BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — There was a chance that defensive end Matt Henningsen was a little distracted during the two hours-plus practice; a slight chance that his mind was on something other than whipping a double-team block or executing a specific pass-rushing technique.
What else would Henningsen be thinking about?
Electrodynamics.
"I find it really interesting," he said, though not implying it took precedence over practice.
Yet less than 90 minutes after Henningsen walked off the grass field north of Camp Randall Stadium last Friday, he was in a classroom taking a summer school final exam. Obviously, he had an excuse on this day if he was more preoccupied with physics than physicality. Not that he was.
Henningsen, a redshirt sophomore, has become adept at balancing athletics and academics while budgeting his every waking moment — "I still try to get to bed at a reasonable time" — between football's School of Hard Knocks and Wisconsin's School of Engineering.
Even if it means studying over lunch.
"This training camp," he acknowledged, "has been very hectic."
Friday's electrodynamics exam culminated a six-credit summer school workload for Henningsen, who carries a perfect 4.0 GPA.
"Once that class is over, I'll be able to focus everything, I mean everything on football and that will be big," he said. "I'm still putting a lot of time into football right now. That's my first concern because I built up a good start to the class before camp, so I didn't have to backload it too much."
There's not much this double major in computer engineering and electrical engineering from Menomonee Falls can't get done once he puts his mind to it. Last season, he emerged as a starter on the defensive line because of graduation losses and injuries to Garrett Rand and Isaiahh Loudermilk.
Henningsen, in fact, became the first UW freshman walk-on to start a season opener in nearly three decades. He went on to start 10 of 13 games, including the last eight, and earned a scholarship. He led the D-line in tackles (32) and had game highs of six against Michigan and four against Miami.
Wisconsin Badgers defensive end Matt Henningsen (92) tackles University of Illinois' quarterback on Oct. 20, 2018. Photo by Tom Lynn.
But the physical grind in the Big Ten took a toll on his still maturing body.
Henningsen weighed a little over 260 pounds for the regular-season finale against Minnesota.
"My body was getting beat up," he said. "I got pretty sick at the end of the year, too."
Rejecting any notion he simply wore out, he conceded, "It was definitely a step up physically."
After a productive offseason, Henningsen is now carrying 288 pounds on his 6-foot-3 frame.
"Matt Henningsen," Paul Chryst cooed on Media Day, "had an unbelievable summer."
What did Henningsen think his head coach meant by that?
"I was putting up some numbers in the weight room. Getting faster … getting bigger … putting on a few pounds," he explained. "It has just been a good summer all the way around."
Asked what he was most proud of in the weight room, Henningsen said, "My numbers probably on everything, PRs on all my lifts, and then growing closer as a group. I've never felt as close to a group of guys as I have with these guys. We've built this up over the winter, spring and summer."
Some of the cohesiveness can be attributed to the return of Garrett Rand, who tore his Achilles tendon last summer during agility workouts and missed the 2018 season. Rand was targeted to help fill the void left by the departures of Alec James, Conor Sheehy and Chikwe Obasih.
"It's great having him back, that's for sure," said Henningsen. "He brings something different to the group. He brings a different kind of physicality, a different edge that you don't see everywhere. He's a really good football player. Also, in the meeting room, he leads by example with everything he does."
Henningsen is not the only one in the room that feels that way about Rand's impact.
"He brings toughness and playmaking ability," said defensive line coach Inoke Breckterfield. "I had him on the nose a lot (during his first two years). Now he has a chance to go to end and we'll cut him loose. I'm excited to see where he goes. He brings leadership; he has a lot of reps under his belt."
Wisconsin Badgers defensive lineman Garrett Rand (93) against the Purdue Boilermakers Saturday, Oct. 14, 2017, in Madison, Wis. The Badgers won 17-9. (Photo by David Stluka)
Throughout his rehab, Rand refrained from feeling sorry for himself and stayed positive.
"I knew there were other guys who had the same injury," he said. "And I looked to them."
Fullback Mason Stokke, for one, had experience in recovering from an Achilles injury.
"He gave me some pretty good motivation," said the 21-year-old Rand, who hit a PR this summer with a 455-pound bench press. "Summer conditioning was awesome. People got really strong. We had guys throwing up huge numbers. It's the thing we preach — we want to be physical."
Game days were particularly hard on Rand because he couldn't feed his competitive appetite.
"It was just different watching and not playing," he said. "But I didn't think of it as a negative."
Instead, he focused on the silver lining.
"I watched my friends grow," Rand said. "Matt (Henningsen) grew a lot."
So did Rand in terms of his own personal growth.
"I grew the most as a person and individual," said Rand, a redshirt junior from Chandler, Arizona, where he was the top defensive lineman in the state (the Curly Culp Award winner) as a prep senior. "Last year was a good year for getting mentally tougher and for getting to know myself."
Rand is a little bit lighter than he was as a freshman and sophomore. And it could lead to better production, especially as a defensive end.
Moreover, he pronounced, "I'm 100 percent." That's better for everyone on defense.
Based on what he has seen since January, Henningsen suggested, "We're all getting better." But he also knows there's plenty of room for improvement.
"We definitely took a step back when it came to stopping the run last year as a defense and that was across the board," said Henningsen. "We also have to get more pressure on the passer. Another thing we have to work on is minimizing the small mistakes."
Any potential growth on the defensive line is tied to one thing and it's not a small thing.
"Let's face it," Chryst said, "they've got to stay healthy."
Loudermilk understood fully what Chryst was saying. He has said it himself.
"I did feel kind of limited most of last season with those injuries," recounted Loudermilk, who was in and out of the lineup. "It was tough … getting healthy … getting reinjured … getting healthy … getting reinjured again. It was kind of like a cycle and I just tried to keep a positive attitude."
Continuity and chemistry were compromised without Rand for the season and Loudermilk for stretches. "Having Garrett back is going to mean a lot; I'm super excited," Loudermilk said. "Watching him play again is something I'm looking forward to in camp along with just working as a unit again."
Staying intact as a unit, of course, will be the test.
