It didn’t take long for Luke Fickell to convince one of his former Cincinnati standouts to join the Wisconsin football program after he entered the transfer portal.

Joe Huber, an All-ACC honorable mention offensive tackle for the Bearcats, announced his commitment to the Badgers shortly after an official visit to Madison this winter.

The redshirt junior began his Cincinnati career as a walk-on but later earned a scholarship and started all 14 games at right tackle in 2022 for the Bearcats. According to Pro Football Focus, Huber logged 854 snaps this past season and finished with a grade of 80.6.

Which, for reference, would have been the highest among the Wisconsin Badgers’ starting offensive linemen in 2022.

Standing at 6-foot-5, 310-pounds, Huber is known as more of a run-blocking lineman, but his versatility has already made him an option to start or be the top reserve option for Wisconsin football this fall.

Wisconsin Football Found a Keeper on the Offensive Line Through the Transfer Portal

Fellow Cincinnati offensive lineman Jake Renfro is the projected starter for Wisconsin football at center this fall. However, he’s missed a lot of time dating back to the spring due to injury.

That injury forced the Badgers’ offensive line coach Jack Bicknell to shuffle some players around in the spring and find a new starting five — if only temporarily. Left guard Tanor Bortolini shifted into the No. 1 center role, and Joe Huber was elevated to the starting left guard spot in his place.

Huber provides that versatility the new coaching staff covets, and there is a built-in trust factor from his time playing for Luke Fickell. It’s also a bonus that the Ohio native has two years of eligibility to grow in the program and has that much-needed experience.

Given his previous experience, you could argue Huber might be able to play all five positions on the offensive line — at least four.

When Renfro returns to full health, he may become the unofficial sixth starting offensive lineman for the Wisconsin football team. But I also wouldn’t write him off as a player that could hold the No. 1 left guard spot and force UW’s staff to reevaluate who the top five options really are.

Contact/Follow us @Badger_Notes on Twitter, Subscribe to the BadgerNotes Newsletter here, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, opinion, and analysis. You can also follow Dillon Graff on Twitter @DillonGraff.

Follow this link and use promo code: BADGERNOTES for 25% off your next True Classic order.

Join the Badger Notes watch party and stream Wisconsin Badgers games by following this link.

*Subscribe to BadgerNotes After Dark on Youtube and wherever you find podcasts, the official Wisconsin Badgers podcast of the Big Banter Sports Network.