Injured players set to return for UW
MADISON, Wis. - Wisconsin head coach Gary Andersen met with reporters briefly after practice on Thursday, so I've included a few notes from his interview. The Badgers will host No. 19 Northwestern this Saturday afternoon, with kickoff set for 2:30 p.m.
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-- The Badgers expect to have wide receiver Kenzel Doe back this week against Northwestern, after Doe missed the last few games with a hamstring injury. Andersen said Doe will be the team's primary kick and punt returner, in addition to his normal wide receiver duties. Doe's return takes some of the pressure off of Jared Abbrederis, who the Badgers want to keep as healthy as possible.
-- Cornerback T.J. Reynard is available for this week's game, but Andersen said he's not likely to see a lot of action, even if he were back to full strength. Peniel Jean, Sojourn Shelton and Darius Hillary will continue in their roles as the top three cornerbacks.
-- Dallas Lewallen is expected to start at center after missing the Ohio State game with a leg injury, but Andersen said Dan Voltz played well in his absence. Andersen said Voltz is still the primary backup at center, and could be the next man in at one of the guard spots if necessary, too.
-- The Badgers have easily their biggest recruiting weekend of the season coming up this week, with several top-shelf prospects scheduled to be on campus to see the Badgers play Northwestern. Andersen couldn't comment on specific recruits, but hinted that there's still plenty of room for more prospects in their current class. The Badgers currently have 16 prospects committed to their 2014 class.
"Our numbers are loading up pretty quick this year, which is a great thing," Andersen said. "This is a big recruiting class for the University of Wisconsin. We've got a big senior class, we've got to fill in some holes. We're looking to get 30 new kids in the program by next August."
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