GREG RUSSO
"I have just as much pride for this as I have the military just because of what it means to me to be able to do what I'm doing," Russo said of playing for the Badgers.
patient. You have to accept the civilian life and the society that we live in for what it is, because it's different. "You go from a high tempo, a high intensity
and the threat of danger all the time (in the ser- vice) to almost nothing and it changes how your body physiologically reacts. "You don't have the adrenaline rush every time
you leave your house. You don't have the fear factor in your head all the time. You don't sweat when you leave your house, you just leave." That's why vets need vets to fall back on. "I couldn't have done it without my friends,"
Russo said. "During my second deployment, I made some of the best friends of my life, guys who will stand up in my wedding. "I stay in touch with them all the time. I see them as much as I can. They're the best. It's a
similar supporting cast to the guys on this team. "You get injured or you get down on yourself
and you need someone there to say, 'Don't even think about it. Don't worry. It's OK. You'll be fine.'" It was before that second deployment to
Iraq that Russo began dreaming about playing football for the Badgers. There was no reason to think that he could beyond the fact that HE thought he could. That's all it took to jump-start the process once he got out of the military. There was an e-mail contact with the foot-
ball office. There was a friend contacting UW strength and conditioning coach Ben Herbert. And there was paperwork; tons of it before he got clearance. Having successfully gotten this far – Russo
