As we count down the days before the start of fall camp, BadgerBlitz.com takes a look back at the four- and five-star signees during the Rivals.com era. How did they fare in Madison and how have the Badgers recruited each position when it comes to the high-end talent?
Today, we examine how Wisconsin has done at wide receiver and tight end over the last 20 years.
RELATED: Reviewing Wisconsin's four- and five-star OL since 2002 | Reviewing Wisconsin's four-star QBs since 2002 | Looking back at Wisconsin's best recruiting runs |
Recruitment: One of the few elite prospects from the Milwaukee City Conference over the last 20-plus years, Lance Kendricks committed to Wisconsin over offers from Arkansas, LSU, South Carolina and UCLA, among others.
"I made the call last Wednesday to Coach (Bret) Bielema," Kendricks told Rivals.com. "He was very excited. The coaches at Louisiana State had slowed their recruiting of me down a little bit. I also looked at South Carolina and UCLA, they had only gotten active since the start of the month. I decided to go with the program that showed me they wanted me the most. They do expect that I will compete for playing time immediately."
Career: It took him a few seasons to get going, but Kendricks, who grew into a tight end, started nine games as a junior and earned AFCA All-American, as well as SI and Sporting News first-team All-American honors as a senior. In 2010, Kendricks led the team in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns and was selected in the second round of the 2011 NFL Draft.
Recruitment: Nick Toon was the first commitment for Bielema in the 2007 class, not surprising considering his father's (Al Toon) connection to the university.
"I mean, it was a great opportunity for me, and I knew right when I got offered by Wisconsin it was going to be one of my top choices," Toon told BadgerBlitz.com. "I thought about it today and decided Wisconsin was the right choice for me."
Career: The four-star prospect's career may not have lived up to the highest of expectations some had for him, but Toon certainly wasn't a disappointment. He started 20 games over his final two years and finished third (at the time) in school history with 2,447 career receiving yards and 171 career receptions. Toon was selected in the fourth round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the New Orleans Saints.
Recruitment: Kraig Appleton, whose recruitment was a roller coaster up until Signing Day of 2009, had an offer list that included Illinois, Michigan State, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Texas Tech, among others. In the end, the Badgers, led by then-assistant coach Dave Doeren, were able to top the in-state Illini for the No. 162 player in the country.
Career: The highest-ranked wide receiver Wisconsin has signed since 2004 only lasted one season in Madison. At UW, Appleton played sparingly as a true freshman before being dismissed from the program.
Recruitment: During his recruitment, Austin Traylor took official visits to Arizona, Cincinnati, Michigan, West Virginia and Wisconsin and had offers from a number of programs across the Midwest. But he committed to the Badgers, in large part, because of his relationship with lead recruiter Joe Rudolph. Primarily a defensive end in high school, Traylor signed on to be a tight end because Wisconsin already had commitments from Jesse Hayes and James Adeyanju in the same class.
Career: As a Badger, Traylor played in 38 games with 18 starts, primarily in a blocking role. In the NFL, Traylor had stints with the Cowboys, Chargers, Patriots, Ravens, Broncos and Lions.
Recruitment: One of the better gets during the brief Gary Andersen era, the Badgers were able to flip Dareian Watkins' commitment from Northwestern. As a senior, Watkins played quarterback for Galion High School in Ohio and passed for 1,456 yards and 18 touchdowns and also ran for 1,287 yards and 17 scores. Expectations were high for the Rivals250 member, who was set to work at receiver for UW.
"Wisconsin has always been the right place since I visited my sophomore year," Watkins told BadgerBlitz.com. "Coach (Chris) Beatty coming to Wisconsin was something unexpected and a huge blessing for me personally. The more I got to know Coach Andersen the more I knew I was meant to be a Badger. The fans and the atmosphere had me hooked from the 10th grade. Coach Beatty was very excited, but I don't think he ever doubted that I would play for him at Wisconsin."
Career: Watkins falls in Wisconsin's "what if" category after only staying with the program for a few weeks during the summer of 2014, a "stupid decision," according to his head coach.
Recruitment: An Under Armour All-American, Kyle Penniston made an early commitment to Wisconsin in February of 2014. At the time, the four-star tight end from California also had offers from Florida State, Miami and Washington State.
Career: After enrolling early and a redshirt season, Penniston started 21 games at tight end over three years for the Badgers. During that stretch, he had 16 receptions for 176 yards and four touchdowns. Penniston finished his final year of eligibility at Rutgers but did not play due to injuries.
Recruitment: Four-star athlete A.J. Taylor was the highest-rated prospect in a talented 2016 recruiting class for the Badgers. Iowa, Northwestern, Nebraska, Kansas State and Maryland were all heavily involved, but then-assistant coach Ted Gilmore was able to earn Taylor's commitment in August of 2015.
"I'm definitely excited about the new challenge of playing receiver," Taylor told BadgerBlitz.com. "Even Coach Gilmore said I've only scratched the surface as far as what I can do at receiver. That really kind of got me motivated. It will be challenging at first but it's nothing that I haven't done before. It's just working hard and staying disciplined, and that's what I'm going to do."
Career: Taylor, who played as a true freshman, had 89 career receptions for 1,316 yards (14.8 yards per reception) and 10 touchdowns during his time in Madison.
Recruitment: Wisconsin received a late addition to its 2017 recruiting class on National Signing Day - and it was a big one. Rivals100 prospect Danny Davis committed to UW over Kentucky, West Virginia and several other schools.
"We really spent January, most of our time, on Danny," head coach Paul Chryst said in February of 2017. "It was exciting to get the news that he chose Wisconsin, and we're excited about him. He's got a ton of athletic ability that gets us excited, but also getting to know Danny and his mom and dad and family, you feel good about that. He was on an official visit and our guys really felt comfortable and Danny felt comfortable. I have no hesitation when I say I think he'll fit in great on this team. He's a really talented player."
Career: Davis, who played as a true freshman, has started 15 games during his career at UW and has 99 total receptions for 1,164 yards and 12 receiving touchdowns. After injuries cut his 2020 season short, the fifth-year player elected to return for one final year in Madison this fall.
“Mainly had to do with trying to get a full year with him (Alvis Whitted). He’s coached a lot of places,” Davis told reporters this spring. “Just to learn a lot of things from him and take that in so I can use that to my advantage, but also I didn’t really want to end how I did last year - unfortunately not being able to play a full season - so I just wanted to finish strong with my team and put together a full season."
Recruitment: Wisconsin was able to snag Hayden Rucci, a Penn State legacy, in the 2019 class. The Pennsylvania native chose UW over offers from Indiana, Michigan State, Northwestern, Pittsburgh, Virginia and West Virginia, among others. And in the 2021 class, the Badgers went back to Warwick High School and signed Rucci's younger brother, Nolan, a five-star offensive tackle.
"Wisconsin just felt like home for me," Rucci told Rivals.com. "The coaches, commits, and fans are awesome and it has been great building relationships with people."
Career: After a redshirt season in 2019, Rucci played 177 snaps in 2020 but did not record a reception. He is expected to compete with Jack Eschenbach, among others, for the No. 2 tight end job this fall behind Jake Ferguson.
Recruitment: Markus Allen, a one-time Michigan pledge, committed to UW over offers from Cincinnati, Virginia and Boston College, among others. The four-star prospect was also receiving strong interest from Penn State and Ohio State down the stretch.
"Coach Whitted, when he first came in, he called me after Wisconsin offered me and they hired him, and I really didn't give him a chance. But then after that, I gave him a chance once I opened my recruitment back up and he was on me heavy," Allen told BadgerBlitz.com. "Like that day as soon as I decommitted, in that hour as soon as I decommitted. Saeed [Khalif], Jensen [Gebhardt] and all them they all kept the love there. Coach Chryst, he kept the love there. He kept the scholarship there, and I really respected that a lot from Wisconsin because a lot of schools didn't do that. So that's why Wisconsin was really a good pick and it is a good fit, and that's why I stuck with them because of the family atmosphere and how they just welcomed me in."
Career: Allen is preparing for his first camp at Wisconsin later this month. He is one of two scholarship wide outs for the Badgers in the 2021 class, along with Skyler Bell.
