Key Wisconsin Badgers: No. 25 - Outside linebacker C.J. Goetz

Wisconsin's 2022 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 Luke Fickell's squad this year.

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

The top player in the state of Wisconsin in 2018, C.J. Goetz shut down his recruitment fairly early and committed to the Badgers in February of 2017. The former three-star prospect listed offers from Northern Illinois, Bowling Green and New Mexico, among others.

Goetz wasn't recruited all that highly, but Wisconsin made him a priority and landed him. He was the second outside linebacker in a 2018 class that also included the in-state product Mason Platter. The Badgers would call it a day at linebacker in that class after they also landed Jack Sanborn about a month later.

Goetz held down a starting spot on the outside for the first time in his career last season. Lining up opposite Nick Herbig, Wisconsin didn't necessarily need Goetz to rack up sacks. The outside linebacker finished 2022 with 62 tackles and two quarterback takedowns.

“C.J. Goetz has a great feel for the game of football, plays with his hands extremely well, very intelligent football player," outside linebackers coach Matt Mitchell told reporters this spring.

Mitchell also likes Goetz' fit within the Badgers' new defensive scheme. When asked how recruiting the outside linebacker position would change, the coach offered that it wouldn't change much and mentioned Goetz as someone that "really does fit what they’ve done and what we’ll continue to do."

In what will be his sixth year in Madison, Goetz can't be relied upon as someone that can consistently crank up the heat and pressure the quarterback. He is, however, a very solid run defender who's usually in the right place. He may not wreck a game singlehandedly, but very rarely will he blow an assignment or make a costly mental error. With the way that defensive coordinator Mike Tressel likes to drop his outside linebackers into coverage, it'll be interesting to see if that's a role Goetz gets to play.

Goetz is once again in line to be a full-time starter this fall. He'll undoubtably be an important piece in Tressel's defensive puzzle. However, his usage will almost certainly fluctuate for several reasons.

For one, the Badgers have lots of options at outside linebacker with a wide range of experience. Secondly, Tressel's defense often deploys just one outside linebacker at a time. If Goetz continues to be essentially a non-factor in the pass-rush, he may come off the field on passing downs.

All of the sudden, Goetz is the elder statesman of the outside linebackers. His experience, maturity and knowledge will be crucial as Wisconsin tries to replace the production of Herbig while developing their young talent.

The outside linebacker room in Madison is one of the more intriguing as the season draws closer. Even with the brief glimpse into Tressel's defense we got in the spring, it's still largely unclear who will be used and how. That said, Goetz is one of the most known entities on the defensive side of the ball. He's not flashy, but he's a consistent run defender who may find his way to the quarterback a handful of times. In fall camp, it'll be fascinating to see if Goetz can continue to hold off the talented, younger outside linebackers in Darryl Peterson, Kaden Johnson and TJ Bollers.

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