Wisconsin Football Picks Up Crystal Ball for 4-Star Cornerback Recruit

Since taking over the Wisconsin football program, Luke Fickell has elevated the recruiting efforts in the secondary due to his track record of finding and developing unheralded players at Cincinnati. 

With almost no time to assemble a class last offseason, the Badgers staff landed four-star safety Braedyn Moore, four-star cornerback Amare Snowden, and three-star Jonas Duclona, who had an impressive offer list. 

The 2024 class also saw several notable recruiting wins with Omillio Agard, a first-team All-American cornerback, per MaxPreps. Wisconsin football also won a recruiting battle in Florida that came down to the wire to secure a commitment from Xavier Lucas over Miami.

Fast forward to today, where Coach Fickell and his staff have one highly regarded cornerback recruit circled on their 2025 board, who the Badgers seem well-positioned to close out early. 

Wisconsin Football Lands Crystal Ball Prediction for CB Tariq Hayer.

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell (left) greets Wisconsin Badgers defensive Coordinator Mike Tressel after Fickell spoke to the media during Wisconsin Badgers football media day at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023.

On Saturday night, the Wisconsin football team picked up a crystal ball from 247Sports recruiting insider Evan Flood for four-star cornerback Tariq Hayer to end up in the Cardinal and White. 

Standing at 6-foot, 175 pounds, the Washington D.C. native is considered the nation’s No. 114 overall recruit, the No. 15 cornerback, and the No. 2 player in the District of Columbia, per the composite recruiting rankings. 

Hayer holds 22 scholarship offers, most notably from Penn State, Maryland, Michigan State, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Minnesota, Tennessee, Syracuse, and several other Power 5 teams. 

According to the composite rankings, Luke Fickell and the Wisconsin football program currently have the No. 15 ranked recruiting class in the country, holding five commits. 

With inside linebacker Cooper Catalano, offensive lineman Michael Roeske, defensive back Remington Moss, and quarterback Landyn Locke already in the fold, a commitment from Tariq Hayer would give them an early crown jewel to build around, and a top 125 player in the country to add to its rapidly improving secondary. 

Hayer was initially set to announce his commitment on Christmas day but moved back his date. We’ll continue to monitor his recruitment, but this is an encouraging sign for the Wisconsin Badgers. 

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