Tag: donte burton

Where Wisconsin football transfers will call home this upcoming season

Here are where each of the Wisconsin football transfers will be playing next season:

College athletics have changed forever with the implementation of the transfer portal and their ability to change schools one time without having to sit out a season.

All schools have fallen victim to offseason transfer portal attrition, and the University of Wisconsin is no different. Players leave a program for a multitude of reasons, whether that be in search of more playing time or simply to get closer to home.

Thankfully for UW, they’ve largely been able to keep their core pieces intact, while using their available scholarships to pursue immediate impact players to plug holes on the roster.

However, Wisconsin saw several players enter the transfer portal in hopes of finding a new home they deemed to be a better fit.

Here, in no particular order, are where Wisconsin football transfers will call home this upcoming season:

Two more Wisconsin Badgers enter the transfer portal

Two more Wisconsin players enter the transfer portal this week:

Whether it’s the new age of college football, playing time issues, a slow start to Wisconsin’s season, or some combination of all three, the Badgers have now seen four players transfer out of the program in the last ten days.

First reported by Wisconsin beat writer Jesse Temple of The Athletic, fullback Quan Easterling and cornerback Donte Burton have both entered the transfer portal. Easterling was a 2019 three-star recruit out of Ohio and becomes the third offensive player, alongside wide receiver Devin Chandler and center Kayden Lyles, to enter the portal this week.

Burton appeared in a game during every year of his Wisconsin career, and has five starts to his name as a Badger. He was a 2018 three-star recruit out of Georgia, and appeared in three games this season with the last coming in the win over Illinois.

Projecting Wisconsin’s 2020 Spring Defensive Depth Chart

Who will open up on Wisconsin’s spring depth chart on the defensive side of the football?

Wisconsin’s defense in 2020 will be missing not only two key players but also two key leaders to not only the defense but the entire team. Those two players being 2019 team captains outside linebacker Zack Baun and inside linebacker Chris Orr. Despite Wisconsin losing Baun and Orr to graduation the Badgers still return an impressive nine starters from last year’s defense.

In this Badgers Wire feature, we project what the spring depth chart on defense will look like when the Badgers open up spring practice.

Projected Spring Depth Chart Defensive Line: DE 1. Isaiahh Loudermilk and Garrett Rand, 2. Matt Henningsen and Isaiah Mullens NT 1. Keeanu Benton 2. Gio Paez

Loudermilk and Rand were able to stay healthy over the course of their redshirt junior seasons and as long as they stay healthy they have established themselves as starters at the defensive end positions. Henningsen used last year’s spring practice to put him in a position to have a terrific redshirt sophomore season. If Henningsen can put together a productive spring like he did in 2019 should allow him to take another step in his development. Mullens appeared in 13 games mostly on special teams as he registered one tackle. With backup defensive end David Pfaff graduating he’ll have a chance in spring football to show why he deserves to be apart of the defensive line rotation. At nose tackle, Keeanu Benton will be going through his first spring practice and will receive plenty of valuable practice reps as Bryson Williams could miss all of spring football as he continues to recover from his left leg injury that he suffered this past season. If Williams can’t go that will mean more reps for redshirt freshman Gio Paez as it will be critical that he takes advantage of his reps.

Projected Spring Depth Chart Linebackers: OLB 1. Noah Burks and Izayah Green-May, 2. Spencer Lytle and Jaylan Franklin ILB 1. Jack Sanborn and Leo Chenal 2. Mike Maskalunas and Maema Njongmeta

Christian Bell would’ve had a chance at competing for one of the starting outside linebacker positions opposite of Noah Burks but instead elected to transfer. That leave’s Green-May as the likely starter opposite of Burks when Wisconsin opens spring football. Green-May initially started the 2019 season as a starter but suffered a right arm injury early in the season, which caused him to miss time. Green-May was able to put together a productive fall camp and the practice habits he developed last year will need to continue if he wants to establish himself as the starter once again. Outside linebackers coach Bobby April will also give Franklin and Lytle a look as a starter opposite of Burks. Making it an important spring for both of them as the Badgers look for a starter who can complement Burks. Wisconsin may lose Chris Orr at middle linebacker but the transition between Orr and Leo Chenal should be a smooth one. Chenal gained valuable experience last year as he played as a true freshman. Chenal will receive plenty of reps over spring football and he should be able to take a nice step in his development. Maskalunas will be Chenal’s top competitor for the other starting inside linebacker position as he’s been serviceable during his time at Wisconsin. Njongmeta redshirted last season and will be going through his first spring practice.

Projected Spring Depth Chart Cornerbacks: 1. Faion Hicks and Rachad Wildgoose 2. Caesar Williams and Semar Melvin

Hicks has been a regular starter at cornerback for Wisconsin the past two seasons and that shouldn’t change heading into spring practices. Wildgoose and Williams started eight and seven games respectively a season ago. The trio has been Wisconsin’s most consistent group of cornerbacks. Semar Melvin is coming off a redshirt season but he was able to take advantage of the redshirt rule by playing in four games without burning a year of eligibility. Melvin was up and down, which is understandable but the reps he does receive during spring practice will be invaluable as he looks to build off of his freshman season. Jim Leonhard will also likely rotate in Donte Burton and Deron Harrell too as the starters at cornerback or with the second string cornerbacks too.

Projected Spring Depth Chart Safety: FS 1. Eric Burrell, 2. John Torchio SS 1. Reggie Pearson, 2. Collin Wilder

Wisconsin Football Season Review: Cornerbacks

How did Wisconsin’s cornerbacks play during the 2019 football season?

Wisconsin finished its fifth season under head coach Paul Chryst as Chryst improved his overall record to 52-16 and has a posted a 34-10 record in conference games. After not winning the Big Ten West Division title in 2018 the Badgers were back in Indianapolis for the Big Ten Championship game as the West representative for the fourth time in the last six years since the Big Ten went to its current format.

In this Badgers Wire feature we will examine the play of Wisconsin’s cornerbacks from the 2019 season and take a sneak into what the 2020 season may have in store for the position:

One of the main questions heading into the 2019 season was if Wisconsin could have two players from the cornerback position emerge and lock down the position. Considering over the 2018 season the Badgers used seven different starting combinations at the cornerback position.

In 2019 not much changed as the Badgers once again used seven different starting combinations. That’s not a bad thing though as the Badgers for a second consecutive year received good production from their cornerbacks as they helped to only allow 187.3 passing yards a game.

Faion Hicks was one of the constants in the starting lineup at cornerback as he started 12 games for the Badgers, Rachad Wildgoose was second with eight starts, and Caesar Williams started the last seven games this season. Redshirt sophomore Deron Harrell (four starts), redshirt freshman Donte Burton (two starts), and true freshman Semar Melvin (two starts) all started at least two games this past season.

The highlight of the season for Williams was the game against Minnesota as he put his best game to date together. As he registered his only interception of the season against the Gophers and broke up four passes.

With two of his four pass breakups coming on consecutive plays against consensus first-team All-Big Ten wide receiver Tyler Johnson. Minnesota attempted a pass on both third and fourth and goal with Tanner Morgan’s pass attempt intended for Johnson. The problem was Williams was there both times ready to break up the pass.

Hicks once again was steady manning his positon at cornerback as he was a consensus All-Big Ten honorable mention selection. Hicks finished the season with 32 tackles, one pass breakup, and one tackle for loss. Hicks has the trust of defensive coordinator and secondary coach Jim Leonhard as he is able to play disciplined football and doesn’t get beat easily.

Wildgoose was able to take a nice step from his true freshman season to his sophomore year. Wildgoose was able to become more consistent in his play as he registered his first interception in his career, which came against Michigan State to help preserve the shutout. Wildgoose once again put himself in a good position to make a play on the football as his six pass breakups were the second most amongst the cornerbacks only trailing Williams who had 11.

2020 Wisconsin Cornerbacks

In 2020 Wisconsin once again could utilize multiple starting combinations but the main three will likely be Hicks, Wildgoose, and Williams. Those three were the most consistent in their play a season ago and if they continue to develop their games the Badgers once again should be to tough pass on. It will also be interesting to see how Leonhard utilizes Melvin who will be a redshirt freshman next year. Considering the talent Wisconsin has at the cornerback position he still played in four games and made two starts. If he continues to develop he’ll push for playing time. Burton and Alexander Smith will need to continue to develop the consistency that is needed if they want to push for playing time in 2020.