Wisconsin true freshman cornerback Xavier Lucas was ProFootballFocus’ highest-graded true freshman cornerback from Week 6 in college football.
His strong afternoon in the Badgers’ 52-6 blowout win over Rutgers only continues what has been an impressive start to his college career.
Related: Wisconsin updated depth chart for Rutgers game sees true freshman running back enter two-deep
Lucas joined the Badgers this offseason as a four-star recruit in the class of 2024. He was ranked as only the No. 372 player in the class, No. 35 safety and No. 52 recruit from his home state of Florida.
It is safe to say he is already surpassing those rankings.
Lucas has played a significant role in a Wisconsin secondary that has been a strength of the team through five games. Individually, he has five tackles, a pass deflection and an interception in that time. His performance against Purdue included one tackle and that pass deflection.
https://twitter.com/PFF_College/status/1843405188369178689
Fewer statistics are often a good sign for a cornerback. That means the ball is thrown their way less frequently, which means the player is doing well in coverage. Wisconsin star cornerback Ricardo Hallman has only seven tackles and two pass deflections this season, for example. Those numbers are low because teams don’t throw him the football.
Lucas’ ascension to a primary role on the Badgers defense is overly impressive given his age and lack of experience. His strong play has backed up that significant role. His play should also only improve as he spends more time in Luke Fickell and Mike Tressel’s defensive system.
I’d bet it’s hard to find a true freshman cornerback who has been more impressive through the first five games of the young season.
Lucas and the Wisconsin secondary will continue to be tested coming up with games against top offenses including Penn State (No. 12 offense in ESPN SP+) and Oregon (No. 5).
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