Wisconsin Badgers 2023 Fall Position Preview: Special teams

MADISON — The Wisconsin football team starts training camp seven days from now.

As we move our way toward Aug. 2, BadgerBlitz.com continues its position-by-position analysis of the roster with a look at the specialists.

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New Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell and his staff took action this spring after realizing the Badgers had a hole at punter.

Jack Van Dyke and Gavin Meyers struggled during camp, and UW addressed the position by adding Australian punter Atticus Bertrams. He's expected to be the replacement for Andy Vujnovich, who declared for the NFL after three seasons as UW's punter. He set program records in career average (44.3 yards) and single-season average (46.4 yards in 2021).

A product of the respected Prokick Australia program, Bertrams was supposed to begin his collegiate career last season. He committed to USC and signed as part of the Trojans' 2022 class but suffered a back injury before he was scheduled to arrive on campus. Bertrams received an exemption from his national letter of intent and stayed in Australia. He wanted to take his time with his recovery.

"It gave me an opportunity to have an extra year to build up my strength," Bertrams, who has all four years of eligibility remaining, said. "You have to be at 100 percent to enter a college football program. If you're anything under that, you're putting yourself at risk and the team as well. I am really happy to be feeling good and strong. I can't wait to get started."

The Badgers may also have a new starting kicker in Nathanial Vakos, a transfer from Ohio University.

As a true freshman last season, Vakos made 22 of his 27 field goal attempts. He went 9 of 9 from 20-29 yards, 8 of 9 from 30-39 yards, 4 of 6 from 40-49 yards and 1 of 3 from 50-59 yards (that make was from 55 yards), according to Pro Football Focus. He made 49 of his 50 extra-point tries.

While Vakos finished the spring with an edge, he'll still need to hold off Nate Van Zelst during fall camp. Van Zelst handled field goals for the Badgers after Vito Calvaruso struggled and suffered an injury early last season. Van Zelst went 3 of 3 from 20-29 yards, 5 of 8 from 30-39 yards and 3 of 3 from 40-49 over 11 games. He did not attempt a 50-yarder.

This offseason wasn't the first time Fickell turned to Prokick Australia for a punter. The veteran head coach tapped into that well twice during his six seasons at Cincinnati and landed highly successful punters (John Smith and Mason Fletcher) each time.

Smith ended his career as Cincinnati's all-time leader for total yardage (10,245 yards), and Fletcher ranked fourth in the nation in average yardage in 2022 (46.4). They were both finalists for the Ray Guy Award, which is given annually to the nation's best punter.

"I was recruited at USC as a pro-style guy. Coach Fickell has obviously had a lot of success with the Aussie-style punting. I feel like I am comfortable doing whatever they ask," Bertrams said. "I am well-rounded across the board. Whatever coach Fickell wants to throw at me, I am going to give it my best and do it at a high level."

The Prokick program has produced several Ray Guy Award winners (or finalists) and NFL punters. Some of the notable alums include Mitch Wishnowsky (San Francisco 49ers), Arryn Siposs (Philadelphia Eagles) and Cameron Johnston (Houston Texans).

The Badgers didn’t show much in the return game during spring ball, but a handful of wide receivers frequently took reps fielding kicks and punts.

That group included Chimere Dike, C.J. Williams, Will Pauling and Vinny Anthony. Dike is the only one of the four who's returned kicks/punts in a collegiate game. He returned nine kicks for 223 yards over the last two seasons.

Pauling and Anthony, of course, are two of the fastest players on the roster, making them potential game-breakers as kick/punt returners.

These roles will likely come down to those three (Dike, Pauling and Anthony) during fall camp.

Special teams coordinator Matt Mitchell, who also coaches outside linebackers, made it clear this spring that multiple starters will contribute on special teams. And not just as kick/punt returners.

"Our philosophy is to have starters play special teams," Mitchell, who was Grand Valley State's head coach for 13 years, said. "The special teams aren’t going to be populated solely with reserves. ...We have done some drill work on special teams, and we're really pushing guys. The two coverage units are extensions of your defense. The return units are extensions of your offense."

Fickell will also be heavily involved in coordinating special teams units.

"I think one of the biggest benefits of that is the touch and connection you have with all of the players," Mitchell said. "That's the one thing that's unique about special teams. That's what I have seen out of coach Fickell so far. I've been very impressed with his involvement in special teams. It's not a one-man show. He's very much involved in it. ...I can see the impact of that already during my time here."

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