ARLINGTON, Texas _ T.J. Watt encountered sleepless nights thinking about what is happening to him now.
The Wisconsin junior linebacker pictured the day when he could be one of the best players on the field. He wanted to make a name for himself and not just be the younger brother of one of the sport's better players.
Originally, he thought success at the college level meant being a great offensive player. That changed after a couple knee surgeries and a position change.
But now, as the No. 8 Badgers (10-3) prepare for No. 15 Western Michigan (13-0) in Monday's Goodyear Cotton Bowl, he's not losing sleep about those things anymore. What he pictured is finally happening.
Injuries to both knees kept Watt off the field his first two years at Wisconsin. Now as a redshirt junior, and as an outside linebacker instead of a tight end, he's thriving.
When he returned to the field for the 2015 season, he wasn't nervous about getting hurt again. He was too busy trying to prove himself.
"I was so motivated to get back and show people that I'm not J.J. Watt's little brother. None of that fear really affected me at all," T.J. Watt said.
The last name carries so much weight because J.J., a defensive end for the Houston Texans, is one of the best players in the NFL. It means a lot in Madison, Wisconsin, too. J.J. and Derek Watt, who was drafted by San Diego this year, both played at Wisconsin first.
When T.J. was younger, he blamed everything he did wrong on not wanting to be known as J.J.'s little brother. As J.J.'s stock ascended and he became an All-Pro NFL player, T.J. was trying to find his own way as a tight end while dealing with multiple knee injuries that eventually required surgery.
"Early on, I didn't know how to deal with it," T.J. said. "I had no idea how to cope with such publicity so fast from my brother. I wanted to stick out so bad, but I learned to embrace it. I know he's a hell of a player and a hell of a person, too."
One day during the summer of 2015, Wisconsin assistant coach Tim Tibesar called T.J. during his vacation at Pickerel Lake in Minnesota. Wisconsin head coach Paul Cryst was moving T.J. from tight end to an outside linebacker in the Badgers' 3-4 defensive scheme.
Luckily, the task of rushing the passer came natural to Watt. His 6-foot-5 build with long arms also aided in the switch, Wisconsin defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox said. And T.J. was more than willing to do what was necessary to excel at the new position.
"There's certainly a learning process involved there," Biegel said. "I think the best thing he did was being open and trying to learn every day."
He started watching film of the other linebackers, current Cleveland Brown linebacker Joe Schobert and senior Vince Biegel, a great player in his own regard. T.J. learned the playbook so the coaches knew he was taking the switch seriously, even as he struggled to immediately figure out how linebacker movements or how to stop the run.
Eventually, he figured it all out. This year, he leads the defense in sacks (10.5), tackles for loss (14.5) and quarterback hurries (12).
"He's literally a coach's dream, as far the hard work he's willing to put in to keep honing his craft constantly," Tibesar said. "And he does all the little things."
T.J., like J.J. and Derek, wasn't highly regarded coming out of high school. None were rated higher than three of five stars by recruiting services. Yet they all went on to excel at Wisconsin.
And T.J., like Derek before him, has done plenty to step out of his brother's shadow and make a name for himself, something the whole family seems to enjoy.
"He (J.J.) still hates it when we're called 'J.J. Watt's little brother on TV,'" T.J. Watt said. "That's why he doesn't like watching the games on TV.
"But it all comes with it. This is the only life I've known. I wouldn't do it any differently."
