Author: Ryan Wollersheim
MADISON – The release of the Badger’s two-deep depth chart on Monday exemplified the very thing the unit brought to the field last season: consistency. Wisconsin’s defense finished 2020 fifth in total defense (299.9 ypg) and ninth in scoring defense (17.43 ppg). What’s better, the team returns eight of its 11 regular starters along with plenty of veteran depth and young up-and-coming talent. While the Badger’s newest starters are fresh to their leading roles, they come with plenty of experience that has prepared them for these spots.
Defense
DE Matt Henningsen – R Sr.
Defensive end Matt Henningsen will likely be the leader on the Badgers’ defensive line this coming season. The redshirt senior and former walk-on has by far the most experience along the Badgers’ defensive line. His 29 games played and 15 starts make him the only current player with starting experience at defensive end. Henningsen made his first career start against Western Kentucky in August of 2018 when he became the first Wisconsin walk-on to start a season opener as a freshman since at least 1990. Henningsen would go on to appear in 13 total games at defensive end with ten starts in 2018. This early promise resulted in a scholarship for the redshirt freshman that very same season. Since 2018, Henningsen has continued to prove himself as a role model on the field for the Badgers.
This highly reliable defender spent time playing alongside former Badgers Isaiahh Loudermilk and Garrett Rand at the defensive end position in his first three seasons. Over that time, Henningsen stacked up 56 total tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and five sacks as well as three passes defended and three fumble recoveries, two of which he returned for touchdowns. These numbers likely fall short of Henningsen’s true potential as he only recorded two tackles before he suffered a torn bicep in the first half of the team’s second game last season.
Defensive line coach Ross Kolodziej is not worried about where Henningsen will be physically this season coming off the injury from last year.
“Zero catchup, he’s 100 percent. He’s a genius academically and he’s a freak show athletically. He’s right at or exceeding where you’d hope he’d be at this time,” said Kolodziej during spring camp. Kolodziej also referenced Henningsen as a clear leader on the defensive line that the coach himself will go to for valuable information at times.
Henningsen may have suffered on the field in 2020, but he continued to excel academically. The electrical engineering major achieved Academic All-America first team and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar honors. Henningsen is also a 2021 preseason Campbell trophy nominee, an award given to the player with “the best combination of academics, community service and on-field performance,” as well as a member of the Reese’s Senior Bowl watch list alongside teammates Logan Bruss, Danny Davis III, Jake Ferguson, Faion Hicks, Kendrick Pryor and Jack Sanborn. Henningsen is one of many seniors on this Badger team who should provide important veteran leadership in 2021.
DE Isaiah Mullens – Jr.
Redshirt junior Isaiah Mullens is set to play an increased role this season as one of only two players with any real experience at the defensive end position. Mullens played a total of 111 snaps and appeared in all seven games last season recording four total tackles, half a tackle for loss, and one pass defended. Mullens also appeared in 13 games in 2019 with his sole tackle coming in the team’s regular-season finale against archrival Minnesota. The overall lack of major experience for Mullens, as well as many of the other defensive linemen on the Badgers roster, is largely due to the scheme the team’s defense employed last season.
Defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard said in the spring that the team used a nickel defense featuring only two down linemen on nearly 70 percent of plays last season. This was likely due to a combination of matchups as well as the lack of depth along with the unit after injuries to Henningsen and redshirt freshman James Thompson Jr. in the game against Michigan last November.
This modest workload over the past season speaks to Mullens’ somewhat soft-spoken personality which he demonstrated in his Zoom interviews this offseason. It does not however speak to the strength and speed with which he plays off the edge at 6 foot 4, 297 pounds. While these contributions won’t always pop on the stat sheet, Mullens will play an important role in disrupting the passer and eating up blocks for the Badgers’ linebackers to make big plays in the run game. When the team’s defense ran nickel formations during fall camp, Mullens was often inserted as one of the two down linemen for his speed as a pass rusher. Leonhard will likely continue to employ this scheme often, especially on third downs and obvious passing situations.
Mullens, like Henningsen, will also continue to provide mentorship for some of the Badgers’ other up-and-coming defensive linemen such as redshirt sophomore Rodas Johnson and Thompson Jr. who are slotted to be the primary backups at the two defensive end spots.
“Us as older guys, the guys who have experience, just teach the younger guys what’s expected, what you gotta do, how you’re supposed to do things,” said Mullens in the spring.
S Collin Wilder – R Sr.
Redshirt senior Colin Wilder will come into a season as the starting safety for the first time in his six-year college career. Wilder chose to come back for his sixth season granted to him by the NCAA’s COVID-19 eligibility policy put in place last year. He takes over the regular starting safety role for former defensive captain Eric Burrell who moved on to the NFL this past offseason.
Wilder began his career with the Badgers as a transfer from Houston where he played in 15 games with the Cougars before he suffered a season-ending knee injury in his sophomore season. Since his transfer to Wisconsin, Wilder has played in 21 games with three starts between 2019 and 2020. Wilder has accumulated 49 total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and one sack as well as two interceptions and ten passes defended over the last two seasons. These numbers speak to Wilder’s hard and fast play from the safety position.
“The one thing you know is it’s going to be physical, it’s going to be physical football and he’s going to play as fast as possible every play … you look at the last two years at his snaps, we’re a significantly better team when he’s on the field,” said Leonard, who coaches the safeties as well as the overall defense, when asked about Wilder last spring.
Leonhard also talked about Wilder needing to play with more control at times to avoid the small mental errors in his game. One way Wilder has managed to avoid these errors at times has been with his strong communication and familiarity with fellow senior safety Scott Nelson. Wilder and Nelson played consistently alongside one another last season with Wilder essentially holding the role as the Badgers’ “third starter” at safety – a role redshirt junior John Torchio will step into this season when the team employs nickel personnel and other formations that feature three safeties. The two starting safeties have grown close by working together on and off the field over the past two years.
“We know what the other one’s thinking … there’s not many words that need to be said for us to be on the same page. I really like the way that’s progressed. I love playing with him. The energy he brings is contagious … it’s all about executing and trusting him and I know he trusts me. Then we just play, go out there and not think but just play,” said Nelson when asked about his relationship with Wilder.
The experience these two provide is yet another example of the deep veteran presence the Badgers will have on defense this season.
Special Teams
The Badgers struggled with inconsistency on special teams last season, especially in the return game. Luckily the Badgers return nearly all their key contributors on the return, kickoff, and punting units with the only real changes, and possible changes, coming to the place-kicking unit.
Peter Bowden will take over the role of primary long snapper in the departure of four-year starter Adam Bay from the program. The consistency Bay provided to the role on the placekicking and punting units was invaluable and will be an important position to replace. The good news is that Bowden seems primed to do just that. Bowden is a redshirt sophomore who joined the team in 2019 and was rated as a five-star long snapping recruit. Bowden received five-star rankings from both Rubio Long Snapping’s rankings, who rated him the No.7-ranked recruit nationally, and Kohl’s Kicking Camps, who rated him the No.11-ranked recruit nationally. Both these long snapping rankings cover hundreds of recruits annually, so for Bowden to rank near the top in both is a testament to his ability. This recognition was likely in part due to Bowden successfully delivering all 227 of his long snaps over the course of his four-year varsity career at Francis Parker high school in San Diego, California.
While Bowden is the only new special team starter listed on Wisconsin’s Week 1 depth chart, the role of starting placekicker may not be fully cemented yet either. Redshirt senior Collin Larsh is listed as the starting placekicker for the Badgers, a position he has held for the past two seasons. Larsh has provided consistency since the departure of five-year kicker Rafael Gaglianone who had a career 76.1 field goal percentage. Since taking over as the starter, Larsh has made 15 of 18 field goals from inside 40 yards and has never missed an extra point attempt. However, Larsh has struggled on long-distance field goals (2 of 7 on tries of 40 yards or more) with a career-long of 44 yards in the 2019 season.
Throughout fall camp, Larsh was in a kicking battle with sophomore Jack Van Dyke who handled kickoffs for the Badgers last season. Van Dyke appeared to be leading in reps with the first-team unit during fall camp until he suffered a right leg injury that has kept him sidelined in recent weeks. Van Dyke attempted his first career field goal during the Badgers win over Wake Forest in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl, but this lone attempt was blocked. The kickoff specialist did show a strong leg last season with a 60.9-yard average and 16 of his 34 kickoffs going for touchbacks. During open media practices, reporters saw Van Dyke make field goals of 50 yards plus with some regularity, yet he also struggled with consistency on shorter field goal attempts.
As both kickers have struggled with opposing aspects of their field goal kicking, it would not be surprising if the Badgers have Van Dyke, once healthy, as the long-distance field goal kicker with Larsh handling attempts within 40 yards. For now, the team will likely have Larsh take all future field goal attempts until Van Dyke is fully healthy and back as the team’s primary kickoff specialist first-and-foremost.
