Tag: Paul Chryst

Multiple Badgers included in USA TODAY’s NFL Draft position rankings

Find out where former Badgers land in USA TODAY DraftWire’s final position rankings before draft day

Earlier today, our friends at DraftWire put out top 20 rankings by position for the upcoming NFL Draft.

Multiple Badgers across a wide variety of positions were included. Jonathan Taylor led the way for the running backs as the top overall ranked prospect at his position. The two-time Doak Walker Award winner was followed by Georgia’s D’Andre Swift and fellow Big Ten star J.K. Dobbins out of Ohio State. It would certainly be a surprise to not see Taylor as the first running back off the board come draft day. The question remains as to whether he is taken in round one on Thursday or has to wait until Friday to hear his name called.

Chris Orr, a player who has seen his stock rapidly rise after a sensational senior season followed by a solid Wisconsin pro day, was ranked as the tenth best linebacker. The rankings considered Badger ‘backer Zack Baun as an “edge defender,” and had the Brown Deer (Wisc.) native listed as the sixth best overall prospect at that position.

Former Wisconsin center Tyler Biadasz was listed as the eighth best interior offensive lineman. Expect the 6-3 lineman to be the third Badger off the board, after Baun and Taylor respectively.

Rounding out the Badger appearances in USA TODAY’s rankings was wide receiver Quintez Cephus, who clocked in as the 18th overall prospect at his position. After a strong Wisconsin pro day performance where Cephus improved his 40-yard dash time from 4.73 at the combine to 4.58 on pro day, the Georgia native will hope to hear his name called near the end of this weekend.

 

Badgers in the top-9 for 2021’s No. 3 offensive tackle

Five-star 2021 recruit Nolan Rucci, the nation’s third-ranked offensive tackle in his class, announced his top-9 schools earlier today…

Five-star 2021 recruit Nolan Rucci, the nation’s third-ranked offensive tackle in his class, announced his top-9 schools earlier today and Wisconsin was among those listed, per his Twitter page.

Nolan Rucci is the younger brother of current Badger Hayden Rucci and is rated by 247Sports as the No. 13 recruit in the nation, again the No. 3 offensive tackle recruit and the No. 1 recruit from his home state of Pennsylvania.

The recruiting analysts at 247Sports currently believe that the Lititz, P.A. native is likely to sign with Penn State, his parents alma mater. In an article published April 15, however, 247Sports recruiting director Steve Wiltfong wrote that he believes the Badgers to still have a good shot at landing Rucci.

As seen above, the other schools listed in his top-9 include Alabama, LSU, Clemson, Michigan, Ohio State, Stanford, Notre Dame and Penn State.

Were the Warwick High School native to commit to the Badgers he would join a program with a long history of success at his position, one that saw eight former Badger offensive linemen on NFL rosters in 2019.

 

 

Where are they now: D’Cota Dixon

D’Cota Dixon came to Wisconsin as a three-star recruit out of New Smyrna Beach, Florida in 2014. His life story is nothing short of..

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D’Cota Dixon came to Wisconsin as a three-star recruit out of New Smyrna Beach, Florida in 2014.

His life story is nothing short of impressive, as he was placed into foster care at a young age and had to overcome a lot just to get to Wisconsin, a story told well by this NFL.com article from this past April.

The New Smyrna Beach High School product began his college career at cornerback for coach Gary Anderson, despite being listed as a safety during the recruiting process, and saw the field early in a special teams role.

After suffering a season-ending injury three weeks into his freshman season, Dixon used his redshirt and returned to restart his freshman season in 2015 for the Badger team now coached by Paul Chryst.

Though he was listed at cornerback that season by Sports-Reference.com, Dixon showed up as a backup at strong safety on Chryst’s Week 1 depth chart and saw most of his playing time still on special teams.

He finished his final year as a backup with 15 tackles, eight of which coming Week 1 against Alabama after starting strong safety Michael Caputo suffered an injury, and one pass defended.

Once 2016 came around Dixon became the starting strong safety for Chryst’s team and stepped into the role as one of the leaders on defense.

He finished his sophomore season having started in every game at safety and recorded 60 tackles, 2.5 tackles-for-loss, one sack, one forced fumble, four pass breakups and four interceptions. His first interception of the season was arguably the breakthrough play for the Florida native as it sealed the Badgers’ victory against LSU at Lambeau Field (a play which was finished by a brutal cheap shot from an LSU offensive lineman).

Dixon’s sophomore season was his most productive of his four full years in college, but he still finished his career with 44 games played, 179 tackles, 8.5 tackles-for-loss, 2.5 sacks, five interceptions, 11 passes defended and three forced fumbles.

All of that was then capped off by being awarded the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year award after he concluded his senior campaign.

His career was enough to receive an invite to the 2019 NFL Combine, though ended up not being enough to have his name called on draft day.

Nevertheless, Dixon signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent after the 2019 NFL Draft and was having an impressive training camp before an injury sidelined him and eventually forced him to be placed on injured reserve on August 8, 2019.

Dixon’s story is far from over, as he is now set to return to the 2020 Buccaneers as a backup safety and special teams contributor, a place where he finds himself teammates again with former Badgers Jack Cichy and Dare Ogunbowale.

Paul Chryst ends with good reviews in a recent fan survey

In a recent fan survey conducted by The Athletic’s Jesse Temple, coach Paul Chryst and the Wisconsin football program received extremely…

In a recent fan survey conducted by The Athletic’s Jesse Temple, coach Paul Chryst and the Wisconsin football program received extremely positive reviews.

Temple, The Athletic’s beat reporter for the Wisconsin football and men’s basketball teams, conducted a survey a few weeks ago in which he asked questions about fans’ approval rating of Chryst overall as a coach, the program as a whole, Chryst as a recruiter and as an on-field coach, whether the fans believe the team will contend for a Big Ten title in the near future, who they believe should start at quarterback in 2020 and much more.

The results were almost all positive in terms of the state of Chryst’s tenure as coach and the outlook for the team going forward.

Specifically, on a scale from 1-5 with five being the highest, fans’ average response to their overall approval with the current state of the program was 4.41.

In terms of Chryst specifically, fans’ average response to their approval with the job Chryst has done thus far came in at 4.43, their average response to his job as an on-field coach was 3.828 and that for him as a recruiter was 3.96.

Other meaningful results were that 90.3 percent of respondents believed the Badgers would win the Big Ten within the next five years, 62.2 percent thought Jack Coan should start the season at quarterback and 49.4 percent answered “wide receiver” to what position group they were least optimistic about.

 

BadgersWire Q&A with Wisconsin linebacker Jack Sanborn

As we all try to make it through these trying times there is still, hopefully, a college football season on the horizon. One of the key…

As we all try to make it through these trying times there is still, hopefully, a college football season on the horizon.

For the Wisconsin Badgers, one of the key figures in that upcoming season will be junior linebacker Jack Sanborn.

Sanborn came to Wisconsin in 2018 and saw the field right away as a true freshman.

The Illinois native then took over the starting job at middle linebacker as a sophomore in 2019 with former Badgers T.J. Edwards and Ryan Connelly gone to the NFL.

He now enters his junior season coming off a 2019 campaign during which he produced an impressive 80 tackles, nine tackles-for-loss, 5.5 sacks, three interceptions including one in the Rose Bowl against Oregon, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

BadgersWire caught up with the linebacker to see how the preparation for the 2020 season is going and dive into his progression from a backup as a true freshman to now being the centerpiece of the defense.

 

BadgersWire: We know today’s situation has really affected draft prep for the guys entering the NFL, but what’s life like for you right now in terms of how you guys are getting ready for the 2020 season?

Sanborn: This is a definitely a crazy time for college sports and our country. Right now the most important thing is being safe and healthy and then making the most of your time to get better as a player.

 

BadgersWire: Looking forward, what’re your thoughts on playing 2020 potentially without fans in attendance?

JS: Playing without fans is something that has been talked about and I guess we will see where we are in terms of health of our country when the time comes. Football season is still a little while away but the most important thing is the health and safety of everyone involved and that includes the fans.

 

BadgersWire: It’s rare for a player, especially a linebacker, to see the field as a true freshman in Madison. What was it like seeing playing time right away and how has that first year experience helped you develop into the player you are today?

JS: It has helped greatly in my development since I have been on campus. The greatest teacher is experience as they say and I could not agree more. That really benefitted me but also learning from guys like T.J., Ryan, and Chris helped me develop as a player and learn so much about the game.

 

BadgersWire: Continuing off that, you started last year and helped to fill the shoes of four-year starter and current Philadelphia Eagle T.J. Edwards and current New York Giant Ryan Connelly, and looking forward to this upcoming year you’ll be doing the same with Chris Orr now graduated. What has it been like filling the shoes of such accomplished players at the position?

JS: Coming in as a freshman I knew those guys were there and I was excited to be in the same room as them. All three of those guys played in a lot of games and a lot of big games and I learned so much from all three of them early on in my career that really helped me grow as a player.

 

BadgersWire: Looking holistically, how has the Wisconsin program and coaches Paul Chryst and Jim Leonhard aided you in your development and how has the program been able to sustain such an impressive track record at the linebacker position?

JS: Coach Chryst and Coach Leonhard are two of the smartest people in terms of football that I have ever been around. I have learned a lot from them and they really care about you on a personal level and are fun to be around which in a coach makes you love to play for them.

 

BadgersWire: Is there one moment/one play that sticks out to you as your favorite thus far through two years? (Rose Bowl INT, etc.)

JS: I have made so many memories here in two years so far and look forward to making many more memories with the guys in that locker room whether it’s at practice or in games. If I had to pick one moment I would say winning the axe back.

 

BadgersWire: Finally, What does it mean to you to have your younger brother [Bryan Sanborn] committed to play for the Badgers after he graduates in 2021?

JS: I’m excited that Bryan is coming to Madison. It’s a great place, a place I love and know that he is going to do great things here.

Highlights from Jonathan Taylor’s appearance on The Herd w/ Colin Cowherd

Many NFL Draft analysts and radio hosts have expressed concern with Jonathan Taylor’s NFL potential due to his college workload and…

Many NFL Draft analysts and radio hosts have expressed concern with Jonathan Taylor‘s NFL potential due to his college workload and ball security issues.

National FOX Sports Radio host Colin Cowherd is not one of them.

“There’s nothing I don’t like about him,” Cowherd said on his radio show. “He and Michael Pittman Jr. at USC are really the underrated guys in this draft for me.”

Taylor joined Cowherd on his show today to talk Wisconsin football, his mindset as a runner and development as a pass catcher, people who are critical about his workload and what made him fall in love with Madison, Wisconsin.

Here are some of the highlights from the interview.

How Wisconsin develops “tough” NFL players

“It starts in the weight room,” Taylor said. “You have to the right mindset in order to attain new goals. Whether you want to bench heavier or squat heavier it starts with that mindset and it’s a training process we go through in order to get mentally and physically prepared for the season.”

 

Taylor’s mindset as a runner

“It all depends on the situation,” Taylor said. “When you’re on the field you know if a guy is a sure tackler, or if he likes to tackle low or if a guy shies away from contact. In your mind you know if you’re ready to go around him, you’re ready to go through him, you’re ready to run past him and you’re really ready to use every tool in your toolbox in order to get past the defender. But you definitely take pride, especially at a program like Wisconsin, in being able to dominate at the line of scrimmage and assert your dominance.”

 

Response to critics who express concern with his college workload

“Not only have I not missed a game but I haven’t missed a practice at all in my three years at the university due to injury,” Taylor said. “You kind of have to pick your poison. You obtain a certain amount yards and have these carries. But you have to say would you rather me have less of a career?”

 

His development as a pass catcher

“A lot of people think I had to work on catching the ball,” Taylor said. “When you think of Wisconsin football you think of power, you think of gap, you don’t really thinking about getting your back out into space and making plays through the air. Coach Chryst made it a constant effort to put that in the scheme and allow me to showcase that.”

 

His thoughts on his time in Madison

“I loved Madison at first sight,” Taylor said. “I got that college town feel. It wasn’t like a huge city feel like New York where it was endless but it definitely was an area where it was full of life but also you can feel the community vibe. People in Madison aren’t wearing green and gold, they’re wearing red and white.”

 

Taylor now awaits the NFL Draft which starts this upcoming Thursday as he’ll finally find out where he will start his professional career.

 

 

Badgers in a good position to land 4-star 2021 cornerback

Jon McNamara of Rivals.com tweeted yesterday that Paul Chryst and the Badgers are the lead dogs to land 4-star 2021 cornerback…

Who says Paul Chryst and Jim Leonhard can’t recruit?

Jon McNamara of Rivals.com tweeted yesterday that Chryst and the Badgers are the lead dogs to land 4-star 2021 cornerback Ricardo Hallman.

Hallman is ranked by Rivals as the 25th-best cornerback recruit in the nation and the 46th-best overall recruit from the state of Florida.

The University High School standout also has offers from the likes of Baylor, Ohio State, Florida State, Michigan, Penn State and Miami.

Landing the cornerback would be big news for Chryst and his program as they currently have the 6th-ranked 2021 recruiting class in the nation and the 2nd-ranked in the Big Ten behind only Ohio State.

Hallman would join big names in the Badgers’ 2021 class including cornerback Hunter Wohler, offensive lineman J.P. Benzschawel, running back Antwan Roberts and linebacker Ayo Adebogun.

 

Recruiting expert believes the Badgers have a good shot at landing a top 2021 offensive tackle 

247Sports recruiting director Steve Wiltfong wrote yesterday that he believes five-star 2021 recruit Nolan Rucci is leaning towards…

247Sports recruiting director Steve Wiltfong wrote yesterday that he believes five-star 2021 recruit Nolan Rucci is leaning towards joining either Wisconsin or Penn State next fall.

The Pennsylvania native is the 13th-ranked overall recruit and 3rd-ranked offensive tackle in the nation and the highest-rated player in his state.

Rucci’s older brother, Hayden, is a current tight end for Paul Chryst and the Badgers but the brothers’ parents both attended Penn State.

The Warwick High School standout has offers from top schools including Clemson, Alabama and Notre Dame in addition to the Badgers and the Nittany Lions.

247Sports national recruiting analyst Brian Dohn, however, predicted Penn State is still the favorite to land the tackle with Clemson also having a legitimate shot.

Rucci tweeted on April 12 that he is taking a week off from his recruiting so it is unlikely a decision is coming soon.

The Badgers have an exceptional history at the position and adding Rucci would no doubt be massive news for the program.

Wisconsin lands three-star 2021 running back

Paul Chryst and company continued their impressive recruiting season earlier today by landing three-star running back…

Paul Chryst and company continued their impressive recruiting season earlier today by landing three-star running back Antwan Roberts per his Twitter page.

The Hendersonville, Tennessee native chose Wisconsin over the likes of Duke, Louisville, Kentucky and Memphis.

He will enter a talented backfield in 2021 under offensive coordinator Joe Rudolph, one which is currently set to be headlined by four-star recruit Jalen Berger and former three-star recruit Nakia Watson.

Badgers offer top 2022 defensive end

Paul Chryst and the Badgers continue to have their recruiting sights set high as they officially offered four-star 2022 defensive end…

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Paul Chryst and the Badgers continue to have their recruiting sights set high as they officially offered four-star 2022 defensive end Keith Miles Jr earlier today per his Twitter page.

The Jersey City, N.J. product is rated by 247Sports as the No. 117 recruit in the nation for his year, No. 9 at his position and the fourth-best out of the state of New Jersey.

According to Rivals.com the Badgers will be battling with other top programs including Alabama, Auburn, Baylor, Georgia and Michigan to land the St Peter’s Preparatory High School standout.