Key Badgers: No. 13 Kevin Zeitler

By Tom Lea

Senior Writer

Look at Kevin Zeitler. Just look at him. For a man that weighs in at well over 300 pounds, its tough to find an ounce of fat on his 6-foot-4 frame. Not only is he built like a dominant offensive lineman, he has a motor and aggression about him that makes him one of the Big Ten's best entering his senior season.

There's also no doubt that Zeitler will be one of the team's unquestioned leaders. He's not overly demonstrative or vocal, but he gets it done each and every day with the way he approaches practices, meetings and games. He is all about improving the little things because in the end that will lead to bigger things both individually and as a team. Other players, particularly some of the younger guys on the offensive line, will adhere to that.

Should Josh Oglesby return from his injured knee, the right side of the line could potentially be a strength of the offensive line. If nothing else, it will shore up what should be another strong unit. Zeitler is a proven force in the run game and his pass blocking is above average. When things break down, it usually won't be traced back to Zeitler.

As far as right guards go, or any guard for that matter, it seems as though the player that play with a bit of nasty streak are the ones that excel. Zeitler has that. And knowing how much the Badgers are going to run the ball with the two studs (plus the younger players at the position) lining up in the backfield, a team can never have enough players that play with the mentality that Zeitler does.

UP NEXT: No. 12 on our list returns for his senior year at a position that has been continually stout against the run over the past few seasons. This player will likely emerge as one of the team's leaders.