MADISON, Wis. -- Skyler Bell saw action in just one game last season -- 14 reps, to be exact, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF) -- but his 15-yard reception in the Las Vegas Bowl revealed the potential heading into 2022.
Nearly four months later, Bell believes that time on the field against Arizona State on Dec. 30 boosted his confidence moving forward into this spring.
“You get to play in a game like that, a bowl game at the end of the season, and they allowed me, they trusted me enough to put me in the game," Bell said. "Our motto is when the ball comes your way, make a play. I got the chance, I fulfilled the opportunity."
"I think after that, I had a talk with coach (Alvis) Whitted and just build on it. Just build on it this spring. Don't regress, progress, and keep getting better and things like that. I think he's helped me do a good job of that.”
Eleven practices into Wisconsin's spring schedule, Bell has stood out during a few sessions open to reporters. The receiver reeled in over a handful of receptions during Thursday's session, highlighted by his ability to separate from defenders. UW's quarterbacks frequently found the Bronx, N.Y., native last Saturday, and two days prior on April 7, he made a trio of notable catches.
During that mid-week practice, Bell scored two red zone touchdowns in skelly work, one of which came in the back of the end zone off a Chase Wolf throw. Earlier in that session, he reeled in a deep pass from quarterback Graham Mertz during a team period with defenders surrounding him.
Whitted, now in his third year coaching Wisconsin's wide receivers, believes Bell is building off of his experiences in December. That success has yielded confidence for the young Badger, according to the assistant.
“Skyler is a smart kid," Whitted said on Friday. "I've been waiting for him to make this jump, and I knew that he would at some point in time, and that's just it. Guys will develop when it's their time, once they get comfortable in the offense, and they just go out and play, use their God-given ability."
Whitted called out Bell's offseason strength and conditioning work in increasing his size, and the receiver credited director Shaun Snee and his staff for their efforts in the winter. The redshirt freshman thinks that is where he began to see significant progress in his route running and all-around play.
“I'm more physical in the run game and things like that, so I would say definitely being in the weight room helped a lot this winter," Bell said. "That helped me get a bigger jump than I probably thought I would."
Whitted also mentioned Bell's confidence, studying the playbook, understanding his duties within the offense and his availability. Homing in on examples from spring practices that stood out regarding his pupil's growth, the position coach recalled Bell's ability to implement technique principles.
“We were harping on just pad level, demeanor, running out of your breakpoints, accelerating out of your breakpoints, and you can see it in certain routes," Whitted said. "It's pretty awesome because he's become more fluid. He's become, again, more confident, attacking the ball. And he's just taking small steps and just finding ways to get better, and it's awesome. It's been great.”
Bell came to Wisconsin as a three-star recruit and one of two wide receivers initially in the program's 2021 class alongside Markus Allen (Keontez Lewis also was part of that recruiting cycle, though he signed with UCLA before transferring to UW this winter).
Last season's game reps came during the bowl game victory over the Sun Devils in Sin City. Bell disclosed to reporters that he pulled his left hamstring during the second week of fall camp last August. His return to full health took over a month, but he later re-aggravated the injury. He returned for the non-conference clash against the Pac-12 program.
Now, Bell has been seen receiving some apparent first-up snaps alongside rising junior Chimere Dike, who is considered the leader among those in this position group. Bell noted his film study and meeting with the coaching staff that has led to the game slowing down for him.
Fourth-year junior wide receiver Dean Engram highlighted Bell's work ethic and attention to detail, and Dike referenced the second-year Badger's approach while making strides each day this spring.
"His confidence level’s really good," Dike said on Friday, "and I'm really excited to see where he goes this year because I think he could be a really special player, as long as he continues on this track he's on.
“He's really strong at the catch point. He's athletic, he can beat people downfield. He has a lot of tools that can help us so he’s doing a great job.”
Bell, when asked about his progression seen in these 11 practices, immediately pointed to a trait previously mentioned by Whitted.
“I would say my confidence jumps out immediately," Bell said. "I'm just more confident on the field. I know what I have to do when the play’s called. I know how to execute it. Like I said, when the ball comes your way, just make a play, and that's something we've been doing as receivers our whole life. So that's the easy part.
"The hard part is getting open and things like that, so I think my confidence is just higher than what it was when I first got here for sure.”
Bell will be among a group of players in consideration to contribute at a position group that saw significant turnover from a year prior. Gone are Danny Davis, Kendric Pryor and Jack Dunn; Davis and Pryor each caught 32 passes each for a combined 894 yards and five touchdowns in 2021. Devin Chandler left the program last season, while two other reserves without much experience -- A.J. Abbott and Isaac Smith -- departed via the transfer portal after the 2021 campaign.
Who sees the field alongside or in rotation with Dike this upcoming year is a storyline for this offense, one that is evolving under the tutelage of head coach Paul Chryst and new offensive coordinator Bobby Engram. Whitted said that he does not have a "starting depth chart" at the moment, though he has players he feels confident about.
Bell, along with Allen, Lewis, Engram, Stephan Bracey Jr. and others still have opportunities to make waves in this group with four practices remaining this spring and later in August during fall camp. The 6-foot, 190-pound wide out believes there are many options within the room that can be threats on the field.
"All of us that you see out there, we can all run fast," Bell said. "We’re all athletic. We can all make plays and it's just a matter of who's out there. Because I think, in my eyes, our ones, our twos and our threes, we can all go out there and make plays. From Chim, me, Markus, 'K-Lew,' Dean, Bracey when he comes back, so I think that we have a good group, and we're ready to make plays.”
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