UW Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2015: Jim Leonhard
September 03, 2015 | Football
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August 12, 2015
BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com
MADISON, Wis. -- During his coaching tenure, Barry Alvarez liked to break up the offseason routine by staging a slam dunk contest among his football players. The favorites in 2002 all looked the part, too. There was a lanky 6-4 Texan, defensive end Jonathan Welsh; a sleek 6-3 Detroiter, wide receiver Jonathan Orr; and another defensive end, Erasmus James, a rangy 6-4 New Yorker.
With their size and high school backgrounds in basketball, they were expected to dominate the competition. But there was a wild card; a walk-on freshman defensive back from Tony, a tiny Wisconsin community (population: 114) between Glen Flora and Ladysmith, northeast of Eau Claire, some 230 miles from the Madison campus.
Jim Leonhard was the pride of Tony and Flambeau High School.
He was also 5-foot-8 and 174 pounds.
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"I hadn't played basketball with many guys, so they really didn't know much about me," recalled Leonhard, whose dad, Don, was his prep basketball coach. Although he was a prolific 3-pointer shooter -- once drilling 10 triples in one half -- he had hops, Jumpin' Jimmy. "There were a handful of guys who knew and the only reason I got into the competition was because I was pushed."
Leonhard beat Welsh in the slam dunk finals.
"It definitely opened some eyes," he said.
To this day, though, it's understandable why his athleticism was underestimated.
"Absolutely, no question," he said, agreeing with those who had their doubts. "You should be (doubtful); at least, you'd be a little skeptical. That's why I took a lot of pride in how athletic I was when you wouldn't have necessarily thought that (by merely looking at him).
"Obviously when you're undersized," he continued, "there are certain things that you have to do and certain situations that you have to stay away from. Maybe you have to do things a little bit different than some other people.
"For me, it was just learning the game and learning about you and what you can do. That's the fun part; the mental side. It was fun figuring out, `How am I going to be successful?' But whatever path it takes, you're going to figure out a way. I never felt size was going to be a problem."
Pity those who did.
"It was a big chip on my shoulder early in my career," he said. "But once I felt like I established myself, it wasn't enough. That wasn't what was making me go out there and work. I had to find other ways to motivate myself and I was able to find that motivation year-in and year-out."
Many took note of his exceptional playmaking ability in spite of any perceived shortcomings. That included ex-Minnesota coach Glen Mason, now a Big Ten Network analyst. At the 2004 conference kickoff Luncheon in Chicago, Mason had a memorable encounter with Leonhard.
"I'm riding up the escalator with Jim Leonhard and (former UW tailback) Anthony Davis -- he's not very big either and he's a good player," Mason related at the time. "I looked at Leonhard and said, `You're really Jim Leonhard? God, I've got managers bigger than you.' And he kind of laughed."
Mason then told Leonhard, "I'll tell you one thing, son, you're a football player."
Later, Mason elaborated, "Football is a game of respect and I respect the heck out of that kid. He's a winner. I'd like to have him on my team but I don't like to compete against him."
Leonhard opened a lot of eyes during a decorated career with the Badgers. He opened more as an undrafted free agent during his 10-year run in the National Football League with five different teams, so much so that induction into the Wisconsin Hall of Fame seemed inevitable, a slam-dunk.
But when he got the phone call from Alvarez notifying him of his induction, Leonhard was almost speechless. "Obviously you really don't know what to say. I'm humbled by it all," he said. "I'm just really excited to represent the university now in another way. It means a lot to me and my family."
Had the thought -- Hall of Famer -- ever crossed his mind when he began his journey in northern Wisconsin? "Naaw, not even close," he said. "Until you get the phone call, you don't even think about it and then it's pretty mind-blowing. I'm so indebted to this university. I'm a Badger for life."
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Coming out of high school, Jim Leonhard almost became a Bulldog, not a Badger. He was seriously considering going to Minnesota Duluth because the Division II program (in all sports but hockey) offered him an opportunity to play football and baseball, a Leonhard passion.
His dad was also his baseball coach and Leonhard excelled as a hitter and pitcher.
Among his legendary prep exploits, he once struck out 19 of 21 batters in a game.
Duluth was a solid option. But he couldn't turn his back on playing football at Wisconsin, especially because of the success of walk-ons such as Joe Panos, Chad Cascadden, Mark Tauscher, Donnel Thompson and Jason Doering, all of whom became starters and went on to the NFL.
After running a 4.4 in the 40 at the UW summer camp, Leonhard was recruited as a preferred walk-on. "When you're young, you just want to play," he said of his early goals. "I was a walk-on but I felt that I was good enough to compete at this level and help the team. That was really the mindset."
Leonhard contributed primarily on special teams and lettered as a true freshman.
"He's not the biggest guy in the world but he really understands the game," said Kevin Cosgrove, then the UW defensive coordinator. "He's a very good athlete; he's deceiving, that's what he is, because he's put together pretty good and has a tremendous burst, quick feet and change of direction."
The spring following his freshman year was the turning point, Leonhard pointed out.
"Being a three-sport kid (in high school), you never get that much time to focus year-round on one sport," he said. "That was the first time. I had gone through a season and had a little success and played. And now, all of a sudden, you're going through winter conditioning and your body changes.
"You feel yourself growing and getting stronger. Jumping right back into football in the spring, you're in a totally different place mentally and physically. For me, it was kind of when I realized that I was going to make it. I never thought I would have the year that I did. But I knew that I was going to have a chance to be a significant piece to the puzzle."
From walk-on to All-American.
They put up a billboard in Tony documenting that accomplishment.
Leonhard went from freshman unknown to team MVP as a sophomore in 2002. Along the way, he led the nation with 11 interceptions, a single-season school record. He also broke the UW mark for punt return yardage. In addition, he was recognized as a first-team All-American by CNN/SI.com.
But it wasn't until after his second year as a starter that the NFL popped on his radar.
"My sophomore year, you're just so young and it happens so fast," he said. "To go back out there as a junior and do it again, that kind of validated the hard work that I had put in. That was when it first opened my mind (to the potential of a pro football career). I felt like, `Give me another year and I can figure out how to get to that next level.'"
And once he got there, he had to figure out how to stay there.
When asked about his survival instincts, Leonhard said, "I was always willing to learn, I was always willing to adapt. Situations change. I had a couple of defensive coordinators and three position coaches (at the UW). You're dealing with different personalities and you have to learn how to think on your feet. It's not the easiest way to do it, but it helped me out (in the pros)."
To this end, as an NFL player, Leonhard said, "You have to learn how to navigate the locker room and how to deal with coaches and their different systems. I got into a very good situation with a lot of veterans that taught me how to be a pro and how to make it essentially. Not a lot of guys get that."
Leonhard listed Troy Vincent, Lawyer Milloy and London Fletcher among his mentors.
"You see how they work day-in and day-out and how they grind throughout the season," he said. "If you open your eyes and pay attention to what those guys do, you can figure out the right way. There are a lot of guys in the league who are doing it the wrong way."
Alvarez, at a different level, was also influential in his development, on and off the field.
"He coached football but he taught life through it," he said. "He taught you how to be successful and the right way to go about your business in the day-to-day and that means so much more than what you actually learn on the football field."
To survive a decade in the NFL speaks volumes to Leonhard's work ethic, study habits and skills.
"I never would have dreamed that would have happened," he conceded of his longevity (142 games; 73 starts). "You play one play in that league and you're fulfilling a dream of millions of millions of people. To be doing it 10 years later, it's pretty special and it meant a lot to me to get to this point. But now I'm ready to that next chapter and figure out what I want to do."
Leonhard, 32, announced his retirement at the end of 2014 season in Cleveland.
How will he adjust and cope this fall without putting on a helmet and pads?
"It will be definitely tough," he said. "As of this point, I feel good about it."
It almost sounded like he left the door ajar for a return.
"It was more mentally than physically," he said of his decision to retire. "Physically, I feel as good as I have the last three years; the best since high school, to be honest. I learned my body more and I figured out how to put myself back together.
"I've had some big injuries and I would say one of my biggest flaws -- which was also a strength -- was being able to learn how to play through pain and play well when you're not feeling 100 percent. (At UW, he fielded punts in a bowl game even though he had wrist fractures).
"I really figured out my body the last couple of years and I've been as productive as ever. But I put so much into the game mentally -- as much as I do physically -- and I have so much respect for this game that I don't want to do it any other way. I don't want to go half-way."
For now, Jim and his wife Katie -- they met on campus as undergrads -- will expend all of their energy on their two young boys. Does coaching hold any interest for Leonhard? After all, he was raised by a family of coaches; dad, mom, grandfather, aunts, uncles.
"I definitely have an attraction to coaching," said Leonhard, who was the consummate `coach on the field' during his playing days. "I know I would love it. But I'm just trying to figure out if that's the right path. There's such a huge time commitment. I have to make sure it's right and I'm going to take a little time to do that."
