With Wisconsin's roster all but finalized and the season right around the corner, the Badgers have their sights set on fall camp. Once again, the team will travel to UW-Platteville for the first portion of practice up until Aug. 11.

As the dog days of summer heat up, so will position battles and the intense competition for snaps once the season rolls around. Up until fall camp, BadgerBlitz.com will preview each position on the roster. We'll continue with the tight ends, a unit looking to improve on its negligible production from a season ago.

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Of the three tight ends Wisconsin used last season, two return while one is in the process of trying to make an NFL roster. Hayden Rucci, who was a fifth-year senior last fall, is no longer with the Badgers but Riley Nowakowski and Tucker Ashcraft will run it back.

This was a room badly in need of reinforcements, and that's exactly what it got with the additions of two true freshman and a transfer. Grant Stec and Robert Booker, both of whom enrolled early and practiced this spring, represent the future of the position in Madison. Both are very capable receivers who appear to be seamless fits in a Phil Longo offense, but both figure to be at least a year away from contributing regularly and/or meaningfully. Meanwhile, LSU transfer Jackson McGohan is more of a hybrid player, technically listed as a tight end but someone who figures to be used almost exclusively as a receiver.

This is a position group with as many questions as any on the roster. After this room managed just 26 catches for 268 yards and two touchdowns last season, questions abound about how productive this unit can be. Tight end was very much a committee situation last season, but will that change in year two of the Longo offense?

With Ashcraft and Nowakowski having had another year to develop soak up Longo's system, plus the additions of three new faces in the room, this unit is primed to take a step forward. How big of a step that is remains to be seen, and realistically, tight end is a position that still seems a year away from being a regular threat in Longo's offense. Still, it's reasonable to expect an alpha to emerge from this room in 2024.

Between the two returning players with experience — Ashcraft and Nowakowski — Ashcraft appears to be the safer bet due to his game being more well-rounded. He's more of a natural receiver than the converted fullback, and at 6-foot-5, 252 pounds, he's got the frame to be an effective blocker as well.

"I feel more of a pep in my step. I feel more comfortable in my role now," Ashcraft said this spring. "When I'm out there I'm not anxious about getting the signals, getting lined up."

"Just getting stronger, faster, work on route-running, second-level releases. Run blocking, I could say that over and over," he added when asked about his development.

Nowakowski, meanwhile, began to emerge as a receiving threat down the stretch, reeling in a two-point conversion against Illinois and a touchdown against Minnesota. Regardless, he never topped two catches in a game, and doesn't quite fit the archetype of receiving tight end Longo wants to deploy.

As a leader, however, Nowakowski is an invaluable piece in Nate Letton's room as the only scholarship upperclassman.

"That's been one of my biggest roles this year, helping the young guys out, keep an even keel. When they are getting high, there's still stuff they can work on. When they're getting low, 'hey, flush it, next play,'" Nowakowski said.

A sneaky pick to lead the Badgers' tight ends in production is McGohan. He's likely the most natural receiver in the room, and at 225 pounds, he's the lightest and shiftiest tight end on the roster. His blocking and in-line play is still a major work in progress, which may hamper his ability to get on the field. Still, he oozes potential as a hybrid weapon who's too big for corners and too quick for linebackers.

"Jackson has been obviously phenomenal in the pass game," Nowakowski said. "He's just a freak athlete. Fast, quick, makes good catches, knows how to run routes. So that's a huge asset to us."

1. Is this still a committee? During spring ball, essentially every tight end but the true freshmen ran with the starters at some point. That suggests a few things, one being that the staff is still working to sort out who will play when and where in this room.

How much of an answer has spring ball provided? That will be interesting to watch come fall camp. Who takes the majority of the starting reps? Who's catching the most passes? Does an alpha emerge, or will we need to wait for the season to roll around in order to get a grasp on this position group?

2. Has McGohan added weight and strength? As a receiver, McGohan had a very promising spring. He can get open in the second level, and his hands appeared to be at least above-average. He's got some wiggle as well. As a blocker, however, he struggled mightily. He was routinely bested by blitzing outside linebackers. With his body type, that's not necessarily all on him; under no circumstance should he be assigned to block a defender one-on-one. But has that changed between spring and fall? Has he added size to his frame in order to be more effective as an in-line player, thus giving him a better chance to eat into snaps this fall? McGohan is the most intriguing player in the room because of his skillset and potential, but he'll need to work to get consistent snaps.

The rest of the tight end room consists of redshirt sophomore JT Seagreaves and walk-on senior Mike Cerniglia Jr. Seagreaves is a pass-catcher at tight end who boasts surprising speed for his size, while Cerniglia didn't practice this spring. We have yet to see him in action for the Badgers.

Of the two, Seagreaves is more likely to emerge because of his receiving chops, but he's still the forgotten man in this tight end room. Nonetheless, it'd be foolish to write anyone in this room off with the lack of returning production.

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