The Associated Press preseason All-America teams were announced yesterday afternoon. One Wisconsin Badger was included: running back Braelon Allen on the second-team offense.
The first team is a star-studded cast of players, understandably so. The group includes USC’s Caleb Williams, Michigan’s Blake Corum, Georgia’s Brock Bowers, Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr. and Colorado’s Travis Hunter.
Allen is included as one of two second-team running backs alongside Arkansas’ Raheim Sanders. He is on the team after playing through injuries throughout 2022 yet still totaling 1242 yards and 11 touchdowns.
For me, Allen as a second-team running back is no surprise. What does still puzzle me is the lack of national love for anybody else on Wisconsin’s team. Allen is the household name across the country, yet I don’t think there will be a better Badger on the field this year than safety Hunter Wohler, as one example.
All the national buzz Wisconsin-related has to do with Braelon Allen (top players in the sport, preseason All-America teams, etc).
Yet I don't think there will be a 'better' player on the field this year than Hunter Wohler. Postseason awards should reflect that.
— Ben Kenney (@benzkenney) August 15, 2023
Allen, Wohler, or whoever else will look to join recent Wisconsin All-American players including RB Jonathan Taylor in 2018 and 2019, C Tyler Biadasz in 2019, OL Beau Benschawel in 2018, OL Ryan Ramczyk in 2016 and RB Melvin Gordon in 2014.