BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — Although one plays on offense, the other on defense, running back Dare Ogunbowale and outside linebacker Vince Biegel got asked the same thing more than once during their pre-draft interview sessions with National Football League scouts, personnel directors and assistant coaches.
"Do I love football?" posed Ogunbowale, reciting the question. "That's a big thing."
"It did come up," Biegel conceded. "That's frequently asked."
As part of the process, Ogunbowale said, "I think they liked getting to know me as a player."
There's much to like about Biegel as a player, too. He has always been an open book.
"People should not be asking me if I love football," he said, "by the way I play the game."
Biegel could have been speaking for any of his former teammates — Ogunbowale, Corey Clement, Ryan Ramczyk, Sojourn Shelton and T.J. Watt — who each have put themselves in position, some more secure than others, to hear their name called in the NFL draft, whatever round, however long the wait.
"When you play D-I football, it's always the goal to go to the next level," said Ogunbowale, who was originally a walk-on defensive back from Milwaukee. "But I didn't think I'd be here (five years later) — as a running back — having the opportunity to be drafted. It's definitely a blessing."
And he's not taking anything for granted.
"I'm still going to work hard to try and excel at the next level," said Ogunbowale, 22, who graduated in economics from the UW. "When you're younger, you always want to be able to go through the process of hopefully being a professional athlete. It's definitely exciting thinking about the future."
Photo: Wisconsin Badgers
For more on Wisconsin: