After a summer of lofty expectations and pre-season hype, including a No. 4 ranking in the AP poll, Wisconsin football kicks off its 2018 season Friday night against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. For many on the Badgers’ new-look defense, Friday will be their first collegiate game.
Wisconsin, which ranked second in the country in total defense in 2017, enters the season needing to replace seven starters on that side of the ball. Adding the challenge, the Badgers start the season without a pair of defensive linemen — junior Garrett Rand and redshirt sophomore Isaiahh Loudermilk. In their place, redshirt freshmen Matt Henningsen and Kayden Lyles, a converted offensive lineman, are listed as starters.
Lyles hasn’t had much time to adjust to his new position, but he feels ready.
“I’ll be playing at a different level, but whether I’m on the field with a bunch of fans or on the field at practice, I have to be able to trust the technique the coaches have given me. I’m expecting to go out there and do what I’ve been coached,” Lyles said.
Young faces have also taken over in the secondary, where the Badgers lost four of their top five contributors in 2017.
Freshman Scott Nelson won the starting free safety job alongside senior D’Cota Dixon. After a redshirting last season, Nelson is excited to finally take the field.
“It will be a little different than my last high school game, but it will be fun,” Nelson said. “I’m really looking forward to it — I’m looking forward to getting out there, to playing, to getting my feet wet, but we’re just treating it like another game — I’m not trying to hype it up.”
At cornerback, sophomore Caesar Williams and redshirt freshman Faion Hicks won starting jobs, surprising many of the team’s observers. Williams and Hicks beat out some more established players to reach the top of the depth chart, including sophomore Dontye Carriere-Williams.
The new Badgers will be tested by a Western Kentucky team that finished 6-7 in 2017 and lost to Georgia State in the Cure Bowl. The Hilltoppers bring a new starting quarterback in redshirt senior Drew Eckels and have no returning starters at any skill positions. Although the Badgers are heavy favorites, Western Kentucky’s up-tempo spread offense should serve as a good test for UW’s young defensive backs.
“It’s a good test — it’s a lot of motion, it’s a lot of shifts, it’s a lot of jet motions,” Nelson said. “You really have to know your stuff, you really have to know what checks to call in different situations. It will definitely be a good test for the new DB’s coming in, so I’m really looking forward to it.”
Although Williams and Hicks were named starters, the cornerback competition is by no means over. Leonhard plans on using multiple players at that position on Friday night and is eager to see them finally be put to the test in a game.
“I need to find out how these guys are going to respond in different situations. Right now I don’t know that, it’s not their fault, a lot of them just haven’t played," Leonhard said. "This is the last piece — finding out how they are going to respond in front of the fans, how they are going to respond when something bad happens. Until guys start making plays on Saturdays, there will always be competition. I love the mindset of the group. I think they are up for challenge, and I’m excited for these guys to kind of figure out who they are.”
There will certainly be a learning curve for this inexperienced defense, but Lyles and Nelson recognize the importance of getting off to a good start and are keen on proving their worth.
“I just want to be dependable, accountable, to have my teammates be able to count on me to make plays,” Nelson said. “If you miss a play, don’t let it affect the next play.”
For a defense that has long relied on development and experience to gain an edge, the youth movement is a departure from the established approach. For Nelson, Lyles and their fellow underclassmen, Friday night will be the first opportunity to prove that age is not a prerequisite for ability.
“We are new, we are young, but it really doesn’t matter,” Nelson said. “If you know the defense, you know the defense.”
