Joe Thomas was cold and had a sore back on Saturday, but that did not stop him from winning a track meet on a weekend that saw seven of his former football teammates get selected in the NFL draft.
The two-sport stand out sophomore won his first individual meet title of the season in the shot put, and his second of the season in the discus at the Northern Iowa Twilight track meet on Saturday.
\It was a fun weekend. Being at the track meet and constantly trying to get updates in order to see where my teammates were going in the draft, it was fun to be a part of,"" Thomas said. ""Winning was nice too.""
Thomas is the starting left offensive tackle for the football team as well as the track and field team's top thrower in shot put and discus.
""I watched some of the draft on Sunday when we got home; it was exciting in the later rounds because that's where a lot of the guys were projected to go,"" Thomas said.
And that's where most of them went. Five of the seven Badgers selected in the draft were picked up in the fourth round-which starts on Sunday-or later, including Dan Buenning, who played on the offensive line with Thomas.
""I was probably closest to Dan; we started on the line together, so I was excited for him. He's an unbelievable player,"" Thomas said. ""I'll probably give him a call tonight to say hello and congratulate him.""
The Northern Iowa meet was small in scale and competition for Thomas, and the conditions were lousy, but he was still able to perform and come away with two first place finishes.
""It wasn't a very competitive venue for Joe, it's hard for an elite athlete of his caliber to get up for the smaller meets when there's not a lot behind it, it's more of a mental thing,"" said assistant men's track coach Mark Napier.
Saturday didn't see favorable conditions for outdoor track and field, but it didn't hinder Thomas from enjoying himself at the meet.
""He was cold; he doesn't like to throw in the cold, and his back was a little sore, but he always had that smile on his face,"" Napier said.
The wins at Northern Iowa give Thomas momentum going in to this weekend's meet at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, a meet that promises to carry stiff competition.
""This weekend at Drake is a big stage. There are some Olympians in there and some of the best throwers in the world, and Joe likes that, he feeds off that,"" Napier said.
