Wisconsin Badgers
It's been an unprecedented, uncharacteristic beginning for the Wisconsin Badger football program in their 2008 recruiting class efforts. They've abruptly busted through the gates with an astonishing 17 verbal commitments, which leads the Big Ten, and is amongst the highest totals in the nation. This development is a complete departure from recent classes. For example, in each of the two year's prior, Wisconsin had only accumulated 5 commits each at this juncture. It has been surely a tale of two extremes. Which result or strategy is beneficial, remains to be seen, as it will be proven on the field in the years to come.
Another divergent phenomenon which distinctly separates the '08 class from years prior, is the transformation from a hyper regional philosophy to a fairly national stance. Now, don't misconstrue my connotation of the term "national", in this context. It's purely referring to the Badger staff's current focus on broadening their recruiting base as opposing to meaning winning national battles. In regards to the latter, only minute differences can be seen in the Badger's ability to be victorious for national recruits who are coveted by programs with formidable national perceptions. However, in regards to the former, there has been a stark contrast between the current and prior classes when it comes to broadening the recruiting base to a national focus. Recent tradition has shown Wisconsin to have a proclivity to have near tunnel vision with their focus on the states of: Wisconsin, Minnesota, Ohio, and a few others. Through the additions of assistants Kerry Cooks and Dave Doeren, the Badgers have exhibited an added emphasis on Florida and Texas, the last couple years. However, the recruiting base didn't extend much further. For the '08 effort, the Badgers have made a return of sorts to Illinois (although they were never completely dormant there), securing 3 solid commitments already. Hopefully for the Badgers, and their fans, this group from the Land of Lincoln experiences more athletic success at the university, than most of their fellow state natives in years past. Also, Wisconsin returned to Missouri, landing probably their highest profile commit (
Wes Kemp), and hope he will compare favorably to other great Badgers of the past from the state (J. Fletcher, Bryant, B. Williams, S. Starks, T. Fletcher, etc.). However, most startling has been UW's unexpected emergence in peripheral states. They have received commitments already from: Arkansas, Tennessee, and Iowa. In addition, the Badgers have offered players from such states as: New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, Idaho, and even North Dakota. The Badger staff has been virtually omnipresent and unrelenting, for which alone they are deserving of being lauded.
Now, not every aspect of this class has been foreign to Wisconsin fans. The two most prominent similarities have been the continued in state dominance, as well as the level of impressiveness of wins in recruiting battles for the program. For the latter, it's been the usual suspects that UW have fought with over recruits (Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, etc.), and they've emerged victorious from time to time. As for in state recruiting, UW has once again built a fence around the state, landing every player they've offered thus far. Granted, the recruits haven't been as aggressively pursued by powers as in the past, however they were able to defeat Michigan for OG
Kevin Zeitler (a Miami offer seemed imminent as well). While the cream of the crop may not have been as fruitful, the harvest in the state may have been improved with superior depth. Zeitler,
Mike Taylor,
Peter Konz, and
Tyler Westphal; all resemble Nick Toon level recruits ('07 WI 4-star). Athlete T.J. Williams is intriguing boasting a 4.37 40 time. And the lifeblood of Wisconsin Rose Bowl winning teams in the modern era of Badger football, has been derived from in state; many of those players even having been walk-ons (a sign of how overlooked WI players can be). The 4-5 Wisconsin player core is vital to this class, and expect a swelling to 6-7 at its culmination.
The most impressive players of this class in my opinion are: Zeitler, Taylor, Kemp, and FL S
Kevin Claxton. Zeitler possesses great feet, Taylor has instincts/athleticism/size, and Claxton-reactions/physicality. The most questionable players in my opinion are IL RB/DB
Erik Smith and IA DE/TE
Zach Davision. Smith seems to lack confidence and the prerequisite enthusiasm for the Wisconsin program; while Davison lacks suddeness out of his 4-point stance and plays too upright.
Overall, the '08 class has been solid to pretty good in my estimation. That level of esteem could catapult to outstanding, if the staff is able to remain patient, wait for the high profile level of recruits who enjoy milking the process for every ounce of attention it can attract, and score them aided by a promising 2007 season. For those reasons, don't be discouraged to see an abrupt slow down in commitment news for the Badgers in the coming months. That wouldn't be an inherently negative occurence. Especially because the program has reached the precipice of their current
scholarship allotment limit, only having 2 remaining at this juncture. However, that number realistically would swell to around 6-7 with typical attrition, and 8-9 new players could be added to the list dependent upon an inevitable decommit or two. With those 6-9 remaining spots, the Badgers will likely address their three most pressing needs: RB depth, young D-Linemen, and a punter.
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