Following the conclusion of spring camp, BadgerBlitz.com will take a look at each position group and where they stand with the final phase of the offseason wrapping up.

We'll kick off our offensive overviews with the quarterbacks, a unit that experienced a full reboot over the offseason.

Danny O'Neil: The hierarchy didn’t change, so nobody really went up or down. But O’Neil improved considerably throughout the course of spring — more than any other quarterback on the roster by far.

He came from a San Diego State system that was rooted in the Air Raid and not as complex as Jeff Grimes’s pro-style offense. Through the first handful of practices, it looked like there was a mental barrier that O’Neil had to overcome.

Yet something shifted around the third week. O’Neil became much more comfortable in the pocket and even began to show off his big-play potential on a regular basis.

O’Neil was a true freshman starter for the Aztecs and could have found guaranteed playing time at plenty of solid schools. When asked why he chose to enter a backup role at Wisconsin, O’Neil repeatedly cited his faith in the “future” of the program.

I took this as a sign that he sees himself as a future starter, which isn’t a crazy thought based on what we saw in the spring. It would be nice to not have to find a quarterback in the portal for a fourth straight offseason.

Nobody? As previously stated, the hierarchy didn’t change, and nobody really worsened their standing. But, if I have to be negative, I’ll note that Carter Smith is more raw than I thought he'd be.

The early enrollee freshman entered Madison with a considerable amount of hype as the second-highest rated Badger quarterback recruit of the Rivals.com era. I may have let the recruiting hype inflate my early expectations. They were never too high, given that he could still be in high school. But the flashes were few and far between, and I can’t say I saw much noticeable improvement throughout spring.

His struggles could easily be attributed to the difficulty of Grimes’s system, which features a variety of concepts completely foreign to most modern high school offenses.

Quarterback coach Kenny Guiton joked about Smith not knowing how to take a snap from under center: “In today’s new world, it’s a spread world. Even my guy Carter, his first time under center, he is crouching down, butt almost touching the ground, and I’m like, ‘Dude, we’ve gotta fix this.’ He’s such an honest guy. I love him to death, because the first thing he says is, ‘I’ve never done this before.’”

This quote is symbolic of the mental adjustment that this offense will require — one that will take more than 15 practice sessions.

Grimes put it best when asked about his early impressions of Smith: “Really raw and really talented. I could give you more, but that’s what he is. He’s a guy who really needs to learn how to play the position. But in terms of his ability to run and throw and throw on the run, really high.”

I don’t want this to sound like legitimate doubt. Again, he’s an early-enrollee freshman. His potential as the future face of the program hasn’t changed. But I’m gonna be honest about what I saw — he’s raw.

Where will Hunter Simmons factor in? Right before the end of spring camp, the Badgers acquired a new quarterback via the transfer portal — redshirt senior Hunter Simmons from Southern Illinois University.

We never saw him on the practice field, so there’s no real way of knowing how he stacks up against the other quarterbacks. But based on his lack of experience at an FCS school (three starts in four years), it’s hard for me to believe that he’s gonna shake up the Badgers’ hierarchy.

Of the four quarterbacks on the roster, there’s a big disparity in experience. Billy Edwards Jr. and Danny O’Neil both have real starting experience under their belt, while Milos Spasojevic and Carter Smith have never seen a college field.

Perhaps the coaches just wanted an extra body who’s seen game action as insurance in case the top two guys go down. Which, based on the injury luck of Wisconsin quarterbacks in the Luke Fickell era, isn’t out of the realm of possibility.

So let’s say Simmons is the third-string quarterback. Will he be taking more third-team reps than Smith in practice? That could slow down the freshman’s development. But if Simmons stays behind Smith, then he’s essentially just another Spasojevic. In which case, I don’t totally understand the need to sign him.

If I sound confused, it’s because I am. Let’s see how the reps are split up in Platteville.

A major piece of the future is already on their roster. Despite my earlier negativity, he provides hope for the future of the program and I’m excited to watch him develop in this offense.

The Badgers got another glimpse at the future of the program when Ryan Hopkins committed on April 13. The four-star California native has a bevy of tools that fit Grimes’ offense, most notably his speed. He had the top 40-yard dash time (4.61) at the Elite 11 regional in Los Angeles last month.

He hasn’t had the biggest workload the past few years playing for JSerra. We’ll get a better look at his talent on the big stage this fall when he’s taking snaps for powerhouse Mater Dei. He’ll also have more eyes on him, so it’ll be important for the Badgers to maintain this relationship.

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