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Better Know a Badger: Three-star ILB Aidan Vaughan

Wisconsin signed 14 scholarship players in December as part of its 2022 class. Most will begin their journeys to Madison this summer. However, Paul Chryst expects six players to enroll early in January.

BadgerBlitz.com brings back its annual "Better Know a Badger" series, where we check in with the incoming freshmen as they begin the transition from being prep standouts to college athletes. Next up is inside linebacker Aidan Vaughan, whose recruiting journey skyrocketed during his senior season.

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Inside linebackers coach Bob Bostad discussed Vaughan's skill set and what he could bring to the position group.

"What he can bring -- you can either gonna play a MIKE or a WILL, right?," Bostad said. "And really those two positions aren't that far off. The things that he did on film that we liked are the things that he can bring. He runs real well, he's sudden, he's explosive. He was physical for what he did and in the league that he played in, which is a good league. And what I was really impressed with was he wasn't just a guy that where the school is a really well-coached school where they said, 'Well, guy's a linebacker. That's all he does.'

"This guy was returning kickoffs, this guy was playing fullback, this guy never came off the field. I think that's a really good sign that if you're a good coach, you're using your best players, and he was clearly one of the best players in a really good league and just showcasing all of his different talents. That's something that stands out. He doesn't come off the field."

BadgerBlitz.com spoke with Vaughan on Jan. 14, just a day away before his upcoming travels to Madison. Questions and answers are lightly edited for brevity and clarity.

Three-star inside linebacker Aidan Vaughan.
Three-star inside linebacker Aidan Vaughan.

How's it feel to be signed and have everything official now as you're just a couple days away from getting here to Madison?

"It really feels great. Just having all the stress off my shoulders, I just can't wait to become part of the team, just get up on campus, start school, get my schedule down and get ready for next season."

How was signing day for you, and just what were some of the events that you participated in?

"Our school did a little signing day with me and two other kids, and it just felt really good just to celebrate the accomplishments of signing to Wisconsin. It felt really good to just get all the stress off my shoulders, too, knowing everything's official and just waiting to come home to Madison."

Just what type of process does it take and how many years in advance did you have to plan it all out to be able to be in the spot to enroll early and take advantage of winter conditioning and spring ball?

"The biggest thing is just staying ahead of your classes, making sure you're not failing anything, and then you do have to take a few extra credits online. Just get those courses out of the way. You can do those in the summer in a few weeks so just making sure to stay on top all my work.

"The process went pretty smooth, and I always had a feeling that I was going to graduate early. I knew that's what I wanted to do since freshman year, so I always made sure to stay on top of it, and I took those classes as early as possible."

You're taking online courses to try to enroll early. But then on top of that, when you look back at your senior year, just how crazy was that recruiting process for you, when you're trying to navigate your studies, you're trying to play the game of football, and then you're also getting all this late attention and offers from schools?

"During mid-season, when all the offers started coming in, it was definitely a lot of stress. Just a lot of pressure on me to make sure I'm doing everything right. But it definitely worked out, and I'm glad that I put in all the work when I needed to. Got everything done and stayed on top of things."

Leading up to the early signing period, did you have any other schools checking in or trying to see your status before you signed on that dotted line for your National Letter of Intent?

"Are you asking after I committed to Wisconsin?"

Yeah, after you committed to Wisconsin.

"I made sure to call all the coaches personally and let them know that I committed, and a lot of the coaches were really respectful about it and respected my decision to commit to Wisconsin."

So even after you committed to Wisconsin, no one was trying to see your status or try to flip you or anything like that?

"Nope. No one really tried to flip me too much. They all respected my decision."

How have the conversations been between you and the other Wisconsin signees after the early signing period?

"Honestly, I feel like we're getting pretty close. We talk a lot in the group chat, just excited to come up and work together. I'm really excited to meet all of them in person, just get close with the guys as we start working out and doing school together. I can't wait for it."

I know we spoke, I think it was last month or late November. Just how often have you been in contact with the Wisconsin staff upon your arrival coming in just a day or so, and who are you talking with the most?

"As I have to get everything done. I've probably been talking to the athletic advisors the most. Just trying to get all the work done, all the extra stuff I need to do, all the health forms, all that kind of stuff, just finalizing everything so I'm ready to go next week. So I've probably been talking to her the most."

Anybody from the coaching staff that you've touched base with though recently?

"Yeah, the position coach."

So Coach Bostad?

"Yeah, I've been talking to Coach Bo a little."

He mentioned, by the way, you had a one-on-one tryout session with him in the summer, if I'm not mistaken.

"Yeah. I think that was in June."

What do you remember from that day, and just what were your emotions of going one-on-one with with an assistant coach?

"At the time, I didn't really have any offers and I wasn't really knowing what to expect. So going into it, I was definitely really nervous, had a lot of stuff built up. But once we got working out, I felt pretty good. My body was a little tired from all the camps, but I felt like I did pretty well. I just needed to put out the film to back all the workouts."

I know there's six of you to be enrolled early, but just overall in this class of 2022, which player from this class are you looking forward to seeing the most on the field?

"Honestly, it's pretty hard to say. They all have so much talent. I'm just excited to see them all work out, and I can't wait just to see what they bring to the table."

When is your move-in date, and who's your roommate?

"We're moving in at 10 am on Sunday ... and my roommate is [cornerback] A'Khoury [Lyde]."

Have you talked to A'Khoury about room set up, all that other fun stuff before you guys get here?

"Yeah, we've texted a little bit of just saying who's getting what. Just making sure we have everything for the room and that we're all ready to go once we get moved in."

What do you feel that you can bring to Wisconsin's defense and that inside linebacker room?

"I definitely think my work ethic when I first get there is going to be the biggest thing. Just pushing all the guys, making sure we're all working our hardest to be the best versions of ourselves and just competing every single day. Making sure no one's slacking off."

You talk about that work ethic. What type of training have you been doing between the end of your senior season in Michigan and preparing to come to Madison?

"I haven't been lifting as much as I should probably, but I've been doing a lot of field work every day. Probably two or three hours of fieldwork, just athletic training, position work. Then, we do conditioning a few times a week with me and my trainer."

What are some of the areas that you see yourself improving in once you get to Wisconsin?

"Just learning how to become a better linebacker on the field, knowing the position more. I'm definitely excited about learning the playbook and understanding the fits, all the run fits and then pass drops because I'm new to linebacker still, so I just want to learn a lot more, become a better linebacker on the field. I can't wait to get up there and put some weight on."

What are your goals for your freshman year?

"I definitely want to get on the field, get my name out there, put up some good tape and then just keep grinding. I want people to know my name, know who I am, start talking about me."

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