The Badgers brought in two tight ends in their 2024 class.
Over the past handful of seasons, the Wisconsin Badgers have struggled with depth at the tight end position.
Every week, it seemed as though it was a constant struggle to suit up more than four players at the position.
This past season alone saw Jack Pugh announce his medical retirement from football, Cam Large unable to make it back from multiple knee injuries, and Riley Nowakowsi miss multiple games. Help certainly seems to be on the way, though, following a nice true freshman showing from Tucker Ashcraft and two great additions by way of recruiting.
The rankings of these tight ends are very encouraging.
Grant Stec, a 6’6, 245 pounder out of Harry D. Jacobs High School in Algonquin, Illinois, is a consensus four-star recruit and is ranked as the 11th best ‘H’ tight end in the class.
Rob Booker, a 6’6, 220-pounder out of Waunakee, Wisconsin, is a consensus three-star recruit, but is ranked the 11th best ‘Y’ tight end in the class. Whichever way they shake out in Madison, these are two rock-solid recruits.
Stec, much like Booker, played in a mostly run-oriented offense in high school. The first thing that came to mind when I watched his Hudl was ‘raw’. Do not take that as a slight, though.
Stec possesses good athleticism and shows good hands as a receiver, but he will need work on his route running and some cleaning up of his technique as a blocker.
Despite that, he is a more than willing run blocker. He is a physical, nasty blocker who consistently drives his blocker downfield and buries him. Just watching him, you can tell he loves to block. He has the body of a college tight end right now and is an early enrollee in Madison. Don’t be surprised if you see him garnering playing time this fall.
Booker, who originally committed to Wisconsin, de-committed and committed to UCLA only to sign with Bucky during the early signing period, did not put up a major stat line in high school either, but he showed that he easily could have.
When Waunakee needed big plays in the state championship this past season, they often called on Booker to deliver. He ended the game with four catches for 67 yards and two touchdowns.
He is a very smooth athlete, seemingly gliding across the field while running routes. He will need refinement on his route running, but he already possesses the ability to give a defender a quick nod in one direction, only to immediately break the other way and be wide open.
While he also needs technique work on his blocking, he is a very willing blocker and not afraid to bring great physicality in the run game.
Grade
I give this group an easy A. I believe that Wisconsin got the best of both worlds with these two players.
Stec is a big, strong kid who loves to block and be physical, and Booker looks so much like the type of tight end that terrorizes defenses all day long because he is too quick for a linebacker and too big for a corner.
Both are early enrollees, and it is not a stretch to say that both could see playing time this fall in Madison.