The third of five selections we're posting from the new book, 'Joe Thomas: Not Your Average Joe,' written by our Marc Bona centers on his time at Wisconsin, where they knew he was destined to be a great one.
CLEVELAND, Ohio – In 2003, Joe Thomas arrived at the scenic campus nestled along Lake Mendota in Madison, a city of 250,000. For a fisherman, the water beckoned. But where he would make his mark would be inside the venerable Camp Randall.
The highly recruited Thomas came in with a long list of preseason pats on the back. Every college football analyst had him somewhere on their lists of rated prospects. Most players at Division I schools have some sort of a resume, but Thomas was lauded mostly for his play on the defensive side in high school yet here he was about to line up on offense.
“The first day I had a lot of trouble,” he told Mike Lucas, who covered Wisconsin for The Capital Times and who would go on to become radio color commentator for Wisconsin games. “Obviously the speed is so much faster. You’re used to a guy being here. Instead, he’s 2 yards past that. Obviously, I want to get bigger and stronger — I’m between 275 and 280. I have enough confidence that I think I can play with anybody who’s coming up against me and that’s the most important thing.
Thomas often suited up as a blocking tight end in the Badgers’ jumbo package. That formation often brings an extra tight end as a blocker in lieu of a receiver. His versatility eventually would serve him well as the Badgers settled into the season. Mulhern even reported that Thomas’ pals on the offensive line jokingly called him “a traitor since he moved to the defensive line earlier in bowl practice.” Center Donovan Raiola said, “We went out last night. We said, ‘Oh, you want to hang out with us again?’ "
Auburn proved too much in the bowl game. Alvarez was denied his 100th victory at Wisconsin. On offense, the Tigers’ running game pushed through Wisconsin. On defense, Auburn pressured quarterback Jim Sorgi on the way to a 28-14 victory. Thomas was in on eight tackles.
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