Inked for the Wisconsin Badgers: Four-star outside linebacker Nick Herbig

With the early signing period for high school football players beginning on Dec. 18, BadgerBlitz.com dives into a closer look at the commits who have signed with the Wisconsin Badgers.

Let's take a look at outside linebacker Nick Herbig, who officially signed with Wisconsin on Wednesday.

The ninth commitment in Wisconsin’s 2020 class, Herbig is a four-star prospect by Rivals.com and the No.18 outside linebacker in the country.

Herbig committed to Wisconsin over offers from Boise State, California, Hawaii, Kansas State, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oregon State, Stanford, Tennessee, UCLA, USC, Utah, Vanderbilt and Washington

Quickly emerging as one of the top players on the Hawaiian Islands in his class, Herbig had a wide array of suitors entering his senior season. Off all his offers, Herbig told Rivals.com in May that UCLA, Washington and Wisconsin were the schools recruiting him the hardest. Herbig had visited the first two schools for unofficial visits and locked in a summer official visit for Madison in late spring.

“They have put a lot of guys in the NFL over the years, especially at linebacker,” Herbig told Rivals.com “T.J. Watt is a guy I really look up to as a player. I want to get out there and see it for myself.”

With Wisconsin having aggressively recruited him since the previous October, Herbig had his high expectations surpassed on his Madison visit. Hosted by senior Chris Orr, Wisconsin’s staff told Herbig they saw him fitting into the UW defense as an outside linebacker, much like his idol Watt. Combine that sale’s pitch with Wisconsin’s family-first atmosphere and winning tradition, Herbig didn’t need to take any other official visits and committed to the program.

“They develop really great defensive players especially at my position at outside linebacker. They really look at me coming in and being an outside linebacker for them and filling that spot on their defense.

“I had some interest in them and started looking more into them and their defense and the players they produce and just everything, their program, their coaches, I wanted to see what it’s like out there.”

- Herbig to Rivals

"What stands out the most about Herbig is that he can bring various things to a defense. He's a phenomenal edge rusher, surprisingly powerful against offensive tackles and plays with a wild aggression to disrupt in the backfield. He also does a great job of reading the quarterback's eyes and then breaking on passes whether for interceptions or to get there to knock down a pass. Then Herbig has great speed sideline-to-sideline to track down running backs and he can fill the hole and get tackles that way as well. Our guys liked him a lot at the adidas Nationals this spring and he could continue to move up the rankings with a strong senior season."

- Rivals.com Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney

It’s sometimes hard to judge a prospect based on highlight cut ups but that’s not the case with Herbig. Playing with exceptional agility and quickness to get anywhere on the field, Herbig plays and delivers hits with a physical confidence and an attitude. He looks comfortable in pass sets when asked to play in space and even better rushing the passer. Speed is his biggest asset, whether it’s rushing the passer, using his hand-placement technique to turn the corner and get after quarterbacks and ball carriers or sprinting out to cover receivers in the flat.

Herbig possesses a strong frame that looks to be able to handle more muscle once he gets into Wisconsin’s strength program. Entering a position group that will be looking to replace playmakers next season, Herbig has a chance to make an early impact on the two-deep depth chart or on special teams in the fall.