Now that signing day is over, it’s officially time for the college football offseason to take shape. Between players being recruited, entering the draft, graduating or transferring; the roster goes through lots of turnover and attrition. With the turnover, questions about specific positions a rise. The Wisconsin Badgers are no exception to these chains of events. Here are the five burning questions heading into the offseason and spring practice for the Badgers.
Linebackers Aside From Nick Herbig?
Every season, the Badgers linebacker units are always elite. However, if there is a year for a drop-off; it would possibly happen this season. Leo Chenal, Jack Sandborn and Noah Burks are all moving on. There is a lot of production that needs to be made up. Chenal and Sandborn combined for 304 tackles and 44.5 of them for a loss the past two seasons. Junior linebacker Nick Herbig needs to be the anchor of this unit. He is coming off an excellent sophomore season and he will be relied on to be a leader.
The big question is who will emerge as the answer inside? Tatum Grass and Jordan Turner bring only bring some playing experience. While both flashed their skills at times, none of them have started a college football game. It will be interesting to see the competition during camp and how Jim Leonhard works the rotations.
How Will Graham Mertz Fair?
For better or worse Graham Mertz will more then likely be calling the signals this season. Aside from being linked to Caleb Williams; the Badgers didn’t pursue anybody else in the transfer portal. Nobody on the current roster will challenge for Mertz’s starting job for the upcoming season.
Mertz was very inconsistent at best last season. He played decently at times but also was hard to watch as well. This season, expectations should be much lower which may help. Perhaps with the hiring of Bobby Engram, he might finally be able to play up to his potential. The Badgers will be counting on him once again to make the plays necessary to win. It will be interesting to see how he bounces back from last season. After having a down year, the Caleb Williams hype, fan pressure and a new voice in the offense room; Mertz has everything to play for in 2022.
What Will Dean Engram’s Role Be?
Dean Engram has decided to make the transition from cornerback to wide receiver. Engram has spent the past three seasons as a cornerback. While the transition isn’t huge, the question becomes what will his role be in the offense? Wisconsin already has Chimere Dike, Markus Allen and UCLA transfer Keontez Lewis ready to take over starting jobs. Skyler Bell also showed signs of promise in the Las Vegas Bowl that he’s ready for an expanded role.
Understandably, his father recently became Wisconsin’s offensive coordinator. It’ll be interesting to see what packages will involve him. Engram was the Badgers punt returner later in the season, I wouldn’t be shocked if he’s doing some jet sweeps. With him switching positions, I don’t think he’ll be playing a major role early on in the offense. However, Engram presents something interesting to keep an eye on.
Who Braelon Allen’s Backfield Mate Be?
Braelon Allen is obviously the starting running back. However, who will be his backfield mate? Most would presume that Chez Mellusi will claim the role. The problem with that is Mellusi is slated to miss all of the spring due to the leg injury he suffered against Rutgers. This could open the door for backs like Julius Davis, Brady Schipper, and Isaac Guerendo to make the two-deep. Guerendo has suffered two season-ending injuries in his career, Schipper did the job last year and wasn’t ideal and Davis’ playing time is limited. This is something else worth monitoring when camp opens.
Last season, everything was on Braelon Allen to make the offense go. He was somewhat banged up at times during the year. This was part of the reason why Wisconsin failed to make it to the Big Ten Championship game. When Mellusi was healthy, the one-two punch between them was very effective. Having a quality second running back will help keep him fresh for when the Big Ten West race tightens up.
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