How this Badger’s wedding served as a bonding experience for the football team
By ABBY SCHNABLE
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MADISON, Wisconsin (madison.com/Wisconsin State Journal) — Senior fullback John Chenal said his June wedding was the best day of his life.
He married his high school sweetheart, Hallie, surrounded by their family and friends, which included members of the University of Wisconsin football team.
It was a chance to celebrate their love with the people closest to them. For Chenal, that meant a number of Badgers, some standing at his side, some in the seats and all of them on the dance floor at the reception.
Almost 30 of Chenal’s teammates, including senior tight end Jake Ferguson and junior running back Isaac Guerendo, made the four-hour drive to celebrate John and Hallie. While he couldn’t make all of them groomsmen — junior linebacker C.J. Goetz, junior offensive lineman Michael Furtney and brother/teammate Leo Chenal, a junior linebacker, did make the wedding party — it was important to him that his Badgers brothers were part of the day.
Chenal has seven brothers and eight sisters, so he knows the value of a sibling’s relationship. The fact that he refers to his teammates as his brothers, shows how highly he thinks of them.
“It feels like one big family, and that’s what’s really special about the culture here is we’re not just players on our team, we’re really brothers, sharing the good and the bad times,” Chenal said. “So it’s a special thing to have, especially in college football.”
Chenal said it was great to finally be able to bond with his teammates over something that isn’t football. Getting to know each other off the football field helps build chemistry and trust within your team.
Dancing your heart out in a circle at your friend’s wedding strengthens a bond, too. Ferguson said that the dance floor was full of Badgers letting loose and celebrating. Junior tight end Jake Eschenbach might have gone a little too hard and took a tumble that almost resulted in a broken hand. When recalling the moment, Ferguson laughed and assured that no one was seriously injured at the end of the night.
Hallie and John Chenal have been together for the entirety of his collegiate football career and then some. Most of the players are familiar and friends with her, making the moment even more special.
“Seeing all the guys make that trip for him, it just kind of shows how much he means to us and how much it means to be there for their day,” Guerendo said. “You know, that’s a big day for them. It’s probably one of the biggest days in their life.”
It was an opportunity for Chenal’s family to spend time with his football family, like Ferguson chatting with Chenal’s mother.
“It really gave me a better understanding of John and just who he is and what kind of player, what kind of person he is,” Ferguson said.
Chenal’s approach to the game hasn’t changed despite constantly referring to himself as a married man in practice. Guerendo and Ferguson both said Chenal always has been a mature player, but seeing him balance married life and college football just proves it.
“You actually see that there isn’t that much skepticism coming from the outside and it’s like, wow, this guy’s really mature,” Ferguson said. “This guy can handle it.”
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