Wisconsin lands Vanderbilt transfer OL Leyton Nelson
Depth on the offensive line has been an issue for Wisconsin throughout spring camp.
On Monday, the Badgers began addressing that problem with the addition of Leyton Nelson, a transfer portal tackle from Vanderbilt.
"I loved the standard and the expectations at Wisconsin," Nelson told BadgerBlitz.com. "They don’t want to just go to bowl games, they want to win championships there and everyone is bought into that. The offensive is also a huge part of the program, and that’s known by everyone on both sides of the ball."
Nelson, 6-foot-6 and 308 pounds, has an obvious connection to the Wisconsin program. The former three-star prospect in the 2022 recruiting class was recruited by and played for AJ Blazek during his time at Vanderbilt. He chose the Commodores over offers from Louisville, SMU, Florida State, Cincinnati, Miami, Rutgers, Penn State, Kentucky, South Carolina and Tennessee, among others, coming out of high school.
"With Coach Blazek, the biggest thing is that he has my back and I have his," Nelson said. "With recruiting, he stuck with me at Vanderbilt even when I was committed to UCF. He stuck with me and continued to go after me. I love who he is as a person. A couple hours after I entered the portal he reached out to me and we connected.
"There were a couple schools that reached out, but I gave Coach Blazek the first opportunity. I didn’t really talk to many schools after. A lot of schools reached out, schools like Minnesota and Baylor, but I was pretty set on Wisconsin."
Nelson appeared in one game for Vanderbilt in 2022 and 11 the following season, largely in a reserve role. The Florida native will have three years of eligibility remaining at UW. He visited officially last weekend and is Wisconsin's first addition via the portal during the spring window.
"I took an official visit there and I really liked it," Nelson said. "We were there on Wednesday and it was a big day. My mom was there and we got to know everyone - coaching staff, support staff, all that stuff. On Thursday we watched practice and I got to see the room and how they worked. There is an opportunity for me to come in and fill a gap for them."
The Badgers currently have 10 scholarship linemen on the spring roster. That number will grow to 13 when the rest of the 2024 recruiting class - Emerson Mandell, Ryan Cory and Derek Jensen - arrives this summer. Nelson will be No. 14, and the staff will likely look for an interior option via the portal as well this spring.
Nelson could compete for time behind returning starters tackles Jack Nelson and Riley Mahlman this fall. True freshman Kevin Heywood has worked behind Nelson throughout the spring.
"Nothing is guaranteed and I have to fight for my spot," Nelson said. "It’s not just tackle because I can play on the interior as well at Wisconsin. I’ll play wherever they need me.
"I plan to get up there during the last week in May and start working. I can't wait to be a part of the offensive line tradition at Wisconsin."
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