Lucas: Outside linebackers ready to set the tone for Badgers’ D

BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer

MADISON, Wis. – Once Darryl Peterson got his first, real taste of contact as a high school football player – a raw but explosive defensive end – he hungered for more. Insatiable might be the best way to describe his appetite for collisions since it became part of his recipe for sacking quarterbacks.

"My junior year of high school, I hit somebody super hard in one of my games," Peterson remembered vividly. "And the rush that it gave me was something that I loved to feel. And ever since then, it has been something I look forward to and love to do. I'm a physical guy. That's my game."

Sounding like a new/old school player – someone who has grown up watching defensive thumpers and pass rushers like Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns and T.J. Watt of the Pittsburgh Steelers – Peterson reiterated, "I love to be physical. I love to run through people and inflict pain."

That level of physicality was his calling card at Archbishop Hoban High School in Akron, Ohio. During his junior season, he had a school-record 21 sacks. As a senior, he was named the Defensive Player of the Year by Cleveland.com after recording 17.5 sacks on an 11-0 team that won the state title.

He was No. 17 then (as a four-star recruit), and he's No. 17 now (as a second-year outside linebacker for the Badgers). The 6-1, 244-pound Peterson is a card-carrying member, if you will, of the OLB (Organization of Likeminded Brothers), a Nick Herbig rallying point for the room as a whole.

"That's my best friend," Peterson said. "We're together all the time, 24/7."

Herbig, the junior All-American candidate from Kauai, Hawaii, is the tone-setter. At any given moment during practice, he might cut loose with a piercing "Cheehoo" – an expression of excitement or celebration – a call to arms for the defense. "It's calling on your strengths and your spirit," Herbig said.

While the origin of "Cheehoo" is Samoan (faaumu), Herbig explained it was part of his family culture growing up in Hawaii. He has shared it with teammates here. "When energy is low in practice, we'll hear that," Peterson said with a grin. "It's kind of like a Bat-signal to get everybody going."

Question is, who will be Robin to Herbig's Batman? Who will be that complimentary piece? Peterson and C.J. Goetz are challenging for playing time opposite Herbig. But they're not alone. T.J. Bollers and Kaden Johnson are also engaged in a healthy, mix-and-match competition for snaps.

UW assistant coach Bobby April is entrusted with managing the rotation. And there would seem to be no shortage of options. "That's the fun part," April said. "You'd rather have more than less … to be able to throw a guy out there and be confident that they can get their job done is a good feeling."

April didn't have to see what Herbig could do in the spring. He already knew. That put the focus on the development of others. "We spent a lot of time on technique work for individual guys," he said, "and it's starting to pay off. You're starting to see it out there on the field. Those guys are showing up."

UW coach Paul Chryst has enjoyed the OLB show. After Monday's practice, he said, "I've loved what Bobby has done with that group. Certainly, Nick right now is the leader … But there's a great approach and work ethic and love of the game in that room. There is never an off-day for them.

"The ball goes down and you get between the lines and that group loves playing the game. Each guy is getting better. C.J. (Goetz) has been around the longest, but you still see him getting better. It's a fun group to be around. It's a fun group to watch … they give this team a lot of energy."

Again, it all starts with Herbig, the leading returning tackler. "He's a high-energy leader, for sure," Goetz said. "That's him at all times, too. That's truly who he is." Added Peterson, "Nick brings the speed, the leadership and he's kind of like a second coach out there at times. He's super crafty."

As a fifth-year senior, Goetz has honed his craft in a meticulous, step-by-step process. With more playing exposure and better understanding of the defense, he can say with conviction, "I'm pretty confident. Being my final year, I don't have to think when playing … and it allows me to play fast."

April feels the same way about Goetz, a bona fide playmaker (386 career tackles, 68 TFLs) at Waukesha Catholic Memorial High School. "He's not going to be afraid of the moment – or won't be surprised by the moment," April said. "He's got a physical presence to him a lot of guys don't have."

As a backup to Herbig (646 snaps) and Noah Burks (618), Goetz was a factor in the 2021 mix and had sacks against Notre Dame and Iowa. Of his 169 defensive snaps, 45 came against the Army option in a tweaked alignment that put him on the D-line. He finished with a career high seven tackles.

"I like where he has developed," April said. "He's getting better with his footwork. His hands are getting better. His pass rush is improving. It's something we can continue to work on to give him a little bit more inventory there. But he has definitely taken strides to climb the ladder. He's not stagnant."

Peterson has also made strides in transitioning from defensive end to outside linebacker. He was dominant in the former position at Archbishop Hoban, a D-II power in Ohio. "Being able to stand up and drop in coverage has been fun to learn and fun to get better at," Peterson said. "I love learning.

"And there are different techniques from a 4-point stance to a 2-point stance – to just standing up and seeing a little bit more. Being in coverage was a big transition for me, a big change because obviously in high school I was hand-down and bulldozing people. I've enjoyed being in space."

As a prep, Peterson was on to the radar of some of the nation's most successful programs.

"It was crazy being able to meet a guy like Nick Saban – going somewhere like Alabama for a visit with some of the top recruits in the country – knowing that they looked at me as such was a great honor," said Peterson, who opted for Wisconsin over offers from Bama, Michigan and West Virginia.

On why the Badgers won out, he said, "The culture – seeing how much these guys love each other. I wanted to be a part of something like that. Good fan base. Great school. That was a big part for me, too, the school and the education I'm getting here, which is second to none.

"The winning culture was something I really admired and I'm looking to keep it going. I didn't want to go to the obvious place. Some people thought I should have gone to Alabama. But I wanted to go somewhere that hadn't won a national championship yet and help them get to that goal."

Bollers was also actively recruited by Saban and Alabama. At Clear Creek Amana High School, he was rated as the No. 1 defensive recruit in the state of Iowa. He picked the Badgers over his dad's alma mater, the Hawkeyes, among many other suitors. Trevor Bollers played fullback for the late Hayden Fry.

Johnson, meanwhile, was considered the No. 1 prospect in the state of Minnesota. But he probably gained more notoriety playing basketball at Minnehaha Academy, a back-to-back state champion. Two of his former teammates, Jalen Suggs and Chet Holmgren, are now playing in the NBA.

"I love the room," Peterson said of the OLBs, "and I love the guys I'm with."

A year ago, Peterson was strictly in a learning mode during training camp. "I learned the ins and outs – when to go, when not to go," he said. "I learned how to play in space a lot more. I learned everything I needed to get better so I could come out and contribute to this defense."

A turning point was the UW's win over Arizona State in the Las Vegas Bowl. For the '21 season, Peterson saw action on 41 snaps, 35 on defense, 17 in the bowl. "It was super important to me," Peterson conceded of his post-season trial. "And it was a good stepping-stone to where I'm at now."

Herbig, for one, has seen the growth in Peterson's game from one season to the next.

"He's just maturing and not making those little mistakes anymore," Herbig said. "His freshman year he popped on film. But he just had small little bad habits that would get him in trouble sometimes. He wasn't always playing assignment football. He was trying to make plays. Which I get.

"As a freshman, you're trying to show the coaches that you can play. Now he's kind of adjusting into his role and figuring out that not every play is going to be his. You have to know when it's your time to make a play and when it's your time to set the edge and let the other guys make the play."

It's not unlike the decisions made every possession by a point guard. At that, Peterson comes from a hoops background. His dad accounted for 1,377 points in 122 games (81 starts) at the University of Akron. His younger brother is one of the top basketball prospects nationally in the Class of 2025.

But it's all about the gridiron right now for Darryl Peterson. On his expectations for the 2022 season, one in which he should have a major role coming off the edge, Peterson eyed the Sept. 3 opener against Illinois State and said, "I want to make an immediate impact and have fun and make plays."

Lucas: Outside linebackers ready to set the tone for Badgers’ D

Players Mentioned

T.J. Bollers

Noah Burks

C.J. Goetz

Nick Herbig

Kaden Johnson

Darryl Peterson III

University of Wisconsin Athletics