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Wisconsin Badgers Football Spring Game Story-lines to Watch

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Wisconsin Badgers football head coach Luke Fickell
Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell watches defensive end Tommy Brunner go though a drill during the team's first spring practice on Saturday March 25, 2023 at the McClain Center in Madison, Wis. Uw Football Spring Practice 5 March 25 2023

Madison, Wis. – April 22nd, 2023 will be a historic day for the Wisconsin Badgers football program as Luke Fickell officially introduces himself and his team on the field.

The Wisconsin Badgers spring football game, titled “The Launch”, will be the opening of the next era for the team. The new coaching staff is eager to display their changes for the first time in a game environment. For many of the new and returning players as well, this game will be an excellent opportunity to put on a show.

Wisconsin will utilize this game as an opportunity to showcase the type of football they plan on playing moving forward. The Badgers are out to prove themselves as a team, however the players will also get a chance to do the same. Going into the exciting spring game, here are three story-lines to watch out for over the course of the game.

Wisconsin Badgers Football Story-lines: The Quarterbacks

The elephant in every college program’s room each year is the quarterback situation. Quarterbacks are pivotal to the success of a team and when a quarterback struggles, it will directly impact the team. Sometimes missed tackles or fumbles will not have much of an impact on the game down the line. However, when a quarterback makes a mistake, it can be much more costly.

Wisconsin struggled overall with production from former quarterback Graham Mertz. Mertz finished last season with a 52.9 overall quarterback rating, which ranked him 80th across college football. For a program as storied as the Badgers, the play coming from the position was hard to watch as it often directly impacted the result of the game. New offensive coordinator Phil Longo is a quarterback guru after transforming the careers of Drake Maye and Sam Howell. If anyone is prepared to change the position for Wisconsin, it is certainly Longo.

Between Tanner Mordecai, Nick Evers, and Braedyn Locke, the Wisconsin Badgers football team has three starting caliber players. Mordecai, the former SMU starter, recorded 7152 yards and 72 touchdowns in two years of play. Evers transferred to the Badgers from Oklahoma first and was considered to be the starter. Wisconsin was willing to give the position to him, which should say plenty about the coaching staff and their belief in Evers. Locke transferred in last and has consistently received praise from Phil Longo in practice.

There is plenty of talent for the Badgers at quarterback and it should be fun to watch during the spring game.

The Offense

Following along a similar path as the quarterbacks, the offense in general should be interesting to watch. Phil Longo believes in spreading out the offense to provide each player an opportunity to touch the ball. During his time at UNC, the ball was spread out among multiple players each game, which in turn expanded the offense.

Longo understands the college football offense on a different level than the average coach. The offensive coordinator had plenty of success during his time at UNC, but now all eyes will be on him in Madison. The offense for the Wisconsin Badgers football team a year ago was certainly not playing up to the fullest potential. The Badgers scored 42 touchdowns on offense last year and averaged 26.6 points per game. Longo and UNC last year averaged 34.4 points per game and scored 63 total touchdowns. UNC also managed to record 345 first downs while Wisconsin recorded 233.

If even an ounce of the magic that Longo created with the Tar Heels can be replicated in Madison, it will be an incredible sight.

The Secondary

The Wisconsin Badgers secondary has gone through the most this past off-season. Between Jay Shaw, John Torchio, and Cedrick Dort Jr graduating and the transfer changes, these will be positions to watch. Ricardo Hallman and Jason Maitre have been fantastic in practice thus far for the Badgers as they continue to challenge the offense. Given the changes and the success from the positions in practice, they can certainly provide a boost for the team this coming season.

The Badgers secondary allowed 2656 yards and 18 touchdowns through the air against their opponents last year. Defense will be the specialty for Wisconsin as they continue to develop one of the most fearsome units in college football.

Do not forget to tune in to the Wisconsin Badgers football spring game, “The Launch”, this Saturday, April 22nd.

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Jarrett Guerrera is a graduate of Western New England University with a Bachelor's in English. Jarrett played rugby at the collegiate level, and has been a sports fanatic all his life. Jarrett is also a contributor for Wisconsin Sports Heroics.

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