Wisconsin "definitely a dream school" for 2022 WR Eian Pugh

Wisconsin's recruiting department, led by Saeed Khalif and Jensen Gebhardt, made sure to connect with Eian Pugh this week during the first contact period for prospects in the 2022 recruiting class.

The next step for the 6-foot-4, 170-pound wide receiver from Fenwick High School in Illinois is to speak with UW assistant coach Alvis Whitted.

"Coach Gebhardt has been showing a lot of interest and Coach Khalif texted me last night (Tuesday)," Pugh told BadgerBlitz.com. "They like my length and style of play, and how I can go up and get the ball over defenders. I haven’t been able to talk to Coach Whitted yet, but once that happens I’ll be pretty excited to see what he has to say."

As a sophomore, Pugh had 53 receptions for 802 yards and eight touchdowns.

"Ever since I heard they had interest I’ve been watching Wisconsin’s games on YouT,ube almost every night and studying the wide receivers and stuff like that," Pugh said. "So Wisconsin is definitely a dream school of mine .

"Probably the culture stands out to me. Everything is like a family over there. Also Coach Whitted - he’s put a lot of receivers in the league."

Pugh currently lists offers from Kansas, UNLV and Howard, with interest coming from a handful of other programs.

"I'm hearing the most from Indiana, Illinois, Purdue, Howard, California and UNLV," Pugh said. "I took a visit to Notre Dame for a game in November and I was supposed to go Michigan State as well, but that one got canceled because of COVID. Most of them see me at receiver for now. Speed is something I’ve been workin on during the off-season, so I’ll get to showcase more of that come spring.

"Mainly my relationship with the coaching staff and how they see me fitting in the offense will be most important for me. Also the academics, which is important to my family and I."

The Badgers currently have a commitment from four-star safety Braelon Allen in the 2022 class.