Ninety-six (96), 47, 67, 85, 62, and now 46.

No, that's not a lock combination, this week's winning lottery numbers, or the wholly unlucky sequence of numbers from the hit 2000s TV show Lost.

That would be the jersey numbers worn by redshirt junior Cormac Sampson since arriving at Wisconsin in 2018. BadgerBlitz.com spoke with the Eau Claire (WI) Memorial product over two years ago as he worked at first with the offensive line room and then the tight end group during the 2019 season. A couple of years later, his versatility continues to evolve in the number of positions he knows on the line, as well as the numbers he wears on Saturdays.

Sampson's mother's also keeps track in her own way.

"My mom has a shirt with all my old numbers on it, and each one that I'm no longer anymore is crossed out," Sampson told BadgerBlitz.com on Monday. "For the Michigan game, she was wearing it. It has a big 62 in a square right now, but then when I texted her for the Illinois game, I said ,'Well, you have to wear 46.' She drew it on a Post-It note and sent a picture to me. It was pretty funny."

Sampson's official number this year is No. 62, as it was last season. However, he has worn that No. 46 the last two games in wins against Illinois and Army -- lining up as an extra lineman or blocking tight end out on the edge during goal line situations. The fourth-year Badger confirmed the number changes within those opportunities are for eligibility issues on the line.

When looking through the NCAA rule book, Sampson becomes an eligible receiver that could potentially catch a pass legally when not wearing numbers 50 through 79. It could also allow him to be used in more adaptable formations if needed.

Sampson stated he was around 270 pounds, give or take five pounds, when he moved towards the tight end room in 2019. More in a lineman frame now in the present, he sits near the 295-298 pound range as of earlier this week.

That presents a little change from two seasons ago while in that tight end-like role, which also includes the added weight and knee braces, but the assignments are not necessarily harder, according to Sampson.

“I'd say the biggest difference is probably just the balance out on the edge because those guys are going to try to work around you or throw you inside or out," Sampson said. "Where if you’re inside, it’s your will against another guy’s. You're just pushing up against one another. Of course, you might get thrown here and there, but it's a lot more just a vertical game than a side-to-side."

Working in that similar role again shows Sampson's willingness to help wherever he is needed for the offense, as he did two years ago. As a redshirt freshman, he learned tackle and center before moving to tight end. He has played in 26 games overall heading into Saturday's matchup against Purdue (2 p.m. CT, BTN), which includes five starts. One came wearing No. 62 as an extra lineman against Notre Dame on Sept. 25. He also started two games as a tight end in 2019, another two at center in 2020.

Sampson competed with redshirt senior Josh Seltzner for the starting left guard spot in fall camp, but the staff also dispatched him to other positions on the line in August, which included the left tackle spot when Tyler Beach, Logan Brown and Tanor Bortolini missed time due to injury. The 6-foot-4 lineman believes he has taken reps at every position on the front five except for right tackle.

Head coach Paul Chryst -- when asked how Sampson has handled the various positions required of him and his progression to the point where he can be moved around -- believes it starts with how the lineman "approaches it every day,"

"He comes and puts the work in, and his attention to the details and certainly a good awareness of all of what’s going on," Chryst said on Monday. "I think when he, when anyone first learns it, you’re kind of focused on just what do you do, but quickly, I think he understood the big picture, which that helps when you're asked to do different things.

"It's important to him, and he goes out and he understands that this is a way that I can contribute to this team, which you appreciate. He's willing to maybe get, at one time, out of a comfort zone. If that's what we needed, he was gonna do it. Now I think he's done it enough where it's less that, and now it's more you just continue to work on the little fundamentals and the little details that become big when playing.”

Two years ago, Sampson pointed to learning the center position which allowed him to know others' assignments on the line. He reiterated that earlier this week.

‘Learning center, it really helps you learn the whole offensive line because you know where the point is," Sampson said. "You know, ‘OK, this combo’s gonna work here so you know the backside combo is gonna work here, and then the tight end must be going out there.'

"So the center position really is where all the knowledge comes from, but then just taking in all the positions, I just want to be the best teammate available. If it means I'm backing up left guard one week or playing a big tight end the next, I’m ready to jump in and just have our team succeed.”

Beach, one of Sampson's fellow linemen, mentioned the nuances of going between different positions and what has been required of his teammate.

“All of us love ‘Corm.’ We all appreciate things that Corm’s had to sacrifice," Beach said on Monday. "Switching positions, moving around, being a tight end, then being a lineman, then going back to tight end. I think as a whole offense, we appreciate that because that's not an easy thing to do. Especially tight end, o-line, it may seem similar. It’s a lot of really different things, and Cormac’s the kind of guy that is playing hard every play.

"He's got a great attitude with everything. We all love him to death. He's awesome. So we all appreciate the things he brings to the table and he does a good job.”

As for the various jersey numbers, does Sampson and the players kid about the half-dozen he has worn to this point in his Wisconsin career?

“I definitely joke about it with more of my friends in Eau Claire because they're always wondering, ‘Oh what number are you going to be this week?’" Sampson said. "I think the guys here understand that week in, week out, it can be something different.”