3 Wisconsin Football Starting Jobs Up for Grabs in Fall Camp

Everything right in the world is just around the corner: fall, hunting season, and perhaps most importantly, Wisconsin football. The Badgers will take the field under the leadership of new head coach Luke Fickell, who is a safe bet to get the program back on track after three straight subpar seasons. 

Fickell hit the ground running and, on paper, had a masterclass of an offseason with the Badgers. UW brought back 72% of its production from a year ago and added some talented players in the portal, which is why Wisconsin was picked as the preseason favorite to win the Big Ten West. 

But before Wisconsin football officially begins the Fickell era against Buffalo on September 2, the Badgers coaching staff still has a few position groups that need to get sorted out. 

Which three jobs are up for grabs this fall?

Wisconsin Football Has Six Offensive Lineman Battling for Five Spots.

Wisconsin football has produced more nasty offensive line units during my lifetime than I can probably remember. UW has been good the last few seasons but a far cry from the elite we were used to. 

Under offensive line coach Jack Bicknell, he’s got plenty of pieces to build around in year one. It’s safe to say that Jack Nelson and Riley Mahlman will handle the offensive tackles spots. 

But after that — the Badgers have to sort things out. 

The other three starting jobs will come from some combination of Tanor Bortolini, Joe Huber, Jake Renfro, and Michael Furtney. 

Since Renfro suffered an injury in spring ball, it forced UW to shift Bortolini to center and provided Huber, a chance at left guard. Now that Renfro is healthy and practicing, it bears the question — what happens to the others if he resumes the first-team center role? 

My money is on Huber and Bortolini starting at the guard spots and Renfro holding down the center spot — with Furtney playing plenty of snaps as the unofficial sixth starting lineman. 

Wisconsin Football Still Has to Sort Out the Pecking Order at WR.

Even though the wide receiver rotation isn’t set in stone, this obviously isn’t an area to be concerned about. Roles are still not 100% clear because there are more talented options in the fold than any in recent memory — which is a beautiful problem to have. 

There is legit depth here. 

Phil Longo has talked about wanting to have at least six wideouts to rotate in during games to keep everyone fresh. The players most likely to fill those roles are Chimere Dike, Bryson Green, Will Pauling, C.J. Williams, Skyler Bell, and Keontez Lewis. 

Who will be the starters, though? 

My best guess would be Dike, Green, and Pauling in the slot. There’s a perfect blend of experience and complimentary skillsets among them that should make for a dynamic starting trio. 

Regardless of who “starts,” we know that Wisconsin football has plenty of young talents to spread the ball around to on offense. 

Tight End

Before Wisconsin football began fall camp, tight end was pretty high on the list of question marks that needed answering.

And depth is even more shaky after losing some established players like Clay Cundiff and, to a lesser degree Jack Eschenbach on the eve of camp opening. 

Tight ends coach Nate Letton is leaning heavily on returning players like Jack Pugh, who has some athletic upside, converted fullback Riley Nowakowski, and inline blocking specialist Hayden Rucci. 

There have been some encouraging reports about Tucker Ashcraft, a 6-foot-5, 245-pound true freshman turning some heads — but it’s hard to feel good about where things stand. 

Rucci, who has caught six passes for 75 yards and a touchdown in his Wisconsin football career — has by far the most accomplished resume of the bunch. 

There’s probably enough talent in the room to get by in 2023, but UW desperately needs one of their younger, more athletic tight ends like JT Seagreaves or Ashcraft to develop in a hurry and claim the TE1 role for the future. 

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