Key Wisconsin Badgers: No. 11 - Cornerback Faion Hicks

Wisconsin's 2021 football season is right around the corner, so BadgerBlitz.com ranked the top 30 players who we think will be the keys to success for Paul Chryst's squad this year.

Playing time, past performance and positional depth all factored into our staff rankings.

Faion Hicks, a redshirt senior, has a wealth of experience under his belt. After redshirting his freshman year, the Florida native has played in all but one game, appearing in 33 contests with 30 starts. Across his career, Hicks has racked up 80 tackles, including two for a loss, one interception and nine pass deflections.

At 5-foot-10 and194 pounds, Hicks is a versatile corner who rotated all over the field in 2020. Once Rachad Wildgoose, who was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the fifth round, went down last fall, Hicks took over as the top nickel corner and played well. According to Pro Football Focus, 209 of his 335 snaps were in the slot.

"I want to be as versatile as I can be, whether that's playing outside or inside, as needed." Hicks told reporters in the spring. "It was very fun to get that experience last year and it kind of fits my play style a lot."

For as much time as Hicks has spent on the field, he is lacking in the interception category. As the top corner in 2021, Hicks and coordinator Jim Leonhard would like to see more takeaways or even tackles for loss and run support from the corners.

Following a year in which the cornerbacks struggled at times, Hicks will be asked to help lead the room. His improvement and ability to limit the opponent's top receiver can contribute to the return of a dominant defense in Madison.

First-year position coach Hank Poteat called Hicks the "leader in the room" this spring and praised the way he's supported the young guys. Hicks will play a key role in the development of young corners such as Dean Engram and Alex Smith, among others.

Delaying the NFL draft process for a year, Hicks, a veteran corner, will play a vital role on the team and can put solid play on film for the next level. Leonhard called him the "guy to beat" for reps in the slot and thinks the position suits him well.

"He's the guy to beat out. He did a tremendous job. I don't think he got near as much credit as the season went on for what he was able to do in the slot for us," Leonhard said of Hicks' play. "The plan all year was to move (Rachad) all over the place, matchup-wise, whether it was inside or outside. And with that, other guys have to move, so Faion was going to be the guy that was going to play inside, play outside, depending on the matchups we like. Once Rachad went down and he really got comfortable in that nickel role, it suits his skillset really well with the type of receivers that he was covering there. He did a great job."