Tag: Ranking

Former Wisconsin OT Rob Havenstein receives low grade by PFF entering 2024 NFL season

Former Wisconsin OT Rob Havenstein receives low grade by PFF entering 2024 NFL season

Former Wisconsin and current Los Angeles Rams offensive tackle Rob Havenstein was ranked No. 22 overall in ProFootballFocus’ recent ranking of all 64 NFL offensive tackles entering the 2024 season.

Havenstein, a nine-year NFL veteran with the Los Angeles Rams, is ranked behind players including the New York Jets’ Morgan Moses, Denver’s Garett Bolles, Baltimore’s Ronnie Stanley and Buffalo’s Dion Dawkins.

Following a down year in 2022, Havenstein posted a PFF overall grade over 79.0 in 2023. His 85.6 run-blocking grade ranked fourth for players eligible at his position.

The former First-team All-America selection at UW is entering his tenth NFL campaign with the Rams after being selected No. 57 overall in the 2015 NFL draft.

The 6-foot-8, 330-pound tackle was a member of Los Angeles’ 2021-22 Super Bowl-winning group. He has started 130 games at tackle with the Rams and played in a career-best 17 contests in 2022.

As one of the longest tenured Badgers in the NFL, Havenstein matched a school record with 54 career games played and helped UW set a school record for total offense at 480.8 yards per game during his fourth season in Madison in 2013.

With the emergence of running back Kyren Williams, creativity of head coach Sean McVay and the need to protect an aging Matthew Stafford in Los Angeles, the Rams’ offensive line will certainly need to perform in a top-heavy NFC West.

Former Wisconsin TE Jake Ferguson receives average grade by PFF entering 2024 NFL season

Former Wisconsin TE Jake Ferguson receives average grade by PFF entering 2024 NFL season

Former Wisconsin and current Dallas Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson was only No. 12 in ProFootballFocus’ recent ranking of all 32 NFL tight ends entering the 2024 season.

Ferguson finished the 2023 season with a PFF grade of 74.5, good for eighth-best at the position. PFF’s forecast has him down at No. 12, however, and ranked behind players including Chicago’s Cole Kmet, Jacksonville’s Evan Engram, Cleveland’s David Njoku and Arizona’s Trey McBride.

Related: Which Big Ten football team has the toughest 2024 schedule?

The former Badger is entering his third NFL season after the Dallas Cowboys selected him No. 129 overall in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL draft.

The rising star put together a breakout 2023 campaign as the team’s full-time starter, recording 71 receptions for 761 yards and five touchdowns. He also caught 10 passes for 93 yards and three touchdowns in the Cowboys’ season-ending NFC Divisional Round loss to the Green Bay Packers.

Ferguson is finding NFL success after a four-year Wisconsin career that included 47 games, 145 receptions, 1,618 receiving yards, 13 touchdowns and around one million mentions of his relation to Wisconsin legend Barry Alvarez.

Here’s what PFF has to say about ranking Ferguson at No. 12 of 32 starting tight ends:

Ferguson performed well enough as a rookie in 2022 that the Cowboys were confident in his ability to play full-time in 2023. He delivered, as his 74.5 PFF grade was eighth best at the position, while his 1.49 yards per route run was 15th.

I’d bet on his role only increasing as he gains more experience and camaraderie with Cowboys QB Dak Prescott. A No. 12 ranking should feel low by the time the 2024 season concludes.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

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Post-spring college football Top 25 ranks Alabama as a top team for 2024 season

Alabama is under new leadership with head coach Kalen DeBoer. See how the team ranks in the latest college football Top 25.

The first year of the 12-team College Football Playoffs could not have come at a better time for the Alabama Crimson Tide as they make their first transition at the head coaching position in 17 years. In the past, with just four teams qualifying for the tournament, there was almost no room for error. Now with 12 spots available, teams will have the ability to experience some growing pains and maybe even a few losses without their national title aspirations being decimated by one bad week.

New head coach Kalen DeBoer is coming off leading the Washington Huskies to a Sugar Bowl victory and national title appearance just a season ago, but the stakes in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and the SEC are exponentially higher. DeBoer did a phenomenal job of smoothing out the roster despite Saban’s retirement, but the Tide did lose some superb talent such as Caleb Downs to the Ohio State Buckeyes.

However, Alabama did pick up a few key transfers from Washington as well as a handful of other portal additions. In other great news, five-star WR Ryan Williams arrived on campus this week, and it will be exciting to see how quickly he can grasp the new offense.

Even though the staff is entirely new and there are many new players, Alabama will still be at the top of the food chain according to Dennis Dodd of CBS Sports. Dodd ranks the Crimson Tide No. 5 in the country and says says,

“In Year 1 post-Saban, the expectations will not change as Kalen DeBoer takes over. Can’t wait to see how DeBoer’s downfield passing game translates to Jalen Milroe, who is the leading returning passer in that category (10.0 yards per attempt). When does the excellence run out? For the third time in four years, exactly 10 ‘Bama players were selected in the NFL Draft.”

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Alabama football news as the 2024 offseason progresses.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

Wisconsin’s EA Sports College Football 25 payout revealed

Wisconsin’s EA Sports College Football 25 payout revealed

The countdown is on for the release of EA Sports College Football 25.

With 56 days until July 19, more and more details about the game are trickling out.

Related: Why the NCAA settlement, revenue-sharing model matters for the Wisconsin football program

One significant note dropped on Firday: the payout for every program involved in the game. Those payouts are being made in four tiers, according to Cllct Media.

Tier 1 receives $99,875.16 from the game, Tier 2 receives $59,925.09, Tier 3 receives $39,950.06 and Tier 4 receives $9,987.52. The groupings are done using AP Poll finishes from the past 10 years, as reported.

Wisconsin falls into a crowded Tier 2 along with Big Ten programs including Michigan State, USC and Northwestern.

Wisconsin’s last 10 years of AP Poll finishes are as follows: 18th, unranked, 8th, 6th, unranked, 8th, unranked, unranked, unranked and unranked.

A return to the program’s form from 2016-2019 is necessary for Luke Fickell to elevate it back into the sports’ top tier.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

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Bleacher Report ranks Saints defense just outside NFL’s top 10

The Saints’ defense has been a model of consistency since 2017. But Bleacher Report’s NFL scouting department has big concerns for 2024:

Defense has been the face of the New Orleans Saints since Drew Brees retired and has, arguably, been the backbone for even longer. Coming into the season, Bleacher Report ranked the Saints as the 11th-best defense in the NFL. The B/R scouting department used offseason activity in addition to last year’s performance to form their rankings.

The belief in the Saints defense stems from what they’ve historically been able to do. The defense has been strong since 2017. Dennis Allen’s stretch of consistent defense creates a blind faith similar to the Sean Payton era offense. The confidence is only heightened by the Saints retaining last year’s defensive core.

The two concerns comes from age and pass rush. Cameron Jordan, Demario Davis and Tyrann Mathieu are all 32 years old or older. At that age, a steep fall off could happen at any time. In Jordan’s case, the beginning may have already started.

The pass rush struggled mightily last season, but the signing of Chase Young should help with this. The Saints were bottom-five in both pass rush percentage and sacks in 2023. New Orleans succeeded in spite of the pass rush, but shouldn’t bank on that in the upcoming season. It should be better and the Saints defense should improve because of it as well. Signs point to their arrow trending up, not down.

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NBA media: Who are the biggest fans of each superstar?

This is how media members have voted for NBA stars in the last decade.

Since the NBA started making media members’ award votes public in 2015, there have been far fewer outlier ballots, which makes a lot of sense since vote-shaming is a real phenomenon. However, there are still somewhat significant discrepancies between the votes of each media personality, and we delved deep into that. We looked into the voters who had a say in each of the seasons in which Player X received MVP votes, then ranked them by the points they awarded to said player.

Here are the results for the biggest superstars in the last decade.

Wisconsin boasts one of PFF’s highest-graded returning Big Ten running backs

Wisconsin returns one of the Big Ten’s best running backs in 2024:

Wisconsin’s Tawee Walker is one of PFF’s highest-graded returning Big Ten running backs entering 2024.

The former Oklahoma Sooner was one of Luke Fickell’s big-ticket transfer acquisitions this offseason. He wasn’t on the Badgers’ roster in 2023, but today’s definition of ‘returning’ must translate to ‘returning from any college program’ given the significance of the transfer portal.

Related: Big Ten football 2024 season win-loss record predictions for each team after spring practice

Walker rushed for 513 yards and 7 touchdowns on 102 carries as a significant part of the Oklahoma backfield in 2023. He should have a similar role with the Badgers in 2024, as Chez Mellusi also returns to create a formidable 1-2 punch.

Here is where PFF ranked Walker among the rest of the conference’s returning running backs:

Wisconsin misses 247Sports’ ranking of ‘college football’s most impressive facilities’

Wisconsin misses 247Sports’ ranking of ‘college football’s most impressive facilities’

Wisconsin was not included in 247Sports’ Brad Crawford’s updated ranking of college football’s most impressive facilities on Monday.

The list includes 30 programs, including the Big Ten’s Penn State (No. 30), USC (No. 29), Illinois (No. 22), Michigan (No. 18), Maryland (No. 16), Northwestern (No. 13), Nebraska (No. 8), Ohio State (No. 7) and Oregon (No. 1).

Related: Post-spring Big Ten football 2024 power rankings, starting quarterback rankings

The Badgers have seemingly fallen behind in college football’s never-ending facilities arm race. That said, the program was recently approved for a new $285 million indoor practice facility.

The project is set to replace the Camp Randall Memorial Sports Center — commonly known as The Shell — and the 80-yard football practice field in the McClain Center with a new state-of-the-art facility. It is still reportedly being designed, with construction set to start in 2025.

The state of college football, and college athletics as a whole, is currently in flux. Right now, athletic departments have record revenue and minimal operating expenses due to the players not being directly paid. That money funds each schools’ other sports in most cases, or is funneled into facilities like seen in Crawford’s ranking.

Wisconsin is a ‘have’ when it comes to revenue. The Big Ten pays out record money each year thanks to its new television deal. The hope is the program’s new practice facility brings it up to the level of the other top contenders in the country.

All of these things matter when discussing how programs differentiate themselves in the eyes of recruits. While money may mean more to recruits now than it once did, facilities still play into that decision. The good news for Badgers fans: there is action being taken to ensure this ranking isn’t the same in the future.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion.

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Wisconsin starting RT one of PFF’s ’10 offensive tackles to know ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft’

Wisconsin has a highly-touted starting tackle entering 2024:

Wisconsin right tackle Riley Mahlman was named an ‘offensive tackle to know ahead of the 2025 NFL draft’ by ProFootballFocus on Monday.

Mahlman was one of 10 players included, along with LSU’s Will Campbell, Texas’ Kelvin Banks Jr., Arizona’s Jonah Savaiinaea, LSU’s Emery Jones, Oregon’s Ajani Cornelius, Clemson’s Blake Miller, West Virginia’s Wyatt Milum, Oregon’s Josh Conerly Jr. and Georgia’s Ernest Greene III.

Related: Post-spring Big Ten football 2024 power rankings, starting quarterback rankings

The veteran is set to again be Wisconsin’s starting right tackle in 2024. He started all 13 games at the position in 2023 and six in 2022 — though that number would have also been 13 had it not been for an early-season injury.

Mahlman’s 78.1 PFF last season was the highest for any Wisconsin lineman and the 5th-highest in the Big Ten. He enters 2024 primed for his best collegiate season and as one of the conference’s best tackles.

While the play of Wisconsin’s offensive line has been up and down since 2019, Mahlman has been arguably its best performer over that time. His play, at the least, has not been a part of what is now a multi-year struggle for the position.

Another offseason to prepare for Phil Longo’s offense should pay dividends for Mahlman and the rest of the line. Early struggles adjusting to the new pace and approach are understandable, though year two should be when we see those issues ironed out.

As we inch closer to the season and to 2025 NFL draft discussion, here is what PFF thinks of the Wisconsin starter:

After missing nearly half of his redshirt freshman season with an injury, Mahlman took a major leap as a redshirt sophomore. In 2023, the right tackle was the sixth-most valuable offensive tackle in the country according to our wins above average metric. Mahlman’s 78.1 PFF grade was a top-15 mark among Power Five tackles as was his 73.1 run-blocking grade. He was also among the 20 best Power Five offensive tackles in pressure rate allowed (3%).

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion.

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Wisconsin football could see a seven-year streak end in 2024

Wisconsin football could see a seven-year streak end in 2024

Wisconsin football is on the outside of nearly every post-spring way-too-early top 25 ranking ahead of the 2024 season. The program is coming off consecutive 7-6 campaigns and is beginning to lose the reputation for consistent winning its held for more than two decades.

There was a good reason behind that reputation. Wisconsin has not had a losing season since going 5-7 in 2001 and is on a 23-year bowl streak. But one of Wisconsin’s recent streaks is in jeopardy entering 2024: The program has been ranked in every preseason AP Poll since 2017.

Related: Post-spring Big Ten football 2024 power rankings, starting quarterback rankings

It was No. 9 entering 2017, No. 4 entering 2018, No. 19 in 2019, No. 12 in 2020 and 2021, No. 18 in 2022 and No. 19 in 2023.

Wisconsin’s streak ranks among the longest in the nation, behind only Ohio State, Oklahoma, Georgia, Alabama and Clemson. Wisconsin lacks the College Football Playoff success of those powerhouses, but it has maintained a similar level of consistency.

Given the 2024 team’s lack of inclusion in way-too-early top 25 rankings, it looks like that consistency will take a step backward for the time being.

Luke Fickell and his staff are working to return the program to where it was under Paul Chryst from 2016-2019. That stretch included three double-digit-win seasons and three Big Ten Championship appearances. Its outlook in the new-look Big Ten Conference is a big question mark, but a return to a double-digit-win baseline would make the hire a resounding success.

2022 and 2023 produced enough regression for the streak of preseason AP Top 25 rankings to end. Badgers fans hope a resurgent 2024 season is the start of a new decade-long streak.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion.

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