Wisconsin Football Losing Its Top Recruiter to an SEC Powerhouse

The Wisconsin football program is grappling with a significant loss on the Badgers coaching staff, particularly on the recruiting front, as safeties coach and co-defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler departs for Alabama. 

According to a report by ESPN’s senior writer Pete Thamel, Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer, who took Washington to the national title this past season, is set to hire Hitschler to the same position with the Crimson Tide. 

Sources: Alabama is expected to hire Wisconsin safeties coach/CO-DC Colin Hitschler as an assistant coach.

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) January 19, 2024

Hitschler spent just one season with the Wisconsin football team after following Luke Fickell over from Cincinnati and was pivotal in securing a number of key signees for the Badgers 2024 recruiting class. 

During this time in Madison, he played a significant role in developing Badgers safety Hunter Wohler. Wohler emerged as the team’s top tackler (120) and received All-Big Ten honors from the Associated Press, league coaches, and media members. 

His departure comes amid a series of changes to the Badgers coaching staff this offseason. Wide receivers coach Mike Brown left for the same position at Notre Dame and was replaced by Kenny Guiton from Arkansas. Then, offensive line coach Jack Bicknell Jr. was ‘reassigned’ in favor of hiring AJ Blazek from Vanderbilt. 

Wisconsin Football Recruiting Impact 

Colin Hitschler’s influence on the recruiting trail was evident, with six Wisconsin football signees from the 2024 class, including notable talents like four-star offensive tackle Kevin Heywood, four-star running back Dilin Jones, and four-star cornerback Omillio Agard. 

He also acted as the lead recruiter for three-star prospects such as safety Raphael Dunn, interior offensive lineman Ryan Cory, and running back Gideon Ituka while being the secondary on defensive end Ernest Willor. 

Hitschler’s strong ties to Pennsylvania, stemming from his time as a wrestler at Penn, have helped open doors out East because of his impressive network. Those connections and his capacity to build relationships helped bring in three recruits from Pennslyvania, a feat the Badgers last accomplished in 2002.

“The tradition of success on the East Coast here [Wisconsin] and the ability to play for these fans and in this environment sells itself,” coach Hitschler told BadgerNotes.

Per the 247Sports composite football recruiter rankings, the former Wisconsin football assistant finished as the No. 29 ranked assistant coach in the country and No. 9 in the Big Ten. 

To provide context, the only other Badgers assistants who have cracked the top 30 since they began tracking assistant recruiting rankings in 2013 were Chris Haering (28) and Joe Rudolph (20) in the 2021 cycle. 

Final Thoughts 

Losing Colin Hitschler is obviously a blow to the Wisconsin football team as far as recruiting is concerned.

However, this is the nature of the industry. Hitschler has established himself as a rising star and previously worked with Alabama defensive coordinator Kane Wommack at South Alabama for two seasons as the director of football operations.

It was a no-brainer choice for Hitschler to join arguably the top college football program in the country.

Luke Fickell will undoubtedly be able to fill this spot with a solid replacement because, overall, there’s a solid track record of hiring assistant coaches on his end. Assistants come and go, and when they leave for bigger jobs, it just means you hired a great coach.

Hitschler was with the Wisconsin football program for just one season but made a notable impact; I look forward to watching his career flourish.

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