Wisconsin's 2011 recruiting class was one of the strongest under head coach Bret Bielema, with just two players leaving the program prior to their senior year of eligibility. Assistant coach Joe Rudolph came up big in Ohio and Pennsylvania, and the class also produced the dominating backfield combination of Derek Watt and Melvin Gordon.

Bielema also made a very strong late run at four-star quarterback Jacoby Brissett, who eventually landed at Florida.

"There are some guys that we're on here till the bitter end," Bielema said. "I will say that there is a possibility of two other guys out there that we may add to this class if everything comes the way we want it."

Continuing in our series: As Wisconsin fans count down the days before fall camp opens, we look back at the 2011 recruiting class and re-rank each player based on their careers at UW.

RELATED: Recruiting Rewind: Class of 2006 | Recruiting Rewind: Class of 2007 | Recruiting Rewind: Class of 2008 | Recruiting Rewind: Class of 2009 | Recruiting Rewind: Class of 2010 |

James Adeyanju's offer list was as impressive as anyone's in the 2011 class. Stanford, Nebraska, Tennessee, Michigan, Michigan State and Arizona were all after the defensive lineman from Illinois. At Wisconsin, though, he surprisingly struggled to crack the two-deep and transferred to Central Washington for his final year of eligibility.

Rivals Re-Ranking: **

Wisconsin legacy Sam Arneson, who also had offers from Central Michigan, Western Michigan and Toledo, jumped on the opportunity to attend UW in the summer of 2010. He played quarterback as a senior in high school and transitioned into a tight end for the Badgers. Arneson contributed as a true freshman and played in 50 career games with 18 starts. The former three-star prospect tallied 39 receptions for 463 yards and eight touchdowns from 2011 to 2014 and was an honorable mention All-Big Ten selection (media) as a senior.

Rivals Re-Ranking: ***

One of five signees from Ohio in the 2011 class, Ray Ball was targeted early in the process by assistant coach Joe Rudolph. He picked UW over scholarships from Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan and UCLA but never lived up to his potential at Wisconsin. Ball saw significant action in Outback Bowl vs. Auburn (Jan. 1, 2015) and was penciled in as a starter in 2015. But he left the team and did not participate in senior ceremonies with the rest of his class.

Rivals Re-Ranking: **

During his recruitment, Mike Captuo trimmed his list to four schools: Wisconsin, Penn State, Ohio State and Pittsburgh, and Rudolph was able to land the three-star prospect from Pennsylvania. Five years later, Caputo will be remembered as one of the top safeties to ever play for the Badgers. He competed in 53 games, making 40 starts, and recorded 244 total tackles and 10 TFL. In his final two seasons, Caputo was the leader - both on and off the field - of Wisconsin's defense.

Rivals Re-Ranking: ****

Kenzel Doe was a rare prep school (Oak Ridge Military Academy) signee for the Badgers, who were able to flip his commitment from Oregon State. Doe's biggest impact came in the return game, where he finished his career ranked No. 2 in UW history for career kickoff return average at 25.5 yards per runback and No. 7 in school history in punt return yards at 481. He also logged seven starts as a wide receiver with 42 career catches and one touchdown.

Rivals Re-Ranking: ***

A stocky cornerback from Florida who may have been better suited at safety or even running back, Terrance Floyd made his impact on special teams at Wisconsin. He finished his five-year career in Madison with six total tackles in 21 games.

Rivals Re-Ranking: **

Originally recruited as a linebacker, Jordan Fredrick played receiver for Wisconsin and made 12 starts over the course of his career. The standout from nearby Madison Memorial excelled as a blocking weapon, but also collected 40 receptions for 428 yards and one touchdown at UW.

Rivals Re-Ranking: **

Devin Gaulden backed away from his commitment to Auburn in favor of Wake Forest in December of 2010. But a late in-home visit from Wisconsin staff members Chris Ash, Greg Jackson, Charlie Partridge and Bielema swung the momentum in the Badgers' favor. At UW, Gaulden played as a true freshman but battled injuries during his time in Madison. The three-star cornerback tore his ACL in 2012 and did not play due to that same injury in 2013. Gaulden made five starts the following year but, ironically, used his graduate transfer option to play his final season at Wake Forest.

Rivals Re-Ranking: **

Melvin Gordon will go down as one of the most accomplished players in the program's history. Luckily for Wisconsin, the staff was able to flip his commitment from Iowa in December of 2010. Gordon's redshirt junior season was historic; he was the Doak Walker Award winner, Heisman Trophy runner-up and a unanimous consensus first-team All-American. That season, Gordon rushed for 2,587 yards, a Big Ten record and the second-most in FBS history at the time, and led the nation in rushing at 184.8 yards per game. Because of his success, we've regraded the in-state standout from Kenosha to five-star status.

Rivals Re-Ranking: *****

Wisconsin held onto a scholarship for four-star quarterback Jacoby Brissett past National Signing Day, though he eventually signed with Florida. And with a spot left in the 2011 class, Bielema extended a late offer to in-state athlete Nate Hammon. The former two-star prospect spent his first two seasons as a reserve wide receiver but found a home at safety under new head coach Gary Andersen and played in 12 games with two starts in 2013. But a nerve condition (compartment syndrome) restricted the blood flow to Hammon's legs and he was forced to give up football in 2014.

Rivals Re-Ranking: **

Wisconsin bested national heavyweights Florida State, Oregon, Nebraska and Tennessee to land Jesse Hayes, a three-star prospect from Ohio. The son of Jay Hayes, an assistant coach at UW from 1995-98, Jesse was a member of the two-deep as a junior and senior at outside linebacker but never cracked the starting lineup. He totaled 12 tackles and one sack over the course of his career.

Rivals Re-Ranking: **

Wisconsin commonly got its cornerbacks from Florida under Bielema but veered off that path with Darius Hillary, a three-star prospect from Ohio. It certainly worked out well for the Badgers, as Hillary started 40 consecutive games at cornerback and was an honorable mention All-Big Ten selection as a senior.

Rivals Re-Ranking: ***

Another prospect whose offer list included 20-plus schools, A.J. Jordan eventually committed to Wisconsin over an offer from Michigan. Reflecting back on his time in Madison, Jordan was essentially a special teams performer. He started his career at receiver, moved to safety during bowl prep late in the 2013 season and moved back to wide out during spring camp of 2015. Jordan earned two letters as a Badger.

Rivals Re-Ranking: **

The No. 1 player in the state, Rivals250 member and U.S. Army All-American Bowl participant, Jake Keefer arrived at Wisconsin with lofty expectations. The four-star prospect redshirted in 2011, recorded one tackle the following year and suffered a season-ending knee injury during fall camp of 2013. During that time, he also transitioned to the defensive line and was a role player in this final two seasons at UW. Arriving on campus at 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, it would have been interesting to see how Keefer would have fit in a 3-4 defense at outside linebacker from the very start.

Rivals Re-Ranking: **

Derek Landisch flew a bit under the radar in high school until he exploded onto the scene at Wisconsin's summer camp. Another contributor as a true freshman, the former Arrowhead standout was a stout middle linebacker who made 17 career starts - 14 as a senior. In that year, he was a first-team All-Big Ten (coaches) and academic all-Big Ten selection. Landisch totaled 165 career tackles, including 20 tackles for loss and 10 sacks.

Rivals Re-Ranking: ***

A star from in-state powerhouse Waunakee, Austin Maly was supposed to be an athletic H-back in Wisconsin's offense. After a redshirt season, Maly, who also had offers from Illinois State and Western Michigan, didn't play in 2012 and 2013 and earned his first letter in 2014. He didn't finish his final year of eligibility at UW.

Rivals Re-Ranking: **

Tucked away in small-town Springfield, Minn., Tyler Marz chose Wisconsin over an offer from the in-state Gophers. An athletic left tackle, Marz controlled the all-important left tackle position on the offensive line as a sophomore, junior and senior. In 2015, Marz anchored a unit that helped UW's offense produce 228.3 passing yards per game, the third-best average in school history, and was a second-team All-Big Ten (media) selection.

Rivals Re-Ranking: ****

Ohio's 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 as a tight end because Wisconsin already had commitments from Jesse Hayes and James Adeyanju in the same class. As a Badger, Traylor played in 38 games with 18 starts, primarily in a blocking role.

Rivals Re-Ranking: ***

Derek Watt jumped on an offer from Northwestern in the summer of 2010 but flipped to Wisconsin in November after the staff extended a greyshirt opportunity. That later turned into a full ride when a scholarship opened up later in the process. After a redshirt season, Watt moved from linebacker to fullback and went on to start 24 games over the next four years. He was part of a senior class that posted a record of 38-16 over four years, including wins in Outback and Holiday bowls, in addition to the 2012 Big Ten championship and a 2014 Big Ten West Division title.

Rivals Re-Ranking: ***

A track standout from Brookfield (WI) Academy, Frederick Willis, who captured Division 3 state titles in the 100 and 200 meters as a junior and senior, was lightly recruited out of high school. The Badgers took a chance on his potential after a strong camp performance in June of 2010, largely due to his speed. At UW, Willis played in five games as a true freshman but left the program the following year.

Rivals Re-Ranking: Incomplete

Top recruit: Gordon, arguably the top running back in the program's history.

Best surprise: Marz certainly had the potential to excel at Wisconsin, but he evolved into a three-year starter at left tackle, an awfully impressive feat.

Biggest bust: Adeyanju totaled just 10 tackles at Wisconsin.

Wanted to see more from: With the exception of Willis and Hammon, we saw just about every player for at least four years. But for this category, I would have liked to have seen a healthy Gaulden, who could have had a much different career without the knee injuries.

Other notes: Eric Steffes signed as a greyshirt and didn't enroll until January of 2012.

Top walk-on: Joel Stave

Rivals.com class recruiting rank: No. 40

States represented (7): Wisconsin, Minnesota, Florida, Illinois, Ohio, North Carolina and Pennsylvania

Decommitted: Trayion Durham (Kent State)

Transferred: Devin Gaulden (Wake Forest) and James Adeyanju (Central Washington)

NFL Draft Picks: Gordon, Derek Watt

First-Team All-Americans: Gordon

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