Dissecting the Wisconsin Football Team’s Scholarship Situation

The Badgers will see plenty of movement after spring ball.

The Wisconsin Badgers football program has undergone significant transformations since the season came to a close, ranging from recruiting successes to coaching changes and even player departures. 

Now that the dust has settled, the Wisconsin Badgers are primed to roll out a roster for the upcoming season that reflects some continuity and a batch of fresh faces from the transfer portal. 

The 2024 high school recruiting class and a substantial influx of transfers have added new dimensions to the team. With 13 players (and counting) from the transfer portal and 22 incoming freshmen, Wisconsin football will receive an infusion of highly regarded talent and much-needed energy. 

But as we know, the portal giveth and it also taketh away. During this period of change, the Badgers witnessed the departure of a dozen scholarship players to the portal, accompanied by a few others choosing to forgo their final year of eligibility and opting for the NFL Draft.

Notably, the coaching staff saw some changes with the loss of the wide receiver coach Mike Brown and the subsequent hiring of his replacement, Kenny Guiton, from Arkansas. The Badgers faced challenges on the offensive line during the season and decided to reassign Jack Bicknell Jr. to a different role. Since then, Wisconsin football found a replacement in Vanderbilt offensive line coach A.J. Blazek. 

Let’s keep it simple and say there is no shortage of storylines worth following as the team inches closer to spring practice. But the situation I’ll be monitoring the closest has to do with the scholarship distribution. 

Wisconsin Will Have Movement in Next Portal Window 

NCAA rules dictate a maximum of 85 scholarship players on the roster, yet, by my count (thanks in large part to the Buck Around doing the Lord’s work), Wisconsin’s current tally stands at 91.