There is no better teacher than a person who has been in exactly the same the shoes as their students. At least, that’s the philosophy University of Wisconsin football team is going with.
After former Wisconsin defensive backs coach Daronte Jones left for the NFL’s Miami Dolphins, another hole emerged in the nation’s second best overall and fifth best passing defense in 2015. But it was filled rather quickly, and with a familiar face.
Former Wisconsin safety, UW athletics hall of famer and three-time First Team All-Big Ten player Jim Leonhard was announced as Jones’ replacement Thursday to much fanfare.
I'm excited to be a part of Badger football again. I heard the DB coach even gets his own office. Can't wait to get started. On Wisconsin!
— Jim Leonhard (@jimleonhard) February 20, 2016
During his time at Wisconsin, from 2001-04, Leonhard proved himself as a walk-on and quickly rose to the starting ranks.
The Tony, WI native tied the Wisconsin record for most career interceptions (21) which was enough for fourth most in Big Ten history. He was also a heralded punt-returner, twice breaking Wisconsin’s season record for punt-return yardage and finished his collegiate career with the most punt-return yards in Big Ten history (1,347).
Despite going undrafted in the 2005 NFL Draft, Leonhard enjoyed a 10-year career in the NFL that included 14 interceptions, 428 tackles, 4.5 sacks and 1,277 return yards.
His impressive resume speaks for itself and made him a welcomed addition to the Wisconsin football coaching staff.
“I’m very appreciative to have Jim join our coaching staff,” UW head coach Paul Chryst said. “I’m excited for our players and coaches to be able to work with him and learn from him. What makes Jim special is his desire to teach, to help young men grow and to develop them to reach their full potential. He has a tremendous love and appreciation for the University of Wisconsin and our football program.”
All-American. NFL vet. Now we're excited to call him "Coach." Welcome home, @jimleonhard!https://t.co/djWR1cB7rl pic.twitter.com/Pny09A4N7I
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) February 20, 2016
Leonhard takes over responsibilities for a defensive unit that held opponents to a 96.8 pass efficiency (second in the FBS), 49.1 percent pass completion (third in the FBS) and allowed only 13 passing touchdowns on the season (second in the FBS).
Yet, the first year head coach will have a major challenge at hand: that same unit returns only one starter, cornerback Sojourn Shelton.
Leonhard will have spring practices and training camp over the summer to determine the next crop of Badgers pass defenders, but he will have to get players that haven’t seen much action ready in a short time.
D’Cota Dixon and Leo Musso each saw valuable playing time during the 2015 season, so Leonhard will not have to work with blank slates at the safety position, where he will have to replace Michael Caputo and Tanner McEvoy who both graduate.
The same is also true at cornerback, where Natrell Jamerson and Derrick Tindal also saw a decent workload and will not be thrown into a brand new environment come fall. With Shelton at their side, they will have experience, but also have to deal with rotating amongst corners who’ve never seen game action before.
Though for now, the task at hand for Leonhard is getting acclimated to coaching at his alma-mater, which Chryst doesn’t think will be much of a problem for the first-time coach.
“Jim has always been a part of our Wisconsin family and I’m looking forward to him impacting this program in a new role,” Chryst said.
