2023 Badger Football Thread

a great mix of instate talent filling the top spots with outside players.....I say again PC and his staff got lazy THIS is the pace of recruiting is what's needed and without it last year happened.
 
Mark87 said:
a great mix of instate talent filling the top spots with outside players.....I say again PC and his staff got lazy THIS is the pace of recruiting is what's needed and without it last year happened.
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Yep PC had his dream job he had no drive to do any better. To be honest this likely could not be Fickells last stop so he will have the drive to succed to have shot at that next job better be it OSU or the NFL.
 
When you see high expectations for a program, like we do with Fickell and the way he's changed the culture, it has to be a concern. It's so darned difficult living up to the expectations you put on yourself, when you raise the bar, like Luke has.

Yet, even though we have to temper our expectations, I think he's done as good a job as anyone could have every dreamed possible, in giving the Badgers football program a new life, and realization that the are just a few steps away from being able to compete with the Big 3 in the Eastern side of the Big 10.

I've tried to be honest with my evaluation, but no matter what, I've bought into a lot of it, and think the talent that's come in through the portal makes this team a candidate to win as many as 10 games this coming season, and before he got there, I wouldn't have felt comfortable predicting 6 wins.

It's an exciting time for Badger recruits, and fans as well.
 
Was watching some videos on spring practice reports and it sounds like at the moment walk-on QB Marshall Howe is third in the QB pecking order behind Mordecai and Locke. Might not stay that way, but it sounds like he's done a better job than some of the higher rated young QBs in picking up the Longo offense.
 

Takeaways from Wisconsin football’s scrimmage-heavy spring practice​


There is no way to know 20 weeks before Wisconsin’s season opener how many games Luke Fickell will win in his first year in charge of the program. But this much is clear through 10 spring practices: The Badgers will bring intensity and a highly entertaining brand of football to Camp Randall Stadium.

Wisconsin’s practice Saturday, on a beautiful and sunny late-morning in Madison, had a gameday feel with players wearing full pads. It featured the first true “move the ball” 11-on-11 work this spring, with officials marking the ball where the play was blown dead during a scrimmage-heavy day.

Here are 11 key takeaways from another noteworthy practice as the Fickell era takes shape.

1. USC transfer CJ Williams has been working with the second-team offense in the wide receiver spot behind Chimere Dike. But Badgers coaches have a special playmaker on their hands and will have to figure out how to get him on the field because he continues to stack up highlight-reel plays.

Williams, the former top-10 receiver in the 2022 recruiting class, produced another big day with the second unit. He caught a 20-yard pass up the right sideline on a perfectly placed ball from quarterback Braedyn Locke and held on to it despite safety Austin Brown delivering a punishing blow. Then came the two plays of the day.

With Wisconsin’s offense across midfield at the 45-yard line, Williams caught a Locke pass over the middle at the 25 and was one-on-one in space against walk-on safety Owen Arnett. Williams juked Arnett with an inside-out move to spring himself for a 45-yard touchdown. Williams came back with another dazzling catch, grabbing a well-placed Locke pass with one hand between two defensive backs and scoring a 20-yard touchdown.

Dike has been solid this spring and has made his fair share of plays as well. It’s tough to know exactly how good Williams can be because he has not consistently faced the first-team defense, though he has occasionally filled in for Dike. Still, Wisconsin has a good problem on its hands with more playmaking receivers than it has had in quite some time.
2. Wisconsin’s top wide receiver group has been Dike and Keontez Lewis with Cincinnati transfer Will Pauling in the slot. Thus far, Pauling has overtaken Skyler Bell, who is now the second-team slot receiver. But Bell, along with Williams, stood out with the reserves.

Bell caught a 35-yard pass down the right sideline from Locke, who hit him in stride during skeleton drills. Bell also made a great catch on the left side of the field during 11-on-11 work. During Wisconsin’s two-minute drill late in practice, Bell caught a 15-yard pass over the middle down to the defense’s 24-yard line.

Dike, Lewis, Pauling, Williams and Bell figure to see plenty of snaps next season. Oklahoma State transfer Bryson Green has yet to fully practice due to injury but is another candidate to play. Cincinnati transfer Quincy Burroughs has been the other second-team receiver since Chris Brooks Jr. suffered a left leg injury. Burroughs caught a 33-yard pass from Locke, who evaded pressure, stepped into the pocket and delivered an on-target throw.

3. Vinny Anthony’s name has not been mentioned much during spring practice given the influx of talent at wide receiver. But Anthony, a Kentucky state track champion in the 300-meter hurdles as a high school senior, possesses blazing speed that could give him a chance to contribute. Anthony caught a 15-yard pass over the middle from quarterback Marshall Howe with the third-team offense and outran a pair of defensive backs for a 75-yard touchdown.

Anthony can play on the outside or in the slot and earned snaps with the second-team offense as the slot receiver. He also was in a group of players returning kickoffs. Anthony returned one kick last season for 22 yards. Dike and Pauling appear to be the first two kick return options, but Anthony, Williams, Lewis and Burroughs also took reps.

4. Quarterback Nick Evers continues to work his way into the third-string role in a competition that Howe currently leads. Evers has not taken many team reps, with Howe and Myles Burkett on the field before him in recent practices. But Evers did showcase both his speed and arm strength during a sequence in the red zone.

Evers entered for Burkett with the ball at the defense’s 18-yard line. He took off up the middle for a nice gain. Then, he threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to freshman walk-on tight end Angel Toombs with a defender close in coverage. Toombs, 6-foot-5 and 235 pounds, has nice size and physicality. While he isn’t necessarily in the mix for playing time now, he could emerge later in his career.
5. Wisconsin offensive line coach Jack Bicknell Jr. used Cincinnati transfer Joe Huber as the first-team left guard for a second consecutive practice. Huber was taking second-team center snaps but took the place of Trey Wedig, who worked at right tackle with the second-team unit. Wisconsin’s first-team line consisted of Jack Nelson at left tackle, Huber at left guard, Tanor Bortolini at center, Michael Furtney at right guard and Riley Mahlman at right tackle. Projected starting center Jake Renfro continues to miss time while wearing a boot on his right leg.

The second-team offensive line featured Nolan Rucci at left tackle, Joe Brunner at left guard, Dylan Barrett at center, JP Benzschawel at right guard and Wedig at right tackle. Barrett took center reps with both the second- and third-team offense.
6. Cornerback Ricardo Hallman continues to stack up excellent days and show why he is on his way to earning a starting role. Hallman intercepted No. 1 quarterback Tanner Mordecai on what became a 50-50 ball against Lewis down the field. Mordecai had Lewis open on the play but underthrew the pass, and Hallman took advantage. Later, during a two-minute drill session, Hallman was in coverage and forced Lewis into a tough catch attempt that bounced off Lewis and into the hands of top slot corner Jason Maitre for an interception of Mordecai.

“If you asked me, in particular, one guy that’s been as consistent as anybody, I’d say Ricardo,” Fickell said Thursday after practice. “Each and every day, we try to strive to not be that occasionally great but the consistently good, which then turns you into consistently really good, which in the long run makes you great. If I were to pick one, I’d say Ricardo every single day has been consistently good. You’ve seen him grow and get better.”
7. Hallman is far from the only cornerback making plays with Wisconsin throwing the ball more in its Air Raid passing attack. Alexander Smith, the other starting corner on the outside, also produced a fabulous day. He made a great play to bat a downfield pass from Mordecai away from Lewis. He broke up a pass in the front of the end zone intended for Lewis with the ball at the defense’s 42-yard line. Smith also had good coverage in the back right corner of the end zone on a Mordecai pass for Dike that fell incomplete.

Wisconsin’s second-string cornerbacks have been freshman early enrollees Jace Arnold and Jonas Duclona, and both players continue to impress. Arnold intercepted Locke in the end zone when Locke threw a pass from the defense’s 14-yard line intended for Williams, who wasn’t looking for the ball. Arnold also broke up a pass intended for Williams down the right sideline.

Second-team slot corner Amaun Williams made a pair of stops at the line of scrimmage during one series, containing running back Zach Gloudeman on a catch in the right flat and then dropping a pass-catcher in the left flat.

8. Wisconsin has some outstanding playmakers at safety as well. Hunter Wohler and Kamo’i Latu handled the first-team reps with Travian Blaylock sidelined due to an illness. Latu broke up and nearly intercepted a pass intended for Pauling during the two-minute drill. Wohler delivered back-to-back hits on running back Chez Mellusi, dropping Mellusi to the ground on a run up the middle and then stuffing him at the line of scrimmage.

Safety Austin Brown regularly stands out while working with the second-team defense and did so again Saturday. Brown put a hard hit on CJ Williams as soon as he caught the ball up the right sideline for a 20-yard gain. Later, he came off the edge and sacked Locke for a 5-yard loss.

“It’s just a matter of time before he’s special,” safeties coach Colin Hitschler said. “He’s smart, works really hard, instinctual football player who can do a lot of different things really well. I’m excited to see what Austin does this year.”

9. Wisconsin’s outside linebackers also got into the playmaking act Saturday. Michigan State transfer Jeff Pietrowski returned to full-go after missing time with an illness and worked with the second-team defense. He made his presence felt when he beat Wedig off the edge and sacked Locke.

T.J. Bollers, who bulked up to 268 pounds this offseason, showed his athleticism and versatility when he dropped back into coverage to intercept a pass from Locke and return it for a 40-yard touchdown. Locke threw the ball too far inside for Anthony who was breaking toward the right sideline on an out route, and Bollers stepped in front for the pick.
Wisconsin continued to use a variety of defensive combinations, which included a three-inside linebacker look with Jake Chaney joining Maema Njongmeta and Jordan Turner. When the Badgers used a 2-4-5 scheme, Chaney was off the field and Darryl Peterson came in as an outside linebacker. Outside linebacker C.J. Goetz returned from an injury and worked with the top defense.

10. Jack Van Dyke has consistently been Wisconsin’s first-team punter during practices, with Gavin Meyers as the second-team punter. A big part of what goes into determining who emerges, according to special teams coordinator Matt Mitchell, is how well a punter matches hang time with distance. Mitchell used the example of a 45-yard punt matching up with a 4.5-second hang time.

Saturday offered further indication of why Van Dyke has regularly been first because of his ability to hang punts in the air to allow the coverage unit a chance to run down the field. Unofficially, Van Dyke’s second punt had a hang time of 4.42 seconds. Meyers’ best hang time, again with an unofficial cellphone stopwatch, was 4.02 seconds on a 41-yard punt. Van Dyke’s final punt traveled 44 yards with a hang time of 3.9 seconds, while Meyers’ last punt was a low liner that traveled 45 yards with a 2.94-second hang time. Both punters are seeking more consistency but have been able to deliver punts that flip the field.

11. Wisconsin’s top two field goal kickers, Nathanial Vakos and Nate Van Zelst, each earned live reps during the team’s lengthy scrimmage session. Vakos’ first attempt from 43 yards missed when he bounced the kick off the right upright.

Vakos came back and made a 36-yard field goal from between the hashes and ended practice by burying a 46-yard field goal. With 2 seconds remaining in the final two-minute drill session, Fickell called a timeout to try to ice Vakos, but he made the kick anyway. Van Zelst, meanwhile, made a 36-yard field goal and had a 42-yard field goal attempt from between the hashes blocked.
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@Evan_Flood
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5h

#Badgers have zeroed in four-star tailback Darrion Dupree, who was back on campus Saturday. UW may have made a big move with the Chicago native.
 
I keep hearing how it's essential the Badgers grab Corey Smith, a 4-star recruit out of Waukesha. How does he compare to Darrion Dupree? Will it be the Badgers getting one, or both, or maybe even neither?

Smith is a good "in state" choice, and Dupree being from Chicago is well within that highly recruited 300 mile range that Fickell considers essential.

We need at least one, and it would be great if both became Badgers. But, I think there's more of a chance it will be Dupree, and not Smith, who is looking East as more to his liking.
 
So any word now portal is open for spring if Badgers might get or lose anyone?
 

Wisconsin football lands Kyan Berry-Johnson: How the Badgers courted a highlight-ready WR​


Kyan Berry-Johnson lined up across from a defensive back as campers surrounded the field to watch one-on-one pass-catching drills at an Illinois high school football showcase event in January. The talented wide receiver held two scholarship offers at the time and still was considered an under-the-radar prospect following his junior season at Bolingbrook High.

And then, Berry-Johnson took off. In the air and in his recruitment.

During a nine-second clip posted to Twitter by Rivals to its more than 300,000 followers, Berry-Johnson demonstrated a jaw-dropping combination of athleticism, concentration and hand-eye coordination. He broke off the line of scrimmage and ran even with the defensive back as a pass was thrown in his direction down the left sideline. Berry-Johnson turned his head to look back for the ball, leapt in the air and snatched the pass with his right hand despite an arm covering his face, corralling the ball as he hit the turf.
The reaction from dozens of his peers was priceless. Several of them surrounded Berry-Johnson and screamed. One player placed his hand over his mouth and uttered an expletive as he walked away. Another simply put both hands on his head in disbelief.

Berry-Johnson was named the co-MVP for his grade at that Midwest BOOM Best of the Best winter showcase. Fourteen scholarship offers followed over the next two months.

“It’s very rare that receivers will just take the ball from DBs,” Bolingbrook High football coach Titcus Pettigrew said. “Last season, a lot of DBs were in perfect position, and he just took the ball.”

Berry-Johnson publicly announced his commitment to Wisconsin on Monday night, more than two weeks after he first informed Badgers coaches of his decision following a spring practice visit. What Wisconsin is getting is an explosive playmaker whose extraordinary traits — all at 5 feet 10 and 162 pounds — figure to enhance offensive coordinator Phil Longo’s passing attack. Berry-Johnson becomes the seventh publicly committed prospect in Wisconsin’s 2024 recruiting class and the first at wide receiver.

“They can stretch the field with him or get it in his hands right away,” Pettigrew said. “If you watch Kyan’s highlight tape, it pops off. The minute it touches his hands, he knows how to extend plays. He can turn your five-yard hitch into 60.”
Wisconsin invited Berry-Johnson to its second junior day event in late January and became the first Power 5 school to offer him a scholarship. Other schools that followed with offers included Bowling Green, Syracuse, Wyoming, Illinois State, Eastern Michigan, Cincinnati, Western Michigan, Old Dominion, Liberty, Kent State and Boston College.

Berry-Johnson was intrigued by Wisconsin, in part, because coaches compared his body type and skill set to former North Carolina receiver Josh Downs. Longo previously was the offensive coordinator at UNC and coached the 5-10, 175-pound Downs, who finished his career with the third-most catches in school history (202) and the fourth-most receiving yards (2,483).

“After watching a couple highlights from Josh Downs from when Coach Longo was at UNC, I just thought about it,” Berry-Johnson said. “I was like, ‘Wow, this is a great offense. I can really fit myself into this offense.’”

Berry-Johnson returned to campus to watch spring practice on March 28 with his mom, Tamica. She said she was impressed with the attentiveness Wisconsin’s coaching staff showed, which included a lengthy conversation over lunch. She noted that she received follow-up messages after the visit from director of recruiting Pat Lambert, who handles skill position evaluations, as well as wide receivers coach Mike Brown, head coach Luke Fickell and Longo.

“I normally don’t remember names at all,” Tamica said. “So when I remembered their names, I was like, ‘Yeah, this is the one, KB.’”

Coaches can’t publicly comment on recruits by name until they sign. But Longo expressed his excitement April 2 when he tweeted about landing two more weapons and appeared to reference Berry-Johnson by saying that “you couldn’t catch (him) in a p
Pettigrew praised Brown for his honesty about how the staff viewed Berry-Johnson in recruiting and the hard work it would take for him to thrive in the program, noting coaches there had a mentality to reload rather than rebuild in their first season. Wisconsin added four scholarship transfers at wide receiver this offseason and also earned a commitment in the 2023 class from Hawaii native Trech Kekahuna, a speedster with tremendous potential in the slot.

“It was the relationship I had with all of them,” Berry-Johnson said of Wisconsin’s players and coaches. “I think they can develop me the way they’ve sent other receivers to the NFL through their other colleges.”

Berry-Johnson, who will turn 17 this summer, is the youngest of five siblings. He has an older brother, Ravon, who played wide receiver at Division II Northern Michigan. Berry-Johnson’s size might indicate to some that he is a slot receiver. But Pettigrew, who was a defensive back at Penn State from 1996 to 2000, said he can play on the outside because of his ability to “get off the jam” in press coverage. Bolingbrook uses Berry-Johnson inside, outside and occasionally as a wildcat quarterback.

“I think he is one that’s going to command attention to free up other things, meaning that there might want to be some safety help to free up that run game or stretch somebody else out,” Pettigrew said. “Leaving Kyan one-on-one is not a good situation.”

Pettigrew said Berry-Johnson was overshadowed earlier in his high school career by wide receiver I’Marion Stewert, a four-star prospect in the 2024 class whom Wisconsin also is recruiting. But Berry-Johnson’s upside was clear to Pettigrew last season, when as the team’s defensive coordinator he watched Berry-Johnson consistently cause headaches for his defensive backs in practice. Once Berry-Johnson became more of fixture in an elite 7-on-7 program during the offseason, his stock rose.

Berry-Johnson said he still intends to visit other schools this summer and fall so he can have the experience of seeing those campuses. He plans to visit Syracuse and would like to see Cincinnati, Boston College and West Virginia. But he reiterated that he is fully committed to Wisconsin.

“When you’re dealing with a kid in his situation that doesn’t get out-of-state much, knowing where he’s going to go, you can’t look at it as punishment if he wants to see different things,” Pettigrew said. “Those would be opportunities he’ll get when he gets to college. But right now, he would never see those opportunities.”


hone booth.” The other recruit was offensive tackle Derek Jensen, who publicly announced his Wisconsin commitment later that afternoon.
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