Wisconsin's 2024 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.

Jack Nelson’s relationship with Wisconsin goes all the way back to October 2017, when the Stoughton native received an offer from the Badgers as a sophomore and committed soon after, becoming the first commitment of Wisconsin’s 2020 class.

"I have known I wanted to be a Badger all my life," Nelson told BadgerBlitz.com at the time. "Also, being on the line, Wisconsin stands out from any other schools.

His father, Todd Nelson, was an offensive lineman for the Badgers in the late 1980s, which more than likely had an effect on his decision.

"My dad helped me make me into the football player I am, but it was my decision to commit to UW," Nelson said. "The culture of the whole football program, specifically on the offensive line, really stood out. It's also a great school to get a degree from."

Nelson ended up as the No. 198 player in his class, No. 19 at left tackle and No. 2 in the state of Wisconsin. Had he not committed and signed so early, he likely would’ve received a bevy of offers. Iowa showed some early interest alongside Wisconsin, although Michigan was the only other school to formally offer him.

It didn’t take long at all for Nelson to work his way up the depth chart. He became the starting right guard as a redshirt freshman in 2021, then moved to left tackle the following year and has stayed there since.

Nelson brings more experience than perhaps anyone else on the roster. His 2,436 career snaps, according to Pro Football Focus, are the most on the team by a fair margin.

Part of that’s due to Nelson simply being physically ready before most other linemen. When he committed as a 15-year-old, he was already 6-foot-7 and 242 pounds. His body has progressively filled out since then, and he’s now listed at 312 pounds.

“For his size… he can play really low, he plays really strong. His athleticism shows up. If he gets in a bad position, [he’s] able to recover,” offensive line coach AJ Blazek said during spring.

“He played guard early in his career — that smaller area, he’s really good at. Now on an island, he’s learning to play even more confidently.”

After Nelson earned a starting job rather quickly, then had a great 2022 season, the expectations entering 2023 were sky-high. Some even wondered if he could play his way into the first or second round of the NFL Draft.

Well, he didn’t. Nelson’s performance last season wasn’t completely poor, but a definite step-down. He allowed four sacks after allowing four over the prior two seasons combined, finished with a 75.6 pass blocking grade on PFF (down from his superb 83.5 grade in 2022) and even committed 13 penalties, more than double the next highest player on the team (Riley Mahlman, six).

Despite some of the recent problems, few Wisconsin players in recent memory have been as valuable as Nelson for as many years.

He’s been the blindside protector for Graham Mertz, Tanner Mordecai and now Tyler Van Dyke, and has become more valuable in the run game as Wisconsin is moving away from the constant power running of the pre-Fickell era. He and Mahlman should continue to be one of the best tackle tandems in the Big Ten.

Above all, he’s been elite at a premium position for multiple years. That’s a luxury few schools ever get to enjoy.

Nelson entered 2023 with the pressure of the NFL Draft weighing heavy on his mind. The 13 penalties tell you everything you need to know about his mental state last season.

Looking on the bright side, the pressure’s gone. Instead of trying to live up to expectations, he can focus on proving doubters wrong, which is the position every athlete would rather be in. He’s not getting the same praise, but that’s probably the best possible thing for him.

That said, there’s no assurance whether his outlier season was 2022 or 2023. Only time will tell.

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