Hard work pays off
September 17, 2009 | Football
About a month ago Bill and Johanna Hartmann received a phone call every parent dreams of.
'I told my dad `I don't have to depend on you for money anymore, '' recalls senior defensive back athid=5627&deptid=111"> --> Will Hartmann .
That was the first phone call Will made after he received the good news that he would be receiving a scholarship from Badger head coach Bret Bielema for his fifth and final season at Wisconsin. As a former walk-on from Sheboygan, Wis., Hartmann was one of three players awarded a scholarship at the beginning of the season.
'I was stunned,' Hartmann said. 'I think the biggest thing to take away from that was my teammates' reaction. I'll remember that the rest of my life. They were all standing up and cheering and clapping, they were all so happy for me and I was really grateful to Coach B and my teammates for being so receptive. '
Playing football at the University of Wisconsin was a childhood dream for Hartmann. He followed the Badgers from afar, cheering on the 1999 and 2000 Rose Bowl teams, and he didn 't get to see the inside of Camp Randall Stadium for a Badger game until his senior year of high school. Hartmann also had a Wisconsin football connection at Sheboygan South High School as Chris Hein, who was a linebacker on the 1994 Rose Bowl team, was one of Hartmann's coaches.
To make his childhood dream a reality, Hartmann decided to walk-on to the UW football team in the fall of 2005. He had received interest from Ivy League schools, which intrigued the former valedictorian because of the academics, and Division III schools throughout the state, but knew Wisconsin was the right choice.
'The ultimate selling point for me was, I didn't want to go that far away from home and I knew the people here at Wisconsin are great,' he said. 'It's a great education, great atmosphere and I knew if my dream didn 't work out, this would be a good spot for me. You have to go for it sometime. '
Once Hartmann got to campus, not only did he have to learn the playbook and adjust to life as a student-athlete, but he had to somehow get everyone on the team to remember who he was.
'At my first practice, nobody knew my name. I didn't really get recruited a whole lot. They just saw my tape and offered me a walk-on spot so I was here, didn't really know anybody and was kind of like a lost sheep. I found my way eventually.'
The lack of recognition didn't faze Hartmann, who describes himself as an independent guy. He reminded himself to keep working hard and he knew that good things would come. After redshirting his first year and not playing his second year, Hartmann finally saw the field on the kickoff return unit against Northern Illinois on Oct. 20, 2007.
Unfortunately for him, he doesn't remember much of his first game as a Badger.
'I actually got a concussion,' Hartmann said with a laugh. 'So my first memory was running down a kickoff and I got blasted.'
Hartmann returned to action and then recorded his first career tackle in the final game of the regular season at Minnesota, which he described as a huge moment.
Since then, Hartmann has been a staple on all four of the Badgers' special team units. He registered a career-high three tackles in UW's season-opening win against Northern Illinois and was recognized by Bielema as the Special Teams MVP the following week.
Even though Hartmann's stat line week after week is something the public may not take notice of, his efforts and attitude are what stand out on the Badger team that places such an importance on special teams.
'I play football because I love it,' Hartmann said. 'People who know football and know me, know how much I enjoy it and people who know football know the important of special teams and that's what matters. I'm not the starting quarterback, nobody knows who the heck I am on campus, but that's OK because I get the best of both worlds.'
The childhood dream of playing football at the UW is almost over for Hartmann and after graduation, the kinesiology major plans to apply to physical therapy school. Before that though, he is focused on making his blocks, getting more tackles and doing whatever he can to help the Badgers win.
No longer a walk-on at the UW, Hartmann is thankful for his scholarship, but even more appreciative of the journey he took to get to where he is today.
'It's not so much about getting everything paid for,' Hartmann said. 'It means more to have walked on and earned a scholarship and not to just have it given to me right when I came. I think when you work for something, it means that much more.'
Be sure to check out this video interview we did with Will Hartmann . Not only do we talk with him about receiving a scholarship, but we find out some of his interests off the field, including his favorite TV show and NFL team.
