Wisconsin Football Lands North Carolina LB From Transfer Portal

The Wisconsin Badgers football program has been proactive in utilizing the transfer portal this offseason to revamp its linebacking core, focusing on acquiring athletes who better fit their desired defensive scheme.

On Thursday, the team added another intriguing linebacker into the mix when North Carolina transfer Sebastian Cheeks announced his commitment to the Wisconsin Badgers and head coach Luke Fickell.

MADTOWN!!❤️👐🏽 pic.twitter.com/RrGmcJTRuF

— sebastian cheeks (@SebastianCheeks) December 28, 2023

The 6-foot-2, 230-pound inside backer from Evanston, Illinois, who spent the last two seasons with the Tar Heels, visited Madison nearly two weeks ago and will now join the program with three years of eligibility remaining.

Wisconsin Football Adds LB Sebastian Cheeks From the Transfer Portal

Despite securing Jahsiah Galvan from the transfer portal last week, the Wisconsin football coaching staff decided to recruit yet another player for the same position. This underscores the significant emphasis the Badgers placed on reconfiguring this particular group.

Sebastian Cheeks was notably a top prospect pursued by Paul Chryst, with Wisconsin finishing as a finalist in the race to land the standout from Evanston Township High School. However, Cheeks eventually opted for North Carolina over the Badgers.

According to the industry-generated composite rankings, Cheeks was considered the No. 14 rated linebacker in the 2022 recruiting class and a top 150 overall prospect in the country.

As a true freshman, Cheeks played in three games, primarily on special teams, and recorded three tackles before suffering a shoulder injury that forced him to redshirt. During his redshirt freshman season in 2023, he appeared in eight games and finished with one tackle and one pressure in defensive 15 snaps.

Pro Football Focus gave the new Wisconsin football linebacker a 78.3 grade — which is considered high quality despite the small sample size.

The Wisconsin Badgers football team’s new-look linebacker room comprises Jake Chaney, Christan Alliegro, Jahsiah Galvan, Bryan Sanborn, Tyler Jansey, and Aidan Vaughan.

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