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Wisconsin Football: Predicting the 2023 QB Depth Chart

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Wisconsin Football; Badgers helmet

Madison, Wis. – Wisconsin football has made some exciting moves through the portal over the last few weeks. From picking up key defensive depth to a slew of new quarterbacks, UW is revamping its program for 2023.

Next season, Wisconsin will have one of the deepest quarterback rooms in program history. Thanks to the additions of Tanner Mordecai, Nick Evers, and Braedyn Locke, the Badgers will have some shakeups in their QB depth chart.

With the offseason still far from over, here’s an early prediction of how the quarterback depth chart will shake out.

Redshirt/Reserve QBs

Cole LaCrue

Cole LaCrue will head to Madison after a state championship win in Colorado. The three-star prospect has an intriguing skillset as a dual-threat QB with plenty of upside. However, with the surplus of talent in the QB room, LaCrue will likely redshirt in his first season with the program.

Marshall Howe

Howe, an upcoming sophomore, will again be a reserve QB in 2023. The California native spent time behind Mertz, Wolf, and Burkett in 2022 and has yet to attempt a pass. The level of talent above Howe is just too much to top at the moment, giving him another year to develop.

Myles Burkett

Burkett will get an opportunity to develop in 2023 under a new offensive scheme as a reserve QB. The Franklin, Wisconsin native has appeared in two games in his career, completing four passes. Burkett brings valuable depth to Wisconsin’s quarterback group. Although it may be tough to climb the ranks this season, his role as a reserve will be important.

Wisconsin football QB4: Braedyn Locke

Braedyn Locke was the newest QB addition and likely the last piece to the intricate signal-caller puzzle. Locke, a redshirt freshman, heads to Madison with four years of remaining eligibility. The gunslinger did not appear in a game at Mississippi State last season, but he has the tools to win the battle to be the fourth QB in the depth chart.

Wisconsin football QB3: Chase Wolf

Wolf announced he would return to UW after the Guaranteed Rate Bowl game. The fifth-year QB led the Badgers to a win over the Oklahoma State Cowboys in his first career start. Wolf will be the longest-tenured Badger QB in 2023. His veteran leadership will be necessary with all the new additions heading to Madison soon.

Wisconsin football QB2: Nick Evers

Evers, a former four-star prospect, would be the best option as UW’s backup quarterback. The Oklahoma transfer appeared in one game in 2022 but did not complete a pass. Coming from a loaded Oklahoma QB room, Evers is set to make an immediate impact and become a valuable second option. With the QB ahead of him playing in his last year, Evers could be the starter in 2024 after getting backup experience.

Wisconsin football QB1: Tanner Mordecai

As if it would be anyone else. Mordecai heads to Madison with loads of experience. The former four-star QB spent three years at Oklahoma before transferring to SMU, where he had a productive stint. The new Badgers QB1 finished with 3,524 yards in 2022, coming in at 18th in the nation in passing yards. In his last year of eligibility, Mordecai will look to cap off an excellent college career as the Badgers head signal-caller.

 

Wisconsin will have a deep room of talent regardless of where these quarterbacks end up on the final depth chart. Spring ball will be interesting as these signal-callers compete for reps. Don’t count out any of these players, as each QB has something that makes them stand out.


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Wisconsin Football: Handing Out Helmet Stickers From the Purdue Victory

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Wisconsin Football quarterback Tanner Mordecai
Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Tanner Mordecai (8) dives into the pylon for a touchdown during the NCAA football game against the Purdue Boilermakers, Friday, Sept. 22, 2023, at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Ind.

A win is a win! In this case, it’s the 17th straight victory for the Wisconsin football team over the Purdue Boilermakers. This victory gave the Badgers a nice start to conference play, putting them at 1-0 in the Big Ten and 3-1 overall.

It still wasn’t a perfect game, but this team is starting to look more like the team we were all hoping for this offseason.

Players on both sides of the ball shined tonight.

So let’s hand out some helmet stickers for the Wisconsin football players who shined under the Friday night lights.

Wisconsin Football vs. Purdue Helmet Sticker No. 1:

Ricardo Hallman

Ricardo Hallman is quietly becoming a lockdown corner for the Wisconsin football team. Before the game, Hallman had yet to allow a touchdown reception. After the game, that statement still stands true. I’m sure he will continue to lead the country in coverage snaps without giving up a score.

On top of being a shutdown corner, he is turning into a legitimate playmaker. He logged two interceptions in the Badgers’ Friday night victory over Purdue, bringing his season total to three.

He finished the night with three tackles and two interceptions. The sophomore cornerback is having a great start to the year. We’ll see how well he continues to play once the level of competition ramps up. Hopefully, he continues to play like he is because this Wisconsin defense is going to need him to.

Wisconsin Football vs. Purdue Helmet Sticker No. 2:

Braelon Allen

Banged up? If he was, Allen didn’t show it. As usual, Wisconsin’s top back had another great game last night. He ran the ball just 16 times for 116 yards, a 7.4 yards per carry average. He also added a pair of touchdowns. A good chunk of his yardage came on a 52-yard scamper, where he blew up a defender like he was nothing and almost took it to the house.

Unfortunately, Allen had to take the bulk of the carries towards the end of the game when Chez Mellusi went down with an ankle injury. Without a whole lot of experienced depth behind Allen, he is going to be expected to carry the rushing attack for the Wisconsin football team.

Wisconsin Football vs. Purdue Helmet Sticker No. 3:

Tanner Mordecai

There’s the quarterback we were all hoping to see. He didn’t put up huge numbers through the air or even throw a touchdown pass. But he did provide the offense with some production on the ground. His ability to scramble and make plays with his legs made a difference early in the game.

At one point, Mordecai was Wisconsin’s leading passer, rusher, and receiver. When’s the last time you’ve ever seen that?

Mordecai finished the game with 174 yards passing and a pick. But he added on 44 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns. Mordecai is slowly but surely turning into the playmaking quarterback Wisconsin fans have wanted in Madison for a long time.

Wisconsin Football vs. Purdue Helmet Sticker No. 4:

Darian Varner

Varner had a very heads-up play that helped nail the coffin shut in the game.

Kaden Johnson came off the edge, hitting Purdue quarterback Hudson Card as he was throwing. The refs let it play out. Purdue recovered it but held it, thinking it was a dead ball. Alertly, Varner went over, punched the ball out of his hands, and landed on it.

Three plays later, the Badgers punched it in for six, extending the lead to 38-17. We’ve all been waiting for Varner to make his presence known on this Wisconsin defense. Now we finally have. Hopefully, this is just the start for Varner this season and we see some more of this.


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Wisconsin Football Fans React: Badgers Defeat Purdue Boilermakers

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Madison, Wis. – The Wisconsin football team has officially opened their Big Ten football season after defeating the Purdue Boilermakers on Friday.

The Badgers entered halftime up 21-3 courtesy of two rushing touchdowns by quarterback Tanner Mordecai. Wisconsin never looked back and held onto their lead for the remainder of the game. Once again, the Wisconsin ground game proved to be too much for their opponent as the Badgers recorded four touchdowns and 195 yards rushing. Wisconsin also recorded three turnovers on the defensive side of the ball as Ricardo Hallman dominated for the Badgers with two interceptions.

While there were plenty of positives in the 38-17 win over the Boilermakers, there is still room for improvement. Fans were quick to fill social media with a variety of responses following the victory.

Wisconsin Badgers Excite Fans In Big Ten Conference Opener Against Purdue 

While the entirety of the game was not exciting, the Badgers had their moments and provided some excellent football for their fans. Including, the exceptional “Philly Special” the Badgers ran at the end of the game, as well as the intriguing rushing touchdowns. Transfer kicker Nathanial Vakos also impressed as he went 3-for-3 with his longest kick at 48-yards.

The Wisconsin Badgers Football Team Ran Wild Once Again

Against the Purdue Boilermakers, the Badgers recorded four touchdowns and 195 yards on the ground. Through the first four games of the season, Wisconsin has rushed for 807 yards and 14 touchdowns, with an average of 5.4 yards per carry. While the offense in general has struggled, the run game is certainly thriving under Head Coach Luke Fickell and Offensive Coordinator Phil Longo.

Some fans enjoyed the success of the Wisconsin football team, but seemed eager for the elusive running back Braelon Allen to touch the football more.

For Some Fans, The Struggles for Wisconsin Proved to be too much, But Many Keep Optimism

Despite the victory for the Wisconsin football team, the Badgers struggled at times to play fundamental football. In particular, the defense struggled at times and allowed more total yards than the Wisconsin offense gained. The Badgers still walked away with the victory but may have done so without fixing their issues at hand.


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 Jarrett Guerrera on Twitter @JarrettGuerrera.

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Wisconsin Football Report Card From 38-17 Win Over Purdue

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Wisconsin Badgers football
Sep 22, 2023; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Wisconsin Badgers cornerback Ricardo Hallman (2) tackles Purdue Boilermakers running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (3) during the first half at Ross-Ade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports

The Wisconsin football program kicked off conference play with a bang, earning a 38-17 victory on the road against Purdue. It wasn’t a pretty or complete game by the Badgers, but UW did enough to come away with a win and head into the bye week at 3-1.

Here are my grades for Wisconsin’s offense, defense, and special teams in the Big Ten opener. 

Wisconsin Football Offense Grade: B

The offense was easily one of the biggest bright spots for Wisconsin in the win over Purdue, but I thought the way UW utilized Tanner Mordecai was one of the main reasons why. 

Mordecai isn’t your prototypical dual-threat quarterback, but he still possesses the ability to get out of the pocket and use his legs well. The sixth-year senior was able to run his way into the endzone twice while rushing for 58 yards. On top of that, Mordecai went 17-for-27 with 174 yards through the air. We’ve finally seen some glimpses of what Mordecai will be, and if he’s able to put the puzzle pieces together during the bye week, the Big Ten should look out. 

Of course, the biggest storyline coming out of this game was Chez Mellusi’s injury. He had to get an air cast put on, and the replay did not look good in the slightest. You just have to feel absolutely gutted for Mellusi, who has had his fair share of injury problems since coming to Madison. Though his time was cut short, the fifth-year senior put on a show alongside Braelon Allen, combining for 155 yards on the ground. Allen would also rush for two touchdowns. This game seemed to be a return to form for Allen after seemingly playing a step slow — and banged up — through the first few weeks of the season. 

Wisconsin also got some nice contributions from CJ Williams and Chimere Dike in the receiving game, but the drops by Skyler Bell and Will Pauling were a bit discouraging. Would like to see those cut down after the bye week. 

There was plenty to be happy about with Wisconsin’s performance, but it wasn’t a spectacular showing from the offense. Going forward, UW will need to cut down on the penalties (looking at you, Jack Nelson) and will need to put together a complete four quarters of offense. 

Wisconsin Football Defense Grade: C+

I’m not crazy about how Wisconsin’s defense performed against Purdue, but there were some bright spots. 

Ricardo Hallman and James Thompson Jr. were undoubtedly the stars on Wisconsin’s defense tonight. Hallman secured two interceptions on the night while also logging three tackles and two passes defended. Meanwhile, Thompson finished the night with six tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack, and one pass defended. At two key positions, Wisconsin was able to get some crucial contributions from some key contributors.

It wasn’t all great, though. I’m going to be frank for a second here: I’m getting a little tired of seeing these big chunk plays given up by Wisconsin. It’s been a consistent problem for the past few weeks, and while there may have been some improvement tonight, there were still far too many big plays given up for my liking. 

There are still plenty of kinks to work out in Wisconsin’s defense, but this game seemed like a very small step in the right direction. Hopefully, Mike Tressel can have this group ready as they venture further into conference play. 

Wisconsin Football Special Teams Grade: A-

Wisconsin found themselves a good one in Ohio transfer Nathanial Vakos. The sophomore knocked through all three of his field goal attempts to remain perfect on the season. With his three on Friday night, he’s now 7-of-7 on three-point tries. 

Four games in, I have to say I’m very impressed with what Atticus Bertrams has brought to this team. He’s been a mark of consistency, and he had some damn good punts on Friday night. 

It was also great to see Chimere Dike run a couple of kicks back. The senior receiver had two returns for 34 yards and 39 yards, respectively. He’s shown that he can be a threat, and you’d love to see him break off a return for six at some point this year.

The only thing bringing this grade down was Jack Van Dyke’s kick out of bounds. This has now become a consistent issue for the kickoff specialist, as he’s sent three balls sailing out of bounds through four games. 

The Wisconsin football program is now off to a 3-1 start in the Luke Fickell era. The Badgers will head into the bye week before facing Rutgers on October 7th.


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

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