Wisconsin's coaching staff experienced winds of change once again this offseason. On Tuesday, head coach Paul Chryst made official an outside hire to mentor a position group and shifted responsibilities of two assistants, including one to an off-the-field role.
The program officially announced that Mickey Turner, formerly its tight ends coach since the 2015 season, will head into a position to steer UW's recruiting. It also confirmed that Bill Sheridan would take over the inside linebackers room from Bob Bostad, who moves to mentor the Badgers' offensive line once again.
Turner, a former Badger who played from 2006-09, tutored a group that produced tight ends such as Troy Fumagalli and Jake Ferguson. Fumagalli went on to play in the NFL after a UW career where he caught 135 passes for 1,627 yards and seven touchdowns.
Ferguson's name should be heard in this year's draft, as he reeled in 145 receptions for 1,618 yards and 13 touchdowns. He recorded one reception in each of his 47 games he played in cardinal and white.
Turner's work on the recruiting trail has paid dividends in the past, assisting in landing key prospects such as running back Jonathan Taylor, tight ends Ferguson, Hayden Rucci and Cam Large, along with offensive lineman Logan Brown. He will now turn his attention fully to helping shape future Wisconsin classes.
“I’m excited for this new opportunity and excited to take on a new challenge,” Turner said in a released statement by UW on Tuesday. “As someone who lived it first-hand, I love sharing what makes this place and this program so special. I grew up out of state and knew very little about Wisconsin before my own recruiting process began, but this school and this program checked every box for me once I was exposed to it. Playing here gave me everything I needed to be successful on and off the field, and I’m excited to help the young men we’re recruiting to discover that for themselves.”
"Mickey has the ability to make a major impact on our recruiting efforts as he moves into a role that allows him to focus on that aspect of our program,” added Chryst immediately after in the same release. "He has a track record as a strong recruiter and as someone who is honest and genuine in how he represents our program and builds relationships. I'm excited for him and the opportunity that he has to lead our efforts on that front."
BadgerBlitz.com previously reported on Saturday that Sheridan was expected to be named Wisconsin's next inside linebackers coach. The veteran assistant most recently guided Air Force's defensive line from 2020-21. He spent the two seasons prior at Boston College as its linebackers coach -- serving as defensive coordinator for the 2019 campaign.
“I’m thrilled to join the staff here at Wisconsin,” Sheridan said in the press release. “This is a program that I’ve admired for a long time, and now having the chance to work with Coach Chryst, Coach [Jim] Leonhard and this staff is an exciting opportunity for me. This team had the No. 1 defense in the country last season and has shown nothing but consistent excellence on defense under Coach Chryst and Coach Leonhard. I’m looking forward to helping sustain that success moving forward.”
Sheridan's presence on the coaching staff bolsters its reputation for having assistants who have played or coached in the NFL. Between 2005-2017, he worked with the New York Giants, Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Detroit Lions. He held defensive coordinator duties for both the Giants (2009) and Buccaneers (2012-13)
Among those he tutored in the NFL include former Badgers linebacker DeAndre Levy. Now, he will lead an inexperienced group with the departures of Jack Sanborn and Leo Chenal.
Sanborn and Chenal can arguably be called the nation's most potent inside linebacker duo of the 2021 season, combining for 206 tackles, 34.5 tackles for loss and 13 sacks. The latter claimed second-team All-America honors by the Associated Press, along with the Butkus-Fitzgerald Big Ten linebacker of the year award and consensus first-team all-conference nods.
Sanborn also emerged as a first-team All-Big Ten selection by the coaches last year.
Now, Sheridan will need to help third-year sophomore Jordan Turner and fourth-year juniors Tatum Grass and Maema Njongmeta prepare for bigger roles within the defense. The inside linebacker room also boasts scholarship talent in second-year Badgers Jake Chaney, Jake Ratzlaff and Bryan Sanborn.
"Bill is a strong addition to our staff," Chryst said. "As we went through the hiring process, I was impressed by what he brings to the table in terms of his experience, his knowledge of the game and his ability to connect with players. Inside linebacker has been a strength for us over the last few years and I'm excited to see the impact of Bill's coaching on what is a relatively young group as we look to maintain a high level of success from our linebackers."
Bostad's transition to the offensive line did not come out of the blue, as reports trickled in from the Wisconsin State Journal and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last month about the move. The longtime UW assistant reportedly replaces Joe Rudolph, who officially departed for Virginia Tech on Jan. 3 to lead the same position group as well as hold run game coordinator duties.
Bostad mentored NFL-ready Badgers such as Jack Cichy, T.J. Edwards, Ryan Connelly and Chris Orr as UW's inside linebackers coach from 2017 to the present. Sanborn and Chenal emerged as two other names that will likely be added to that list.
"It goes without saying that I'm proud to coach our offensive linemen once again," Bostad said in the UW release. "There is a standard here that is well-known. I'm proud to have contributed to that in the past, but having the opportunity to work every day on elevating that standard even further is what has me excited about the future. Our group is talented and I'm looking forward to helping them reach their potential, individually and as a unit, to help our offense be all it can be."
Bostad also developed several standouts during his first stint with Wisconsin from 2006-11. He coached the tight ends for the 2006 and 2007 seasons, but he moved to the offensive line from 2008-11.
Several linemen claimed honors and went on to the NFL, as noted by Bostad's UWBadgers.com profile. Gabe Carimi received the 2010 Outland Trophy on way to unanimous consensus All-America accolades. John Moffitt, Peter Konz and Kevin Zeitler all claimed first-team All-America nods by a publication under the assistant's guidance.
Bostad's resume for generating NFL-ready lineman also includes Carimi, Moffitt, Konz, Zeitler, Travis Frederick and Rick Wagner.
Between his stops at UW, Bostad coached the offensive lines for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2012-13) -- where both he and Sheridan were assistants on Greg Schiano's staff -- and Tennessee Titans (2014-15). He returned to the college ranks in 2016 at Northern Illinois as the program's tight ends/fullbacks coach.
"Bob has continually proven himself to be an outstanding coach, and you've seen it again in the job he's done with our inside linebackers over the last few years," Chryst said in the statement. "We had the need arise for an offensive line coach and, in Bob, I knew we had one of the very best in the business just down the hall. We have a tradition of strong play on the offensive line, and I know from experience that the tradition is in good hands with Bob. I'm excited for those players to have the opportunity to continue to grow with him as their coach."
Wisconsin now continues to hold 10 assistants on its staff; however, the program did not announce who will take the reins from Turner as UW's tight end's coach. For what it's worth, new offensive coordinator Bobby Engram coached that position group with the NFL's Baltimore Ravens from 2019-21.
However, Engram's official title still stands as an offensive coordinator on its website with no position group designation.
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