Spring Transfer Portal Targets

The spring transfer portal has opened up, and it hasn't taken long for Badger Nation to start coming up with their wishlists for potential incoming transfers. God love the fandom but they don't seem to be very picky. A warm body who's played football before seems to check all the boxes because certainly no one is looking at scheme or culture fit with these players. While I appreciate the enthusiasm talk about being counter productive. Fans get all excited about the name and the school they see these kids transferring from without looking at the kid themselves. The Badgers have holes to fill so the idea of quantity over quantity reigns supreme.

Before we can even think about names in the portal we need to take a look at the Badgers' scholarship situation. At least check the Badgers are currently at 87 of 85 possible scholarships. In the era of NIL I've often emphasized that scholarships may not hold the same weight as they once did as schools now offer NIL deals to walk-ons covering their tuition expenses. So while the exact number of scholarships used or available isn't exactly known it's preferable to maintain it as close to the traditional 85 limit as possible.

The scholarship surplus means that the initial focus on the portal should be fill holes in the roster created by players leaving. So far this spring we've seen two players enter the portal. Quarterback Nick Evers entering the portal was an inevitability that quite frankly I was suprised took this long. His body language on the sideline all season gave the impression of a player who didn't want to be in Madison. That happens when you lose out to Marshall Howe for the 4th string QB out of spring. All credit to him from sticking it out, but it just was not a fit for the Badgers. The next out the door was defensive lineman TJ Bollers. A player who came in highly touted but could never crack the rotation and earn significant playing time. He outgrew the linebacker position with his dedicating to cultivating mass and the transition to defensive line was obviously not a smooth one.

So with departures at both the quarterback and defensive lineman positions we set the intial focus for the portal. Among these, addressing the defensive line is obviously the primary concern. The defensive line is also our first opportunity to address the idea of need over want. A target should not simply be a kid with DL listed after his name. We are looking for defensively linemen that fit the system that the Badgers run and fill a role that is need. We're not seeking out 4-3 rush ends, as our defensive system doesn't require them. Players coming in in the spring window are not looking to start over and learn a new position. They are players seeking roles that already exist within their player profile. So what is the profile the Badgers should be looking for?

My initial thoughts go to defensive end and more specficially a five-tech who can play on the edge on run downs, a field-side type defensive end who's going to hold the edge while we have a four-down look with an outside linebacker on the boundary side in a four-man surface. It's also a defensive end type that in pass rushing situations can be kicked inside to provide an inside pass rush while a rush outside LB is brought in to provide the outside pass rush. So when you're looking in the portal and you're seeing 6'3", 240-pound speed defensive ends, those aren't the guys we're looking for. In the current system that skill set is best fit with long and athletic outside linebackers. But a big strong bodied DE to hold down the field side edge and spill the run to the athletes in the secondary now that's a defensive end!

Whether we like it or not the high profile targets, the four and five-star defensive line prospects, even guys on bouncebacks, aren't looking to transfer to take on blocks, take on double teams, and hold edges. That's not the job description that usually gets these guys drafted high. The guys from Wisconsin who get drafted playing within the system that we had this year, the one we've had before, are either generational talents or solid role players.

After defensive end the next glaring hole in the rosters is at swing tackle. If the season started today, our swing tackle would be a true freshman, a highly talented very skilled one in Kevin Heywood, but a true freshman. With the way the roster is currently constructed the Badgers wouldn't be looking for a young one that could disrupt the development of the incoming freshman, or an upperclassmen who would be a one year rental to be a backup. So I would want to look for a guy with a couple of years of eligibility left who is willing to be a swing guy this year and have a chance to compete next year with a couple of years of eligibility left going forward. We're not looking for a guy coming in to be a starter in 2024 because despite even my own comments last year we have two solid starting tackles. We're looking for a guy to come in and fill a role, be that swing tackle, be that swing tackle that we really didn't have last year.

The offensive line room is a little thin right now after losing two to the portal early this off season. But what did we really lose? We lost a guy in Trey Wedig who was too big to play guard and too slow to play tackle. Then we also lost Nolan Rucci who despite his five star pedigree could never break the rotation with any of his offensive line coaches. Regardless of our opinions on what we lost we did lose the only true swing guy we had last year and a valuable depth piece. To replace them the goal is to find someone who gives you the best of both of what we lost. Solid tackle, maybe a young guy with a little bit of starting experience, or a young guy with a couple of years left who's willing to sit on the bench a little bit and be that swing guy or be a development guy down the road to fill in the gap between our current fifth-year seniors and then our incoming freshmen. That's the gap we want to fill.

Would it be good to get an interior lineman with center experience? If there was space on the roster due to further departures that might be somewhere to look. that being said I like what Joe Huber brings as a jack of all trades linemen. He'll be a starting guard and the super sub inside. He could also in a pinch pop out and play right tackle where he was an all AAC player at Cinci. However the priority should be a tackle first who could play in a pinch, get into the rotation, and who could potentially be a short term starter in the future.

Let's talk about quarterbacks. We have four still and in my opinion it's the most talented QB room the program has ever had. Outside of Tyler Van Dyke however it is young and inexperience. The loss of Nick Evers potentially gives Phil Longo the chance to lessen the upcoming log jam at the position while gaining experienced depth. But that leads me to think of a very specific type of QB that could find a home in Madison. For me that would be a guy who has two years of eligibility left. So a true senior with a COVID year left or a redshirt junior. I would also love to see a guy coming who has a bit of position flexibility. A guy who could give you depth at QB but also be an athlete who could give you special teams reps or reps at a different position. Someone coming in who's going to give you more than being the 3rd string QB. Finding a player with a specific amount of eligibility is key because you don't want the incoming guy to create further log jams down the road. In 2024 we have a QB with one year of eligibility (TVD), three years (Locke), four years (Lacrue) plus true freshman Mabry Mettauer. The gap in the room falls between TVD and Locke. Now we will have a fifth body come fall when walk-on prospect Milos Spasojevic, but you don't complete your room with walk-ons. Let's see how the chips fall and if the right guy can be found.

I keep seeing people calling out that we need a "boundary wide receiver". in Phil Longo's system the boundary receiver doesn't really exist because the wide receiver stay on their sides, a left and right WR instead of a field/boundary. So when we look at the WR group as a whole do we need another one? Maybe, but again, it's a luxury. I like the potential of the guys we have so maybe we should just run with the horses we got. Let's run with Bryson Green, CJ Williams, Vinnie Anthony and Quincy Burroughs. I think we're set. A slot receiver? We are even more set there with three slot receivers and a slot/wide flexer in Tyrell Henry. So I think receivers, while maybe the talent is not to where we want it to be, I think it's pretty solid and the numbers are solid. So to add somebody, we're going to have to lose somebody. If we lose somebody, okay, then let's look to bring somebody in, again, another development guy.

At the end of the day it's all about fit. We've talked a lot about system fit but there also has to be a culture fit. Are players who bought into the charlatan act in Boulder going to fit in in Madison? Are former blue chippers from blue blood programs looking for an NIL pay day players with the right mind set? These are the type of players that wouldn't give Wisconsin the time of day on the recruiting trail so why should the portal be any different? It's a deeper question than it appears on the surface.

So as the next two weeks unfold and the portal picture becomes more clear put aside your wants and desires and look to how that player would look as a Badger, on the field, in the system, and on campus. You gotta have it all if you want a player that's going to stick around.