Three-star TE pledges to Wisconsin
While on an unofficial visit to Wisconsin last weekend during Father's Day, Jake Hescock's dad gave the three-star tight end a green light to commit.
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The 6-foot-7, 237-pound senior from Salisbury School in Connecticut knew Madison was the righht place for him, but waited until Friday to make the news official.
"It's Wisconsin, that's the school I'm committing to," Jake Hescock told BadgerBlitz.com. "It was a great weekend to spend together with my dad being Father's Day. My dad was all for Wisconsin and was ready for me to commit that weekend; he just loved it.
"I knew right when we got there that Wisconsin was going to be the place, but I wanted to take some time to think about it. I couldn't be any happier with my choice."
Hescock ultimately chose the Badgers over Wake Forest, but the three-star talent also had scholarships from Pittsburgh, UConn, Old Dominion and Temple. First-year assistant coach Mickey Turner also played a large factor in his decision.
"I really liked coach Turner, he made a great first impression," Hescock said. "He separated himself by coming all the way out here to see me not once but twice, and I really appreciated that. I really clicked with him and everything was perfect. During the visit the facilities at Wisconsin were great and the whole city was awesome. I got to walk around with my dad and it was a place I could definitely call home for the next four or five years.
"I think Wake Forest was probably my next top school. I really clicked with the coaches there. Coach (Adam) Scheier laid out how he was going to use me and the school is great. That was probably the leading competitor."
Hescock, the 13th commitment in Wisconsin's 2016 class, is the first and likely only projected tight end the staff plans to take in the current cycle. He's already started to build a bond with his fellow classmates.
"It's nice because I'll be the only tight end they sign in the 2016 class," Hescock said. "I'll be an in-line tight end, kind of a Y-position. We went over some film and I'll still have plenty of opportunities to catch the ball. It's really exactly how I want to be used because I think I can block and catch the football. He (Turner) showed me both those clips and how they are going to use a player like me this year.
"I talked to Dallas Jeanty and he's real cool. He told me everything that I already knew and I love the recruiting class that they're building so far; I wanted to be a part of that. They had a huge weekend last week with the two commits (Cole Van Lanen and Craig Watts) and hopefully we can do the same this weekend with two more (himself and wide receiver Jamil Kamara, who is currently on campus)."
A two-way starter who had 15 catches for 300 yards and a touchdown and 50 tackles and 10.5 sacks, Hescock is excited to have a stress-free senior year both on and off the field.
"It's really great because there won't be any pressure," he said. "It's not going to be about how I play, it's going to be all about the team. We want to win a championship and I want to focus on the whole team aspect. I won't have to worry about visits or other schools, I can just have a great senior year and have a good time."
From Rivals.com recruiting analyst Adam Friedman: Hescock is a big (6-7, 237), athletic tight end who can do a lot of different things. He is a great red zone threat and was faster out of his cuts than originally thought. Hescock was particularly effective when running crossing routes.