Wisconsin Football Snags LSU TE Jackson McGohan in Transfer Portal

During an official visit last weekend, Luke Fickell and the Wisconsin football program reignited an old connection, resulting in the acquisition of another key player for the Badgers via the transfer portal.

Jackson McGohan, a transfer tight end from the LSU Tigers, officially announced his commitment to the Wisconsin Badgers on Thursday.

Committed❤️🤍 pic.twitter.com/eC410zDfRm

— jackson mcgohan (@jackson_mcgohan) December 14, 2023

McGohan’s relationship with Coach Fickell dates back to his time as a prep recruit at Miamisburg High School in Ohio. He initially committed to play for Fickell and his staff at Cincinnati. However, when Fickell took the head coaching job at the University of Wisconsin, he changed course and de-committed, eventually choosing LSU.

The 6-foot-4, 235-pound tight end will have three years of eligibility remaining.

Wisconsin Football Lands LSU Transfer Tight End Jackson McGohan. 

No matter how you slice it, the Wisconsin football team’s offense was limited by their lack of viable options at tight end last season.

By the time the season rolled around, the Wisconsin Badgers had only three healthy scholarship tight ends at its disposal in: Hayden Rucci, Tucker Ashcraft, and JT Seagreaves. They’d later get converted fullback Riley Nowakowski back healthy, who played a big role down the stretch.

The entire tight end room under position coach Nate Letton combined to catch 24 passes for 254 yards and two touchdowns. Also, UW lost a few other players at the position for various reasons, making it imperative that the Wisconsin football program explore additions in the transfer portal.

In Jackson McGohan, the Badgers are getting the former No. 25 tight-end prospect in the 2023 recruiting class. He held over 15 scholarship offers, most notably from Iowa, Miami, LSU, Kentucky, and Oklahoma.

During his senior season, he caught 52 passes for 941 yards and 12 touchdowns. By my evaluation, McGohan is a catch-first tight end capable of winning 50-50 balls and could be a legit red-zone threat.

You love to see how effortlessly he can catch the ball away from his body. While McGohan isn’t what I’d consider a burner, he has well above-average athleticism for the position, plays physically, runs good routes, and is a threat to make a play after the catch.

The Ohio native appeared in eight games for LSU as a true freshman, primarily in a special teams role. However, he played eight offensive snaps, which is noteworthy, considering McGohan was on the most explosive offense in the country and worked his way onto the field.

His addition to the Wisconsin football team’s tight end room is big. McGohan is a high-pedigree player from a formidable Power 5 program with which the Badgers staff is extremely familiar, making it less risky of an investment. They’ll now have three years to develop him, and it wouldn’t surprise me one bit to see him push for snaps next season.

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