Lucas: Sanborn, Orr pushing a linebacker corps in transition
April 11, 2019 | Football, Mike Lucas
After impressing with natural ability as a freshman, Sanborn refining his game this spring
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BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — T.J. Edwards knew of Jack Sanborn before the freshman got on campus. He had talked about him a little bit with Luke Mertens, who coached Edwards at Lakes Community High School in Lake Villa, Illinois, before taking a job 20 miles away in Lake Zurich, where he coached Sanborn his senior year.
Mertens has told interviewers that Sanborn's explosiveness on contact was very similar to Edwards. Last season, Edwards got to see it for himself on the practice field. In general, it was the way that Sanborn carried himself and absorbed the defensive concepts that left the biggest impression.
"He's a natural linebacker," said Edwards, a four-year starter and All-American. "When I came in as a freshman there were things I had to learn as far as what a linebacker should do in terms of running through gaps and trying to make plays in the backfield. Right away, he had that ability.
"He didn't look like a freshman."
Whereas Edwards had to make the transition to inside linebacker as a collegian after playing quarterback as a prep, necessitating a redshirt his first year at Wisconsin, Sanborn was able to contribute immediately on special teams in 10 games while competing for reps in the rotation.
"He (Sanborn) was able to pick up the playbook so quickly it really kind of surprised me," said Edwards, who etched his name into the record book with 367 career tackles, 10 interceptions and 15 pass breakups. "I've only seen one other person be able to do that right away, and that was Chris Orr."
Orr, a fifth-year senior, and Sanborn, a rising sophomore, have taken over for Edwards and Ryan Connelly as the first-team inside linebackers through the first eight spring practices. Pushing them has been the second unit combination of Mike Maskalunas, a redshirt junior, and Leo Chenal, a true freshman and early enrollee.
"All four of us are generally creating good chemistry in the room," said Orr, who turned his focus to Sanborn. "We're starting to get a feel for each other. I'm starting to understand how he plays more and he's starting to understand how I play. He's still a young buck, but we're pushing each other."
Sanborn, the highest-rated prospect in the 2018 recruiting class, won't turn 19 until July.
"His game has really grown just with him fully understanding the defense better," Orr went on. "Last year, you could tell that he was more focused on just his position. But, now, he understands how everything fits up to where he can actually do a little extra to make an impact or a big play."
To his credit, Sanborn has been tapping into his resources: Edwards, Connelly and Orr.
"They really knew everything and how to play the defense so well," said Sanborn, who has continued to watch game film on Wisconsin's leading tacklers, Edwards and Connelly. There's so much to learn in the college game and you have an opportunity every day to learn more and more that you didn't know previously.
"Last fall, I felt like I was thrown in there and had to try and learn everything on the fly. But, now, with an offseason, you can examine everything more."
Sanborn has gained 10 pounds in forming a partnership with Orr, who has lost 15.
"I like it because Chris knows what's he's doing," said the 6-foot-2, 232-pound Sanborn. "Like T.J. and Ryan, he has a ton of experience in this program. He knows how to play. He has done it before, and he has done it well before. He's always teaching me things. Plus, he's a just a fun guy to be around.
"He's always got energy and it's never a blue day in the linebacker room."
Orr has dealt with his share of injuries, the worst of which was a torn ACL in the 2016 opener that sidelined him for the remainder of the season. Moreover, he has been overshadowed by Edwards and Connelly. Overall, he has appeared in 36 games with 16 starts and 109 career tackles.
"I'm super excited for Chris to get his moment, his shot," Edwards said. "He has been playing at a high level for such a long time. I think he's going to be one of the best 'backers in the country."
The Badgers are extremely young and inexperienced with Sanborn and Chenal in the two-deep.
But the latter has already prompted Orr to note, "He reminds me of a little me." Only Chenal is anything but little at 239 pounds. He has benched 225 pounds 32 times.
"The more reps he gets on the field," Sanborn said, "the more confident that he is in what he's doing."
UW coach Paul Chryst addressed that progress after Tuesday's practice.
"He's kind of one of those guys that when he's in, he's going to be all in," Chryst said of Chenal, whose older brother, John, is a sophomore fullback. "It may not always be right. But he's going to give himself a chance. That's a great way to learn … I'd much rather make mistakes in April than September, October and November."
Sanborn, like Chenal, considered graduating from high school early so he could enroll for the second semester of classes last year and take part in spring ball. But he got hurt his senior year at Lake Zurich and played with a torn labrum before finally undergoing shoulder surgery in mid-December of 2017.
"I didn't want to come up here early," he said, "and be in rehab for six months.
"Physically that surgery halted my progress a little bit because I couldn't do much with my shoulder and upper body (last winter and spring). But I like where I'm at right now."
One of the keys to the effectiveness and growth of the inside linebackers will be the health and maturity of the defensive line, which went through a major transition in 2018 with the graduation losses of Conor Sheehy, Alec James, Chikwe Obasih and the season-ending injury to Olive Sagapolu.
How many snaps can the Badgers get out of Garrett Rand and Isaiahh Loudermilk? Rand sat out last season with an Achilles injury. Loudermilk was limited by injuries at various stages. Matt Henningsen was forced into the starting lineup as a redshirt freshman. So was Bryson Williams as a true freshman.
"Getting Garrett back is going to be huge for that group," Edwards suggested. "When he's healthy, he's a hard guy to move. Isaiahh has all the intangibles to be one of the best D-linemen in the country. Having those two guys being leaders in the room is big.
"I'm excited for that group to take the next step. Matt got a lot of experience last year. He was ready for his moment. And for Bryson to be thrown in there and hold his own for the most part was impressive."
As far as Edwards' preparation for the NFL draft, he worked out for the New Orleans Saints last week and has scheduled workouts with the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears this week. He has been training some days in Madison; some days in Milwaukee with Sheehy, James and T.J. Watt.
"It would be easy to say that I'm getting antsy and I just want to get on a team, which is partly true," Edwards said. "Interviewing with teams is a dream come true. As cliché as it sounds to be in this position, I'm enjoying that I'm in this process and I get to keep working towards a childhood dream."
Asked what he would tell Sanborn, who's in the midst of his own process, at a much different level, Edwards said, "It's hard to tell someone what to expect and what is exactly going to happen. But the first couple of games are going to be huge for him and I think he's going to do really well."
Good news: It's Friday 🙌 Better news: 🏈 is 147 days away For those who can't wait that long... get your first look at this year's team at our open practice April 13! Details: http://go.wisc.edu/ez95a6 #OnWisconsin
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