In-state OL Tanor Bortolini pulls in offer from the Badgers

The Badgers' 2020 offensive line class has a strong in-state presence with commitments already in from Jack Nelson (Stoughton), Ben Barten (Stratford) and Trey Wedig (Kettle Moraine).

Friday's offer to Tanor Bortolini, a 6-foot-5, 270-pound junior from Kewaunee High School, will likely add another prospect from Wisconsin to the group at some point this off-season.

"A little," Bortolini told BadgerBlitz.com when asked if the offer from UW caught him by surprise. "But they’ve came to school twice and I went on a visit there last Friday and I felt pretty good about my relationship with the staff."

Bortolini, who was the offensive and defensive lineman of the year in the Packerland Conference as a junior, is being recruited as an interior offensive lineman by position coach Joe Rudolph.

"They project me to play guard or center," Bortolini said. "They said they liked my athleticism and work ethic.

"It’s pretty cool to be able to have an opportunity to play for the team you watched growing up. It's pretty exciting."

The offer from Wisconsin, though, may not lead to a quick commitment for Bortolini, who also has scholarships from Central Michigan, Eastern Kentucky, Harvard, North Dakota State, Northern Illinois, Syracuse, Temple, Western Michigan and Yale, among others.

"I plan on thoroughly weighing my decision and do what’s best for me," he said. "I have a visit scheduled for NIU tomorrow (Saturday) and then I’m not sure about others as of yet. I think the Hawkeyes could also be close to offering, but I’m not quite sure at the moment."

Wisconsin currently has six commitments in the 2020 class.