Wisconsin football saw its season end without bowl practices for the first time since 2001. The Badgers hit a new low this century in year two of the Luke Fickell era, and will face a critical get-right year in 2025.

Over the next two weeks, BadgerBlitz.com will examine the 2024 Badgers position by position. Today, we'll continue with the tight ends, a unit that just received a massive upgrade with the commitment from Ball State transfer Tanner Koziol.

POSITIONAL REVIEWS: Quarterbacks | Running Backs | Wide Receivers

This position group was so lifeless in 2024 that yes, its lone touchdown was the high point of the entire season. Tucker Ashcraft's score against Northwestern was a three-yard reception, where he lined up as an H-back and snuck across the formation to reel in the touchdown. It was his lone catch that day.

No Badger tight end topped three catches or 23 receiving yards in a single game this season.

Wisconsin's tight ends were quite possibly the biggest afterthought on the roster once again. The players just seemed mismatched to what ex-offensive coordinator Phil Longo wanted to do.

Ashcraft simply isn't the most natural receiving threat. He doesn't possess great hands (as evidenced by his three drops in three straight games) and doesn't offer much after the catch. He certainly has the potential to be a mismatch at 6-foot-5, 255 pounds, but he hasn't been able to use that to his advantage with any semblance of consistency.

Riley Nowakowski (who is now in the transfer portal) was a much less natural receiving threat considering he converted from fullback to tight end two seasons ago. He caught 12 passes, like Ashcraft, but was far from dangerous as a receiver. His best game was a two-catch, 22-yard performance in the opener.

JT Seagreaves and Jackson McGohan were hardly involved either, combining for five catches for 46 yards. Not only were Badger tight ends an extremely minimal part of this offense, there wasn't much of an effort to change that. Wisconsin tight ends saw just 37 total targets last fall.

The Badgers' passing game was broken all season, and all parties suffered — not just tight ends. Still, no one in Nate Letton's room moved the needle in the slightest this fall.

It's generally unwise to pencil in starters before winter workouts even begin, but it's safe to assume that Koziol didn't come to Madison to be a backup. Especially coming off a 94-catch season, he could've played for a litany of schools. Wisconsin's lack of production at tight end likely went into his choice, and while the staff has said they don't promise starting roles to portal players, there's an expectation that Koziol will start. He didn't join the Badgers to regress.

That begs the question, how does the rest of the pecking order shape up? The veterans Ashcraft, Seagreaves and McGohan are all still on the roster at the time of writing. But again, they've done very little in their respective careers, and there's a reason the staff targeted one of the best tight ends available in the portal.

The two redshirt freshman, Robert Booker and Grant Stec, are also both still on the roster at the time of writing. They project as promising receiving options at the position, but neither has played any meaningful in-game snaps.

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