Heading into the Wisconsin Badgers’ 2020 season, much of the talk on the defensive side of the football has revolved around junior linebacker Jack Sanborn, the talented veteran secondary and who will replace Zack Baun and Chris Orr’s sack production.
This talk has seen names including Izayah Green-May, Nick Herbig, Leo Chenal come up. What it has also done, though, is leave out a player who is set to have a huge role in Jim Leonhard’s defense.
Related: Wisconsin football 2020 projected two-deep depth chart, preseason edition
That player is senior inside linebacker Mike Maskalunas.
In inside linebackers coach Bob Bostad’s eyes, Maskalunas’ value to the team can be captured by one word: “priceless.”
“Mike’s done a great job,” Bostad said. “I can’t say enough good things about him.” His coach then continued to note the senior’s versatility–saying he’s able to play the MIKE, the WILL and be a leader on special teams.
Bostad on Mike Maskalunas: "Mike's done a great job. I can't say enough good things about him"
Said he will be a "priceless" piece to the group this year and has the versatility to play the MIKE, WILL and lead on special teams.
— Ben Kenney (@benzkenney) October 15, 2020
Maskalunas doesn’t have much on-field experience under his belt, just 14 games played in his first three years and a total of 21 tackles, 1 tackle-for-loss and 2 fumble recoveries.
Despite the linebacker not having starts under his belt, though, defensive leader Jack Sanborn shared his coach’s sentiment about Maskalunas’ importance to the team this year.
“[Mike] brings consistency,” Sanborn said. “[He]’s a guy that everyone on the team can rely on.” He then went on to note how the senior has progressed in understanding the defense and in understanding his own technique.
Although Sanborn and sophomore Leo Chenal are lining up to be the team’s primary starters at inside linebacker when Illinois comes town next Friday, just two guys never seems to be enough.
Coach Bostad finishing his comments by saying that he feels “rock-solid” about the trio–Sanborn, Chenal and Maskalunas–heading into the season says a lot about the Chenal-Sanborn duo, but it also indicates Maskalunas having a significant role in what he and Leonhard want to do on defense.
The Badgers are set to kick their season off next Friday night against the Illinois Fighting Illini in what has become one of the most long-awaited season openers I can remember.
It will be then when we see what the linebacker rotation looks like and what role Maskalunas has for Coach Bostad, Coach Leonhard and the 2020 Wisconsin Badger defense.