoku, defensive linemen Kurt Ware and Ricky Garner, and offensive lineman Kenny Jones.
There are also five former UW-Whitewater athletes and three former UW-Platteville athletes on the roster.
A commuter league
For $200 per game, Schabert makes the 90-minute drive from Elgin to Madison — “I’ve got that Chicago lead foot,” he said — at least once a week for a two-hour practice on Wednesday and twice if the Wolfpack have a home game.
The indoor football league journeyman — he’s played for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers of af2, the Chicago Slaughter of the CIFL and the Peoria Roughriders of the UIF — doesn’t mind it a bit.
“I’ve been on some teams where guys have a lot of chips on their shoulders,” said Schabert, who has 10 touchdown passes on the season. “They’re stressed out and they’re ornery and they’re mad. The team we’ve got here, I don’t ever see anyone without a smile on their face. You’ll walk into practice and everybody is upbeat, everyone’s laughing and everyone gets along.”
Prior to Schabert’s debut with the Wolfpack — a 34-20 victory over the Marion Mayhem on April 24 — the last time he played in Madison was during the Badgers’ 27-21 loss to Iowa on Nov. 22, 2003.
That game was played in front of 79,931 at Camp Randall Stadium. Now he plays in front of a few hundred fans at Hartmeyer Arena.
That’s not the only big difference.
“Coming from Wisconsin, with the amount of film that we used to watch and the schemes and time commitments we had, now you go and practice once a week for two hours,” Schabert said. “It’s kind of weird for anybody that comes from a program like that. You’re used to doing so much work, and you don’t do as much here. You kind of feel weird — like you should be doing more.
“But this is for guys that want to keep playing. There are still a lot of quality players; there’s a lot of talent in these leagues.”
Two play-calls to remember
Schabert is best remembered from his days at UW for his performance on a rainy night on Oct. 11, 2003, when he entered a Big Ten Conference game in relief of injured starter Jim Sorgi — who had been choked by Ohio State linebacker Robert Reynolds — and helped the Badgers upset the third-ranked Buckeyes 17-10. The loss ended a 19-game winning streak for the defending national champions.
Mention “56 Jerk” and “22 Lonesome” and Schabert is sure to smile.
The first play call led to a 79-yard touchdown pass from Schabert to wide receiver Lee Evans, who found himself wide open after Buckeyes cornerback Chris Gamble bit on an out pattern. Schabert hit Evans in stride and the Badgers’ all-time leader in receiving yards and touchdown receptions did the rest, giving UW a 17-10 lead with 5 minutes, 20 seconds left in the game.
On its next possession, UW faced a third-and-2 deep in its own territory with under 3 minutes left. Schabert got it on “22 Lonesome,” a gutsy call by offensive coordinator Brian White. Schabert made the Ohio State defense bite on a fake handoff to tailback Booker Stanley and ran a naked bootleg for a six-yard gain to get the first down and move the Badgers one step closer to their upset victory.
Schabert laughed when he was asked if he’s recommended either “56 Jerk” or “22 Lonesome” to the Wolfpack coaching staff.
“I’ve been mentioning ‘Lonesome’ on the goal line,” he said. “In indoor football, people are so intent on jumping stuff. If you’re on the 1 and all of a sudden you see a run, guys will attack it. I think the lonesome would work.
“I don’t know about ‘Jerk.’ As soon as the (receiver) made the out cut he would probably just get slammed into the boards and be done for the game.”
When it became clear that John Stocco would be the successor to Sorgi, Schabert decided to transfer to Eastern Illinois for his senior season. But he still cherishes his time with the Badgers, especially those special moments against Ohio State.
“No matter where you play, you always want to come in and do well and win big games like that,” Schabert said. “But it’s not something that consumes me. I’m not the guy that’s going to go out to the bars and bring it up to girls, looking for attention.
“But I will sit and talk about that game with anyone as long as they want.”