Wisconsin football OLB Leon Lowery decides to enter the transfer portal
Wisconsin Badgers redshirt senior outside linebacker Leon Lowery announces his intent to transfer out of the football program.
Luke Fickell and the University of Wisconsin football team will be without one of their starting outside linebackers when they take the field in 2025.
Redshirt senior Leon Lowery announced on Sunday that he intends to enter the transfer portal and look for a new home when the window opens on Dec. 9, with one season of eligibility remaining.
"I’ll be planning to enter the transfer portal with 1 year of eligibility left," Lowery wrote on social media. "Thank you Wisconsin for everything."
When the 6-foot-3, 251-pound linebacker transferred to Wisconsin, it was anything but typical. Lowery's path to Madison included one of the most memorable recruitment sagas in recent memory.
Lowery initially committed to the Badgers after an official visit but de-committed the very next day. He then briefly enlisted two NIL agents to handle his recruitment, only to cut ties within 24 hours when it became clear they weren’t acting in his best interest. Shortly after that, he re-committed to the Wisconsin football team.
Unfortunately for Lowery, that wild recruitment turned out to be the most noteworthy chapter of his time with the Badgers—by a long shot.
Lowery initially spent four seasons at Syracuse before transferring to Wisconsin to help revamp the team's pass rush under Mike Tressel. In 2023, Lowery was a key starter for the Orange, registering 46 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks.
However, his production didn’t carry over with the Badgers. Despite starting 11 of 12 games this season, Lowery recorded just 29 total tackles, 11 pressures, four quarterback hurries, and a sack while seeing his snaps drop from 523 at Syracuse to 372 at Wisconsin.
The New Jersey native earned a 59.7 overall defensive grade, including a 55.9 mark as a pass rusher, according to Pro Football Focus.
Lowery’s departure adds another layer of uncertainty to a Wisconsin defense already in flux, with the program bracing for an offseason likely to bring significant roster changes amid a continued schematic transition.
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