Joe Rudolph happy with signees but still looking for a RB in 2020
MADISON, Wis. – Five quality offensive linemen, three speedy wide receivers, a nationally-coveted tight end and other prospects who can develop on the offensive side of the ball was the haul the University of Wisconsin got on the first day of the early national signing period.
No wonder offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Joe Rudolph was in a good mood when he met with the media Wednesday morning: he finally got to heap praise about all the new prospects he gets to teach.
Often using the words "fit" and "match" when describing the prospects, Rudolph heaped praise on everyone: from Waukesha Catholic Memorial tight end prospect Cole Dakovich’s ability to make plays on the ball and be physical at the point to wide receiver Devin Chandler, who announced his verbal commitment earlier in the day.
“I think his film is really what stood out,” Rudolph said of Chandler, who picked UW over Maryland and Virginia. “He's explosive, made plays, got easy separation. That was exciting to see. (Coach John Settle) and Coach (Ted) Gilmore went in and just did the research and just try to find out does he fit us? Does he match who we are? I really enjoyed meeting him and his mom when they came up on their official. The accolades came back in a huge way and I thought that he would bring a ton to this program.”
The commitment of Chandler served as a nice bookend for Wisconsin during the early signing period, seeing as the Badgers’ first seven commits are projected offensive players. One of those early commits is Chimere Dike, a mid-year enrollee from Waukesha North who stood out in every possible way to Rudolph and special teams coach Chris Haering.
“By the time I walked out of the school, hearing everyone talk about him, watching film, going through things, (expletive), I love him, too,” Rudolph said. “The kid was all-conference in four different sports. I don’t know if there’s anything he can’t do.”
But the highlight of the offensive recruits are the five offensive linemen, a group that were recruited in a variety of different ways. Jack Nelson and Trey Wedig – UW’s first two commits in 2020 – are four-star recruits and prototypical Wisconsin linemen who could play early in their tenure. Three-star Dylan Barrett was a talent who stood out in camp and how he progressed helped Rudolph evaluate his skill set. Tanor Bortolini checked several attribute boxes the more the staff watched him, while Ben Barten camped first as a defensive lineman and then return to camp as an offensive lineman.
“You’re like, ‘OK, man, this kid loves ball. Come back to camp in three days? Sure, coach!” Rudolph said of Barten. “You love that about him. You love his development … I think he’s got a ton of upside.”
“I think all of them have the attributes that you love to find,” Rudolph said of the five-man group. “They’re really big, they’re really athletic, they’re great athletes for their size, really smart kids, incredible work ethic and I think they have outstanding character around them. I think they’re guys who want to develop, know how to get better and want to do those things.”
The only two positions Wisconsin didn’t address on day of the early signing period were quarterback and running back. The Badgers are known to have offered only four 2020 quarterbacks, all of whom signed elsewhere, but likely won’t target one during the current cycle with four-star Graham Mertz redshirting this season and Deacon Hill committed in the 2021 class.
Running back is a different story. Wisconsin remains in pursuit of four-start tailbacks Jalen Berger and Kevonte Bradford. Berger is expected to announce his commitment after the first of the year and the New Jersey native is reportedly leaning toward Rutgers. Bradford – a Texas native – is rated the No.12 tailback in the country and took an official visit to Madison over the summer.
Over the course of the next few weeks, landing one of those players becomes top priority before closing the book on another top-40 recruiting class.
“I think Coach Set is grinding on it, man,” Rudolph said of finding a tailback. “He’s smart and he’s on top of it. He’s working his butt off, and we all are, and pushing to make it happen. I like our room and the flexibility we have with the incoming class. We have some good options, but there’s no question that will be the emphasis in the last half of recruiting.”