Does Wisconsin do a good enough job of developing its quarterbacks? Badgers mailbag (2024)

Wisconsin. Minnesota. Axe Week.

Not much more needs to be said ahead of a massive regular-season finale Saturday at Huntington Bank Stadium with the Big Ten West title up for grabs. Fortunately, there are many more words to be used for this absolutely loaded Thanksgiving week edition of the Badgers mailbag.

Topics this week include whether Wisconsin adequately develops its quarterbacks, what Nebraska’s offensive performance means for Wisconsin’s defense, which seniors could return next season, an examination of the Badgers in short-yardage situations, why receiver Chimere Dike has only 17 catches this season, running back Braelon Allen’s injury status, which seniors would make the best football coaches (or strength coaches, recruiting coordinators and athletic directors) and three things I’m thankful for covering the Badgers football beat. Let’s go.

Graham Mertz has shown brief flashes of the promise he brought as the highest-rated QB ever recruited by Wisconsin, but I’m still discouraged. I don’t blame Mertz. Instead, I’m left doubting this program’s ability to develop a legitimate quarterback. Setting aside our reputation as a mostly successful run-heavy offense, is there an internal inability to nurture and develop quarterbacks?

Jake B.

I disagree with the notion that Wisconsin lacks the ability to develop a legitimate quarterback. Let’s go back just two years to Jack Coan’s junior season in 2019. I’ve said before that it was the best season by a Badgers quarterback since Russell Wilson in 2011. Coan ranked seventh nationally in completion percentage (69.6 percent), which was the third-best single-season mark in school history, and threw for 2,727 yards with 18 touchdowns and five interceptions while leading his team to the Rose Bowl. He took a huge leap from 2018 when he spent most of the season as Alex Hornibrook’s backup.

I think Graham Mertz has been markedly better in recent weeks and has connected on some throws that would not have been successful earlier in the season, particularly when it comes to finding receivers in the perfect spot before they’re even out of their break. Over the last three games, Mertz has completed 41 of 57 passes (71.9 percent) with six touchdowns and two interceptions while averaging 200.3 yards per game. In the first eight games, he completed just 55.1 percent of his passes with three touchdowns and seven interceptions while averaging 131.1 yards per game.

I asked Mertz on Monday whether he felt like a better quarterback now compared to the start of the season. His response: “A thousand percent.” I then asked him in what areas he believed he was better.

“I’d say just seeing the field and letting the game come to me,” Mertz said. “I’d say my vision has been a lot better these past couple of weeks, just truly seeing what the defense is doing and how I can take advantage of that. Vision has been a lot better and having fun playing free.

Reporters aren’t privy to exactly what happens behind the scenes, and Paul Chryst certainly has a lot on his plate given his responsibilities as head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. But Mertz, as well as backups Chase Wolf and Danny Vanden Boom, have praised Chryst’s ability to give them a better grasp of the game and to understand the entire offensive picture, such as making more pre-snap adjustments at the line of scrimmage involving the run game or recognizing why they would be in a certain formation for a given situation. Those are important small details, and I think Chryst will continue to find ways to help nurture and develop his quarterbacks the more time he has with the room.

Mertz may have struggled earlier this season, but his offensive line certainly didn’t help him. The entire unit has made significant strides in the past two months, which has provided reason for optimism with Mertz and his future as Wisconsin’s quarterback.

Did Nebraska figure out Wisconsin’s defense, and can we expect Minnesota to use the same gameplan?

Patrick M.

I wouldn’t say Nebraska necessarily figured out Wisconsin’s defense, but the Cornhuskers did have a lot of success using the whole field and getting the ball to playmakers in space. Nebraska has done that to a lot of teams. There’s a reason why the Cornhuskers rank 17th in the FBS in total offense. This is the third straight game Nebraska has put up big yardage numbers against Wisconsin, but it’s important to note that the Cornhuskers didn’t win any of those games. I asked inside linebacker Jack Sanborn whether he thought Nebraska was simply a bad matchup for Wisconsin or whether it was a style that other teams could replicate.

“I’ve played them three times in my career,” Sanborn said. “It’s been a rough game three times for us. They had a good gameplan, especially coming off a bye. We were just kind of like a step late, a step behind in communication. They had some really good schemes and credit to them for that. We look at that and it’s an opportunity to learn, opportunity to grow. Especially going into meetings (Sunday), just talking about the game, that’s an area that we need to get better at.

“It’s exciting. Now we can get better at that and we’ve got to get better at it because I’m sure maybe teams can kind of copy what they’re doing, or try to. But we’ll see. We’ll be prepared for anything. It kind of just broadens what we’re able to do and what we’re able to defend. It’s something that we’ve just got to get better from.”

I don’t really see Minnesota using the Nebraska gameplan because the two programs have different offensive styles. The reason Nebraska is such a tough matchup for Wisconsin is because quarterback Adrian Martinez gives teams fits with his dual-threat ability. Think about the designed quarterback run on fourth-and-2 at the Wisconsin 45-yard line in the fourth quarter. Martinez had nowhere to go but kept the play alive long enough to find tight end Austin Allen down the field for 38 yards. Most quarterbacks can’t do that. Martinez leads his team with 525 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns.

“The quarterback played lights out,” Badgers defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard said. “Tip of the cap to him. I thought he executed with ball placement and timing probably as good as he has all season. Their scheme, they force you to get into a lot of man coverage situations. We weren’t always clean. Tough to get them on the ground. We didn’t do a very good job of contain at times. We didn’t do a good job of adding on some of our pressures to either force the ball to get out of his hands or get him off the spot. I think we missed a few early and I think the next two times when we executed, we got a hit on the quarterback and an interception. It’s something that you’ve got to be detailed on.”

Minnesota quarterback Tanner Morgan isn’t Martinez. Morgan has 17 total rushing yards this season, in part because of sacks, and hasn’t rushed for more than 29 yards in a game this season. Martinez has rushed for at least 29 yards eight times this season, including two 100-yard performances. Minnesota is a team that wants to hand the ball off to its running backs despite several injuries at the position.

Tailbacks Ky Thomas and Mar’Keise Irving opened the season as the Gophers’ fourth and fifth running backs. But injuries to top three running backs Mo Ibrahim, Trey Potts and Bryce Williams have moved the duo up into playing key roles. No Big Ten team has more rushing attempts than Minnesota’s 513. Wisconsin is second at 502. Leonhard said the Gophers do a good job of bleeding teams for extra yardage in the run game because of how difficult their tailbacks are to square up and knock backward.

“They have a true identity,” Leonhard said. “They know who they are. They know what they’re good at. And everything builds off of it. So that commitment to the run game helps them a ton. Their running backs, I think they are trained very well on what they’re asked to do. They’re not always cute. They’re going to get downhill. They’re going to force you to tackle them and then they have their little wrinkles to try to create a little bit of extra space when they need it.”

Jesse, any ideas of who might come back for an extra year under the COVID dispensation?

Jay B.

The first domino fell Monday when kicker Collin Larsh announced that he would return for a sixth season in 2022. I think that’s good news for Wisconsin because Larsh has been one of the pleasant surprises for the Badgers this season. During fall camp, it certainly appeared as though Jack Van Dyke was on the cusp of edging Larsh out for the starting role. But Van Dyke suffered a right leg injury, Larsh won the job and has made 13 of 17 field goals.

He’s been pretty consistent from all distances: 5 of 6 from 20-29 yards, 6 of 8 from 30-39 yards and 2 of 2 from 40-49 yards (Larsh also missed a 52-yard attempt against Notre Dame). In his career, Larsh has made 30 of 42 field goals (71.4 percent) and 112 of 114 extra-point tries. He’ll enter next season with an opportunity to be Wisconsin’s starting kicker for a fourth consecutive season.

It’s tough to get a gauge on where most seniors with the extra year option stand because a lot of guys prefer not to address their futures while they’re in the middle of a season. That’s understandable considering Wisconsin is still trying to win the Big Ten West and play for a conference championship. Cornerback Faion Hicks has said he is considering coming back. That would be huge for Wisconsin because Hicks has played in 43 games with 38 starts at cornerback.

I wonder whether players such as fullback John Chenal and nose guard Bryson Williams would opt to return. Both guys played as true freshmen in 2018 and never used a redshirt season. Chenal was a walk-on who played special teams that season. Williams has battled injuries and, if Keeanu Benton decides to pursue the NFL, could have a bigger role next season. Punter Andy Vujnovich spent his first two seasons at Division III University of Dubuque and may want to continue refining his craft for a shot at the NFL.

It’s safe to say that tight end Jake Ferguson, inside linebacker Jack Sanborn and safety Scott Nelson will be moving on. Ferguson, Nelson and sixth-year senior safety Collin Wilder all took a lap around Camp Randall Stadium after the final regular season game against Nebraska on Saturday. Defensive end Matt Henningsen is going to earn a master’s degree and has had a full career as well.

Other scholarship seniors who would at least have the option include quarterback Danny Vanden Boom, offensive linemen Logan Bruss, Tyler Beach and Josh Seltzner and outside linebacker Izayah Green-May.

Will the Badgers ever run something besides a fullback dive on 3rd- or 4th-and-short?

James W.

I’m guessing this question came in because Wisconsin handed the ball off to fullback John Chenal on a fourth-and-1 from the Nebraska 31-yard line and Chenal was stuffed for a one-yard loss during the fourth quarter Saturday. The turnover on downs gave the ball back to Nebraska, which rolled down the field and scored to forge a 28-28 tie.

Kicker Collin Larsh had missed a 33-yard field goal earlier in the game, so coaches weren’t going to put him in to try a 48-yarder when the offense needed just one yard and had a seven-point lead. Wisconsin brought Tanor Bortolini into the game and put him on the left side to give the Badgers six offensive linemen for the play. Tight end Jake Ferguson was in as a blocker as well, so it was essentially 7-on-7 at the line off the snap. Here’s a screenshot of what the play looked like before the snap.

Wisconsin generally wins games by being more physical at the line of scrimmage. The problem in this instance was the line didn’t generate a good enough push, and left guard Josh Seltzner was pushed backward into Chenal. Nobody blocked linebacker Luke Reimer (No. 28 standing up on the left side of Nebraska’s defense), who got free off the edge and tackled Chenal.

But earlier in the game, the Badgers ran a fullback dive with Chenal on fourth-and-1 that went for a four-yard gain when Chenal used a jump cut to find space. Wisconsin flipped its formation slightly with Bortolini on the right side and Ferguson on the left side.

Overall, the numbers suggest Wisconsin hasn’t been as successful as it would want in those short-yardage situations this season. According to Pro Football Focus, the Badgers have converted 28 of 50 plays on third- or fourth-and-2 or fewer into first downs (56 percent). Wisconsin is 26 of 45 on rushing attempts and 2 of 5 on passing attempts. The Badgers’ 57.8 percent conversion rate on rushing plays ranks 104th in the FBS.

A big reason why? Wisconsin runners have been hit at or behind the line of scrimmage on 62.2 percent of those rushes, which ranks 121st nationally. The FBS average is 48 percent. And 95.2 percent of the team’s rushing yards in those situations have come after contact — the 10th-highest rate in the FBS — which means the conversion percentage in short-yardage runs could be even worse.

As for the ratio of fullback dives, Chenal doesn’t always carry the ball in short-yardage situations, but he has been used pretty frequently this season. Of Wisconsin’s 34 designed rushes on third- or fourth-and-1 this season, he has carried a team-high 14 times (41.2 percent). Over the past three seasons dating to the 2019 campaign, Chenal (23) and former Badgers fullback Mason Stokke (11) have accounted for 34 of the 90 designed rushes by Wisconsin on third- or fourth-and-1 (37.8 percent).

Got any insight on why a receiver as talented as Chimere Dike has only 17 catches this season?

Gary D.

Chimere Dike has 17 receptions for 225 yards with a touchdown this season. Those numbers rank fourth on the team behind tight end Jake Ferguson, wide receiver Danny Davis and wide receiver Kendric Pryor. I never put a specific number on what Dike’s stats would be, but he has slotted in exactly where I thought he would be considering who those other three guys are and the experience they provide for Wisconsin. According to PFF, Ferguson has been targeted a team-high 51 times, Davis 47 times, Pryor 45 and Dike 27. The only other player that has been targeted in double figures this season is receiver Jack Dunn with 11.

You know what all those other players have in common? They’re seniors and won’t be back next season. That means Dike is going to step into the No. 1 receiver role as a junior and likely become quarterback Graham Mertz’s favorite target, assuming there are enough weapons around Dike to prevent opponents from constantly bracketing him.

Here’s the full breakdown on Wisconsin’s targets so far:

I don’t think Dike’s numbers this season are a reflection of what he’s capable of, but it’s also understandable why Ferguson, Davis and Pryor have garnered the bulk of the targets. Those three have made plays on the ball when given opportunities. Collectively, they have just three drops this season (one apiece). Dike has also played the fourth-most snaps among that group. Ferguson is first with 649, Pryor has played 513 snaps, Davis 466 and Dike 423.

These things tend to go in cycles during a season, so Dike may have a big game in him still this season. Pryor has caught just one pass in a game three times but stepped up with six catches for 69 yards and a touchdown against Notre Dame. Ferguson caught one pass in two different games but hauled in eight catches for a career-high 92 yards against Nebraska on Saturday. Davis didn’t have any catches against Michigan, Illinois and Purdue and was targeted a total of three times in those games. Yet he leads the team with 418 receiving yards and is second with 27 receptions.

Chryst was asked after the Notre Dame game, when Dike was targeted just once and didn’t catch a pass, how he could get Dike more involved in the offense.

“I’ve loved the way that Chim practices, his preparation,” Chryst said. “He’s always competing. I think that the plays will come. He’s too good of a player, and certainly any time you’ve got a good player you want to get them involved. And Chim certainly fits that billing. And yet I think that like anything, you can’t force the game either.

“There’s no question in my mind it will come for him. He’s been doing some good things and it’s just a combination of the ball finding him and being on it. But he does everything he can to put himself in position, and for that, you appreciate him. I love having him on this team.”

How concerned should we be for Braelon Allen’s injuries with his ankle? It seems like he is a super tough guy, but I am slightly concerned about his health. Can you help us understand more of what he is currently going through? He seems like he is having some pain.

Stephen A.

There’s no question running back Braelon Allen has been battling through what appears to be a lower-body injury of sorts. He’s been seen limping after he gets up from runs in the last few games, and it’s noticeable that it isn’t a situation in which trainers are examining him on the sideline to determine what’s wrong. That leads me to believe everyone understands this is simply something Allen has to work through and not a new occurrence. Allen needed both ankles taped after his first carry against Rutgers went for 33 yards on Nov. 6.

After the game, I asked Allen about his injury, and he understandably didn’t want to go into specifics. Here’s that part of the conversation:

Me: Are you banged up right now?

Allen: It’s just a little soreness. By the end of the week, I felt that I was ready to go for today and I knew I needed to be here for my team. So it was more a mental battle for me than anything.

Me: I heard you call it body soreness before. Is that it?

Allen: Yeah.

Me: Did you tweak something on the first run that made you need to get taped up?

Allen: It’s kind of just nagging me a little bit. We were trying to do everything we can to make sure I was feeling all right.

That’s the extent of what we know about Allen’s injury. During this stretch, he hasn’t been listed on Wisconsin’s preliminary status reports that are issued every Monday, so the injury doesn’t appear to be threatening his availability. But it has to be something the team is monitoring considering the load Allen has taken and his value to the team. Allen has rushed for 1,013 yards over the last seven games — the most of any Power 5 player during that span — while averaging 7.9 yards per carry and scoring 11 touchdowns. With Chez Mellusi and Isaac Guerendo out for the season and Jalen Berger off the team, the Badgers can’t afford to lose Allen the rest of the way.

Looking at the seniors who played (probably) their final home game, who are the most likely to go into each of the following positions: coaching (head, offensive coordinator, and defensive coordinator), strength and conditioning, recruiting coordinator, and athletic director? (Think of this like those yearbook “most likely to…” categories.)

Carl G.

I’d say the most likely to go into coaching is safety Collin Wilder because that’s actually a passion he wants to pursue in the future. I talked to Wilder last month for a story about how he found his voice and became a leader in Wisconsin’s program after transferring from Houston, and he told me that he would like to become a coach.

“I’m not sure in which field,” Wilder said. “I’ve thought about college. I’ve thought about high school, going back to Texas. I thought about even being in the strength coach business. One of those three I definitely want to do for the rest of my life because I can’t imagine my life without coming into a building like this and being with great people like this. It’s too much fun.”

I wouldn’t be surprised if Wilder winds up as a head coach somewhere because of his outgoing personality and ability to effectively communicate. He’s become a media favorite on the beat this season, and I’d put him up there with any player I’ve interacted with in 11 seasons on the beat because of those traits.

The rest of these will admittedly just be guesses, but let’s have some fun. For defensive coordinator, I’d go with safety Scott Nelson. He is tremendously knowledgeable and is a go-to player to dissect what scheme an opponent ran during a game and how Wisconsin defended it. This was his answer to a question I asked after the game Saturday about what Nebraska’s offense did scheme-wise to create problems for Wisconsin. It was enough to make anyone’s head spin.

“They do a lot of unconventional route concepts out of different formations,” Nelson said. “A lot of 12 personnel but pushing the ball downfield. They switch guys that aren’t really close. So if you don’t communicate with it, you’ve got to keep going. And if one guy doesn’t see it, then it looks like somebody’s running wide open.

“Having to communicate that pre-snap while identifying where we’re going to send the pressure, if it’s X off, they’ll run two-by-two with both guys in the boundary off and we’ve got to get to a different check than we would’ve, but it’s hard because they hide it. I could go on for about 20 minutes with all the difficult stuff they do. But they do a great job of getting guys in space and letting them make plays.”

I’ll pick receiver Jack Dunn for offensive coordinator. Another smart player who has earned major playing time during his career because he understood the little details that could get him onto the field, particularly when it comes to blocking. Defensive end Matt Henningsen is a graduate student in electrical engineering and is going to go on to do far more than football in his professional career. But I’d want him as my strength and conditioning coach from the group. He was ranked No. 63 on Bruce Feldman’s annual Freaks List this season because he power-cleaned 410 pounds, back-squatted 675 pounds, had a vertical jump of 34.5 inches and reached 19.34 miles per hour on the GPS.

As for the last two categories, I’ll take Caesar Williams as recruiting coordinator. One of the bullet points on his LinkedIn profile about being a student-athlete at Wisconsin reads that he “assists recruiting efforts by hosting prospective students by keying into interests to attract them to attend the university.” Plus, the guy knows how to dress for success and has a magnetic personality. Check out this picture of Williams and his mom during his last Camp Randall Stadium arch walk into the stadium Saturday.

Finally, athletic director. Tight end Jake Ferguson. No-brainer on this one. If he has any questions, grandpa Barry Alvarez is just one phone call away.

Since it’s Thanksgiving this upcoming week, what are three things pertaining to your time covering these Badgers that you’re thankful for? It doesn’t have to be limited to what they do on the field.

Paul B.

1. I’m thankful that Wisconsin’s football program has been consistently good (and therefore relevant) during my 11 seasons on the beat. The Badgers have made a bowl game every season in that time and are on the cusp of reaching their seventh Big Ten championship game. It’s pretty special to be able to cover a program like that and to have an opportunity to attend Rose Bowls or chronicle a 13-1 season that ends with an Orange Bowl victory.

Compare that with, say, Illinois, which hasn’t produced a winning record since 2011 and has been to two bowl games in that stretch. One of the things I was most excited about when I moved to Madison for my first job here was that I knew the football and men’s basketball programs generally were staples in the top-25 rankings. Covering a major college beat was something I aspired to achieve, and I can’t imagine there are many (any?) others in both sports that are better year-in and year-out.

2. I’m thankful for the access I’ve been granted to players and, occasionally, to coaches as well over the past decade that has allowed me to tell stories I’m still proud of today. Not every college football program operates the same way, so Wisconsin’s sports information staff deserves kudos for being willing to work with reporters if they have a special request.

Some of the stories that come to mind since I joined The Athletic that fall into this category include sitting down for lunch at Red Robin with Wisconsin’s 2018 offensive line, spending three hours with running back Taiwan Deal on a boat across Lake Monona to see his passion for fishing up close, talking to Paul Chryst in his office about his climb up the coaching ranks, talking to Jim Leonhard about how his hometown shaped his values, meeting with Jonathan Taylor in the running backs room to discuss how he became one of the best tailbacks in college football history, watching a practice with football video coordinator John Schaefer and sitting down with former director of player personnel Saeed Khalif to understand his plan for recruiting success.

Obviously, those types of in-person opportunities became impossible during the pandemic. But access has returned this season so reporters are able to have the 1-on-1 conversations with players that make a story unique. During the season, all of our interviews take place on Mondays. We talk to Chryst, Leonhard and four players that the sports information staff chooses. We also can request three additional players for 1-on-1 interviews. That time is very valuable so that I can glean new information, ask the questions I want and (hopefully) write a story you haven’t seen before.

3. I’m thankful to have an opportunity to continue covering Wisconsin’s football program for The Athletic. I’m not just saying that to suck up to my bosses. I absolutely mean it. It’s been a long and sometimes difficult journey during the last decade to keep doing this in Madison. The first two outlets I worked for, Fox Sports Wisconsin and ESPN, eliminated staffers as part of massive company-wide layoffs, and I was among the casualties in both situations. The third outlet I worked for, Land of 10, folded completely.

I love what I do. I love where I do it. And I’m so grateful that this company sees the value in that work. I have the freedom to tell the stories I want on the only beat I can dream of doing. I hope to be here, covering Wisconsin, for the rest of my career. And I’m thankful for all the readers who are so passionate about the Badgers and support this endeavor by subscribing each year. If you’ve made it all the way to the end of this mailbag, you’re a true die-hard. Happy Thanksgiving.

(Top photo of Graham Mertz: Patrick McDermott / Getty Images)