It has been defensive dominance to say the least for the Badgers gridiron group over the first four games of the season. With 34 tackles for losses, 13 sacks, three interceptions, three forced fumbles and one safety to lead UW to a perfect 4-0 start to the campaign, the Badgers will now enter week five with the nation's top scoring defense (4.8 points per game).
While much of the success of the team's defense must be attributed to new defensive coordinator Brett Bielema and his aggressive scheme, also worthy of some love is UW's front four on the defensive line-defensive tackles Anttaj Hawthorne and Jason Jefferson, and defensive ends Jonathan Welsh and Erasmus James-four seniors who are as close on the field as they are off it.
\We've been waiting for this,"" Jefferson said. ""We are just much smarter than past seasons because we're a veteran group. We know what it takes to win and we're doing those little things right now.""
Those little things include footwork, positioning and fighting off blocks and double-teams. All four of the guys recognize their commitment to the fundamentals as a trademark of the UW coaching staff that continues to stress the basics, regardless of the performance the week before.
""We just want to be the best team and defense out there on every Saturday,"" Jefferson said. ""No matter what we do the week before, we feel like each week, we have to go out there, get it going and set an example for the rest of the team that we are going to be ready to play together, play hard, play physical and play smart.""
Up until this point in the season, the front four is setting a great example for not only the rest of the defense, but the entire team. Through its consistency and persistence, the defense has risen to national prowess and shown that it is a force to be reckoned with. Limiting opponents to an average of only 190 yards per game, the Badgers are ranked No. 2 in the nation in total defense. They are the only school to have given up one touchdown all season and as always, the defensive pressure starts up front with the battle for the line of scrimmage.
""We feed a lot off each other,"" James said. ""We came in together, we're seniors, we know what we want, we're focused, so when we're out there we know what we want and we go get it. We want to control that line on each play.""
On the year, the Badgers have done just that and forced opponents to three-and-out on 22 of 50 drives. While this success is largely contingent on the ability of all four to work together, the individual efforts are at times too impressive to overlook. James paces the defense with five sacks, 7.5 tackles for losses and has knocked out the most number of quarterbacks. But he stresses his ability to make plays based on the fact that his teammates continue to get double-teamed and he is left alone with one offensive lineman.
""We have that trust with each other that one of us will make a play regardless of who is getting the double-team,"" James said. ""That's the advantage we have. We have four good linemen that if any of us get doubled, one of us is going to get free.""
This trust that the four have with each other is helped largely in part by the off-the-field friendships the guys have. Three of them-James, Welsh and Jefferson-are roommates and say that they are with Hawthorne so much that it is as if he lives with them as well.
""We're really close on and off the field,"" Welsh said. ""If anything happens on the field we laugh, we yell and we talk trash out there-but only to the other team. When we go out, most of the time we all go out together. When you see one, you see three or four.""
The fun the four have off the field together, whether it is playing Madden like an ""addict"" as Welsh puts it or just going out, translates to the fun they have on the field and the little competitions the four have among themselves.
""We are pretty competitive off the field and we're just as competitive and have as much fun when we're out there, too,"" James said. ""We talk to each other out there, see who can get to the ball first, see who gets to the quarterback first and normally it's me.""
While one of their biggest debates is who hits the hardest, the four unanimously agreed that after the Penn State game that it was James that had the edge.
""Anttaj came up to me and said, 'Whoa are you going to save some for me or what?' I just laughed a little,"" James said.
For Razzy Poo, Dubzy, Double JJ and Taj, as they refer to each other, the laughter and camaraderie off the field is one reason they feel they are as strong and motivated as they are this year. Although unique in personalities and backgrounds, the four are driven by their friendship and that one common objective, ""to be dominant,"" as they all stated. So far this season, they are living up to the expectations.
""We just want more this year, a lot more,"" James said. ""We're much more focused, on the same page and are fundamentally sound.\
