The early day of the signing is over, and new head coach Luke Fickell hasn’t failed to impress in his first effort with the Wisconsin Badgers.
Overall, Wisconsin added 20 total players in the current cycle: 14 via scholarships, four walk-ons and two transfers.
Fickell and his staff were able to maintain several stipends from the previous regime while adding several key figures in key positions, including four-star defenders Amare Snowden and Braedyn Moore, and full-back Trech Kekuhana, who tipped over in the 11th hour from Arizona after a virtual meeting with Fickell.
What are the next steps for Fickell and the Badgers after day one of signing is over?
offensive line
In his Wednesday press conference on the day of the national signing, Luke Fickell admitted he wanted to add additional bodies in offensive line space, having only signed one grantee, James Durand, so far.
As for why Fickell wasn’t drawn to adding more pieces, the head coach emphasized the importance of not rushing the process and instead conducting a thorough assessment to find the best seats for Wisconsin.
A potential name to keep an eye on? OL Joe Crocker who was recently released from the state of Mississippi.
Crocker was a target of the previous staff, who initially suspended a verbal commitment from offensive lineman Christopher Terek, but had no choice after the latter rescinded his commitment following the coaching change.
Crocker has visited Wisconsin on numerous occasions before, and Fickell has stressed the importance of getting players used to the program and commended the efforts the previous regime made in finding these recruits.
wide receiver
A secondary offensive position that Fickell could target? wide receiver.
Despite recovering Markus Allen after entering the transfer portal and flipping Trech Kekuhana, Fickell was still able to add bodies to the position group.
Currently, the Badgers are one of the teams in the mix with Chicago wide receiver Malik Elzy planning to make his decision at the All-American Bowl in January.
It will be interesting to see if Fickell sticks with his current set of receivers or wants to add another player as Wisconsin’s top three wideouts all return in 2023.
line of defense
The defensive line was one of the weaker areas of Wisconsin’s recruit class, as the Badgers failed to land a single grantee in the early signing phase.
Wisconsin originally had signings of Roderick Pierce and Jamel Howard among previous staffers, but both were released after the coaching change and the former has already signed for Michigan.
The Badgers are still in the mix for Howard, who is expected to make his decision on day two of the signing, but Fickell said the team will look to add players in the position in the next recruitment cycle.
Fickell also argued why there were no signers for the offensive line: The coaching staff did not want to rush decisions and sign players who were not necessarily the best for the program.
However, Wisconsin landed defensive end Manny Mullens, brother of Badgers defensive end Isaiah Mullens, and two walk-on defensive ends, adding some depth to the program.
While Fickell has remained adamant in his advocacy of building through high school recruits as opposed to the transfer portal, don’t rule out the latter option in the short term.
For each of the above positions, Fickell said the team could add a younger body via the transfer portal and acknowledged the need for a proper fit with the program.
Given the excitement built in the early weeks of the Fickell era, it will be fascinating to see the new Wisconsin head coach round out the roster and his coaching staff in the coming weeks.