MADISON – Wisconsin football just wrapped up its second spring practice of the Luke Fickell era. Compared to this time last season, the roster is significantly overhauled in the head coach's image with another cycle of transfers and incoming freshman joining the program.

Spring practice saw razor-thin position battles unfold, with new faces and recent staples of the team alike competing tooth-and-nail for playing time. Now that the dust has settled after 15 practices, let's take a look at players on the Badgers' roster in context of their 'stock.'

Redshirt freshman slot receiver Trech Kekahuna was arguably the Badgers' biggest breakout player of the spring. After getting his first real opportunity in the ReliaQuest Bowl against LSU and making the most of it — the receiver posted four catches for 64 yards and tacked on a 37-yard kickoff return — Kekahuna figured to see extended opportunities this spring. Just like he did in Tampa Bay, Kekahuna once again capitalized on his every rep.

The slot specialist simply moves differently than most football players. He's extremely slippery in the open field and displayed some tantalizing twitch this spring. He's the kind of player that you make a concerted effort to get the ball to, and we saw offensive coordinator Phil Longo do just that this spring. Besides the quick-hitting screens and swing routes that are a staple of his offense, Kekahuna got the ball on several reverses designed to get him into the open field as quickly as possible.

Will Pauling is the Badgers' established starter in the slot, but Longo loves to utilize multiple slot receivers. Last season, Skyler Bell was third on Wisconsin's offense in targets despite being the second-string inside receiver. With the talent Kekahuna has flashed, it wouldn't be surprising to see him even more heavily involved than Bell was come fall.

Wisconsin reeled in three inside linebacker transfers via the portal this offseason. Thomas, however, had the most experience of the bunch, and after finishing the 2023 season as one of the best interior linebackers in the SEC, it's unsurprising that he looked exactly as advertised this spring.

With Jake Chaney, Tackett Curtis, and Christian Alliegro, there's plenty of talent in Mike Tressel's room. But after the spring Thomas put together, it would be shocking if he wasn't listed as a starter prior to the opener against Western Michigan. The linebacker has a versatile, dynamic skillset. He snuffs out runs at the line of scrimmage regularly, and can also line up off the edge or pressure the interior gaps on passing downs. Thomas is just the kind of player Tressel wants to deploy in his scheme.

Braelon Allen's departure to the NFL left a sizable experience gap in the Badgers' running back room. On one hand, you have the 6th-year senior Chez Mellusi. On the other, you will have three true freshman. Walker, who spent the past two seasons at Oklahoma, appears to be the perfect solution in more ways than one.

Walker obviously adds another back to the room who has experience at a very high level of college football. But the tailback has proved he isn't just here to occupy a roster spot. He's looked like Wisconsin's most complete back this spring.

Walker is a very well-rounded runner. At 5-foot-9, 222 pounds, he's a stocky and powerful back with the ability to dish out punishment. But he also has burst once he gets to the second level and can find another gear in the secondary. What's more, he looks like the most natural pass-catcher Wisconsin has out of the backfield. Thus, he projects as an excellent fit for Longo's offense.

Fickell isn't one to hand out unsolicited praise very often. That's why when, unprompted, he mentioned Nyzier Fourqurean as one of the most improved players on Wisconsin's roster, it was worth noting.

The former D-II All-American cornerback played valiantly last season, and towards the end of the year it was clear the staff liked him over Alexander Smith at the boundary spot. However, he struggled against some of the higher-end competition he faced, like Ohio State and LSU. This spring, Fourqurean was lights out.

Listed at 6-foot-1, which actually seems a little modest, Fourqurean is one of the bigger corners on the Badgers. This spring he coupled his innate size and physicality with a refined technique, which allowed him to stay glued to receivers' hips all throughout camp. He made one of the nicest interceptions of the spring, boxing out CJ Williams on a deep pass to the end zone and using his body to reel in the pick. Fourqurean should once again be in line for a significant workload, and it'll be fascinating to see how his game has grown.

Regardless of which gunslinger trots out with the offense come Week 1, redshirt Sophomore Braedyn Locke deserves a lot of credit for not going quietly into the night in the quarterback competition against experienced, touted veteran Tyler Van Dyke.

When Van Dyke was signed out of the portal, it was almost a foregone conclusion that the former three-year starter at Miami would be the Badgers' starter. After 15 practices, Van Dyke still looks like the starter, but by the skin of his teeth; it was an incredibly tight competition.

This battle isn't over, as plenty of summer practices await in August. But the growth Locke showed from last year to this spring was monumental. He looks like a different player, slinging the ball all over the field with swagger and confidence. In many practices, he was the better quarterback, and he orchestrated many of the offenses' best highlights.

It's not as if Van Dyke struggled and Locke looked good by comparison. Both signal-callers looked very capable in what appears to be a best-case-scenario for Wisconsin: Van Dyke looks promising and has made a strong case to be the starter, but Locke has made immense strides and is nipping at Van Dyke's heels.

Wisconsin's two transfer outside linebackers were arguably the top performers of the spring. We'll group the roommates together here because as transfers, they're in a very similar situation, and they've displayed a very similar ability to cause chaos up front.

John Pius is more of a pure pass-rusher than Leon Lowery. HIs position coach Matt Mitchell said he likely has the best get-off of any outside backer in his room, which, for a FCS transfer, is mightily impressive. Lowery, meanwhile, is a little bigger and more powerful, helping him contribute in run defense. Both, however, have shown an ability to do it all on the edge. If these two can play at even 80 percent of the level they played at this spring, the Badgers' edge defenders are going to cause a lot of problems for opponents.

Wisconsin brought in Sebastian Cheeks via the portal as part of its overhaul at inside linebacker. While Thomas and Curtis have fit right in seamlessly alongside Chaney and Alliegro, Cheeks played a limited role all spring.

After playing just 15 snaps in Chapel Hill a season ago, Cheeks hit the portal in order to be more involved. That hasn't happened yet in Madison. Following spring practice, the staff appears to like at least four players over him at inside backer. What's more, redshirt freshman Tyler Jansey made more of an impact in team sessions than Cheeks did.

At one point this spring, Cheeks was spotted working with Mitchell and the outside linebackers, perhaps in an effort to try to get the former highly-touted recruit on the field somehow. As of now, however, Cheeks appears to be an afterthought on the inside.

Unfortunately for Chris Brooks, and through no fault of his own, his stock took another hit this spring. A year ago, the big receiver was making all kinds of plays down the field until he suffered a left leg injury and missed the entire season. This spring, he was limited in every practice with a yellow non-contact jersey.

What's maddening for Brooks is that opportunities in the wide receiver room are still wide open. The slot position is relatively settled, but receivers' coach Kenny Guiton has been open about how the outside receivers are still battling it out. At 6-foot-2 and with a penchant for contested catches, Brooks would be an ideal candidate to finally compete for a significant role — if he was healthy.

Should Brooks be able to play in fall camp, there's a chance he earns himself some reps in the regular season. But it's a been a frustrating few years for the clearly very talented wide out who just can't stay on the field.

There were flashes, and encouragingly, many of them came from the Albany transfer Elijah Hills. But by and large, this was an extremely lack-luster unit all spring.

The interior of the offensive line had little problem handling the Badgers defensive linemen. They seldom moved bodies and rarely penetrated the backfield. When a nice run stuff or sack was made by the front seven, it was typically made by the inside or outside linebackers.

This is a thin unit with little returning production to speak of. It's likely the weakest position group on the team. Unless the Badgers can pull a few portal linemen to reinforce the defensive trenches, expect plenty of two-defensive linemen looks this fall.

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