Newly-appointed Wisconsin Badgers offensive coordinator Phil Longo spoke with the media for the first time on Thursday, where he shared insight into his plan with the offense.
In doing so, Longo clarified the speculation about his so-called “Air Raid” offense that has many fans intrigued about the new-look Wisconsin, detailing how his offense will actually be fairly balanced.
“The words ‘Air Raid’ kind of create a misconception or a poor perception of what we want to do offensively.”
While Longo anticipates a change from the traditional Wisconsin offense, he acknowledged that the goal was to be effective at both the pass and the run.
“We’re going to more diverse [than] we’ve been here [at Wisconsin], and we want to throw the ball probably more effectively. Maybe even more rep-wise than we’ve done, but you really want to be effective at both [the run and the pass].”
Wisconsin has made some significant changes with personnel, adding quarterbacks Nick Evers and Tanner Mordecai via the transfer portal from Oklahoma and SMU, respectively.
Evers is a dual-threat quarterback, while Mordecai has showcased his ability as a prolific passer at the collegiate level, having thrown for 7,162 yards and 72 touchdowns over the past two seasons.
Still, Longo understands how strong the foundation is for the running game, with top rushers Braelon Allen and Chez Mellusi returning to the program, as well as the entirety of Wisconsin’s starting offensive line, except for center Joe Tippmann.
“I’d be an idiot not to run the football here with the backfield that we have and the offensive line that we have.”
With an improved quarterback room that now sports five scholarship signal-callers for the 2023 season, Wisconsin appears to be aligning more toward the balanced approach that Longo desires, setting up for an intriguing first season for the new-look Badgers, starting in the spring.
