2023 Wisconsin Badgers Positional Review: Wide Receivers

Wisconsin dropped a hard-fought bowl game against No. 13 LSU to close out its 2023 campaign and the debut season of head coach Luke Fickell. Soon, winter conditioning will get underway, shortly followed by spring practice.

Over the next two weeks, BadgerBlitz.com will examine the 2023 Badgers position by position. Today, we'll continue with the wide receivers, a group that under offensive coordinator Phil Longo, is always under the microscope.

It was evident that the Cincinnati transfer Will Pauling would make a mark on this offense going back to spring practice, where he displayed his knack for getting open and uncanny body control and hands for his size. That was further confirmed when just before the season, Longo made his infamous comment that the only thing he loves more than slot receivers are his wife and kids. At the time, it seemed reasonable to assume Pauling could be a frontrunner to lead Wisconsin in receptions. Little did anyone know just how crucial the slot receiver would be.

Pauling led the Badgers' receivers in catches by such a wide margin that he more than doubled the next highest total. His 73 grabs were the most by a Wisconsin wide receiver since 2015, when Alex Erickson posted 77. Pauling became the clear focal point of the passing game, and was essentially the only receiver on the team who consistently displayed an ability to create for himself.

As a high-volume pass catcher who made much of his money in the underneath parts of the field, Pauling was heavily involved offensively in nearly every game. He saved his best performance for last, however — the receiver reeled in eight catches for 143 yards and two touchdowns in the ReliaQuest Bowl against LSU.

One his his scores in that game was a 53-yard catch-and-run over the middle, which could bode extremely well for next season. Pauling was reliable all year, but wasn't exactly a big-play threat. If he can begin to consistently rip off bigger run-after-catches, he has the chance to stake his claim as one of the better receivers in the nation in 2024.

The two positions that were the most hyped-up going into the 2023 season were quarterback and wide receiver. With an influx of transfers, high-end recruits and a brand new offensive system dubbed the "air raid," that was only natural. Both units failed to live up to expectations, but underachievement of the wide outs was perhaps more frustrating.

For starters, this unit struggled mightily to create big plays in the passing game. The longest passing play of the season went for 54 yards, and much of those yards were Bryson Green running untouched down the sideline after a catch over the middle. The offense simply couldn't stretch the field, particularly outside the numbers.

Drops were an issue throughout the season as well, so much so that the usually reserved Fickell gave an exasperated response at one point when asked about the problem: "Yeah, I mean, I expect my nine year olds at home to catch it. You touch it, you clutch it," the coach said. According to Pro Football Focus, Pauling and Skyler Bell each "led" the team with seven drops, although Pauling's drop percentage was much lower because of his higher target volume.

What's more, some players simply didn't live up to their billing. Green, for instance, was heralded as a contested-catch guru upon his arrival from Stillwater. And yet, he reeled in just one of 13 contested-catch opportunities, per Pro Football Focus. That won't cut it. CJ Williams falls into this category too. He displayed all of the talent in the world during spring practice, but his reps tapered off in the fall as Green got healthy and never became a big difference maker for the Badgers. His best performance on the season was five catches for 56 yards against Purdue.

Wisconsin's slot receivers appear to be rather set for the foreseeable future. That faction of the wide receivers is of course headlined by Pauling, and there's more talent waiting in the wings, notably rising sophomore Trech Kekahuna. Michigan State transfer Tyrell Henry could also feasibly join that group. The slot proved to be the Badgers' most productive pass-catching position in 2023, and so with the same returning star, there's little question that position will continue to produce.

The real question becomes who will step up out wide? Chimere Dike played the second-most snaps on the perimeter for Wisconsin, and he's now a Florida Gator. Green returns, but the rest of the cupboard looks...rather bare in terms of returning production. Barring a late addition from the portal, Wisconsin will need to make it work with Green, Williams, Quincy Burroughs and Vinny Anthony, among others. There's talent there, but very little proven production. The Badgers' perimeter wide outs will have some doubters to silence next season.

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