UW Athletic Hall of Fame: Tarek Saleh
June 07, 2024 | Football, General News, Andy Baggot
The true definition of a leader – in sacks, but especially in the locker room
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — Tarek Saleh didn't coin the phrase. All he did was live it.
When Barry Alvarez became the Wisconsin football coach in 1990, he described his ideal player as "tough, smart and dependable" and then went out to find as many of them as he could.
Few fit that description better than Saleh, an outside linebacker who set records that may never be broken, but whose greatest contribution to the cause might have been his willingness to mentor those who believed and performed as he did.
"He was a tough, smart, dependable guy," then-defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove said of Saleh. "You could always count on him.
"He was a guy, when he was on the field, he was totally focused. Every day. Practice. Games. It didn't make a difference.
"He's a special guy. No question about it. He certainly had an impact on the program. He had something to do with the next champions."
Saleh signed with UW in 1993 and played on the most iconic team in program history. Those Badgers, just three seasons removed from finishing 1-10, not only went 10-1-1 overall, they won a share of the Big Ten championship and knocked off favored UCLA in the Rose Bowl.
"We felt the weight of the world was on our shoulders," Saleh said of that Rose Bowl experience. "We all felt that. There was no option but to win."
During that magical season, Saleh recalled being tutored by the likes of defensive seniors such as Yusef Burgess, Carlos Fowler, Reggie Holt, Scott Nelson and Lamark Shackerford and then applying what he learned from them to the remainder of his college career.
"Those guys mentored me," Saleh said. "Those guys got me right."
The lessons that were shared with Saleh were revisited time and time again over the ensuing three seasons. They eventually became part of his path to the NFL and beyond.
Saleh was a starter as a sophomore, a two-time first-team All-Big Ten selection as a junior and senior, and team captain and a first-team All-American in 1996. He also set career program standards for quarterback sacks with 33 and tackles for loss with 58 as well as yardage in both of those categories with 283 and 227, respectively. All those records still stand.
But his greatest impact on the Badgers might have come after he was taken in the fourth round of the 1997 NFL draft by the Carolina Panthers. All the young defensive players that he had helped guide – Tom Burke, John Favret, Chris Ghidorzi and Donnel Thompson – had evolved into elite talents capable of great things.
To wit, the 1998 and '99 clubs won back-to-back Big Ten titles and Rose Bowls.
"You have a successful program by bringing those young kids along the right way," Saleh said.
"He was involved recruiting those guys," Cosgrove said. "With his personality, his love for the school, he would never say anything negative about anybody. He was proud to be a part of it and just wanted to keep the tradition going."
Thompson, a walk-on linebacker, took a respectful liking to Saleh as soon as his first fall camp opened at Holy Name Seminary. Thompson described Saleh as "unbelievably intense."
"He just wanted to work," Thompson said. "That set the tempo and tone for all of us."
Saleh said his role was "to be a part of a team that mentored those kids and got them ready."
Turns out, Thompson looked in the mirror and saw not just Saleh, but himself.
"It was nice to walk in and, one, have a kindred spirit and, two, to know this was the expectation at the University of Wisconsin," Thompson said of Saleh.
John Palermo, the then-UW defensive line coach, recruited Saleh and spoke to him often about the price of success. Are you willing to pay for it? Are you willing to be fearless, vulnerable and coachable? Are you willing to bear down and embrace the struggle?
You can make a strong case that Saleh answered all those questions with a "yes."
Saleh struggled early on in his time at Wisconsin, saying it was tougher to leave his family than he initially thought.
"It woke me up to different things," he said. "Being comfortable being uncomfortable."
That sense of enlightenment has paid off for Saleh, the latest Wisconsin football standout to be inducted in the UW Athletic Hall of Fame.
"Life is not predicated on this, but it's a tremendous honor," he said. "I'm grateful to a lot of people."
Most notably, UW athletic director Chris McIntosh, who broke the news to his close friend.
"I was thrilled," Saleh said. "It was a special moment."
BEST OF THREE
One: Most records are made to be broken, but this one may not
So, what are we to make of those school standards by Saleh? For example, after not recording a sack as a true freshman, he finished his career with 33, one more than Tom Burke, a consensus All-American who set the UW single-season standard with 22.
"It's going to be hard because if you get close to that many, usually guys leave (as underclassmen) and go to the NFL," Saleh said.
"Records are made to be broken," Thompson said. "But I certainly hope not for Tarek's sake."
Two: Playing favorites
Saleh was asked if he had a favorite UW teammate. He tabbed linebacker Pete Monty, whose career paralleled Saleh's, right down to the fact they were fourth-round NFL draft picks by teams in the NFC (Carolina and the New York Giants).
"We came in together and connected really well," Saleh said of Monty, the all-time tackles leader at Wisconsin with 451. "He had a tremendous will and has a good soul."
Three: Family time
Kyla Saleh, Tarek's daughter, is a freshman heptathlete on the UW women's track and field team.
