The Badgers have a crucial weekend ahead of them for official visits on both sides of the ball.
The Wisconsin Badgers are kicking off their first major wave of official visits this weekend, as they’re set to host 16 prospects overall, comprised of several of their top targets across the board.
Wisconsin currently has seven commits in their 2026 class, lower than where they’ve been in previous years, but they are in a good spot to land top targets this summer.
We broke down where Wisconsin stands on offense earlier this week. Now, let’s turn to the defensive side of the ball for the 2026 class.
Defensive Line
Wisconsin’s defensive line recruiting has taken a few hits in this cycle. After initially appearing as favorites for three-star Jake Johnson, they lost out to USC when Max Stienecker was hired there.
Then, they came in second to Illinois for three-star King Liggins. Now, they’re looking to land on two more players to join Carmelow Reed in this cycle, which could come as early as this weekend.
Three-stars Arthur Scott and Djidjou Bah are currently on campus, as Wisconsin will look to close on them this weekend. If those two commit, the Badgers could be done with the class.
But, Jermaine Polk, who officially visits next weekend, is also a priority target, and could be a take regardless. Polk is headed to Boston College this weekend, then has Iowa State and Iowa on the docket after Wisconsin.
Those are the main targets for the Badgers, who need two from the group.
Update: Scott has committed to the Badgers.
Outside Linebackers/EDGE
One of the more intriguing prospect groups in the class is the edge rushers.
The top target is Jackson Samuels-Ford, who is on campus this weekend for his official visit. He previously took one to Stanford last month and has Kentucky, Penn State, USC, Ohio State, and Michigan all wanting officials after Wisconsin.
The hope is that Wisconsin can close this weekend, eliminating those other visits.
Another lofty target is four-star McHale Blade, who took an official to Purdue and still has Notre Dame left. We’ll see if the Badgers can close here.
Three-stars Anthony Charles and Hudson Woods are currently slated to visit on the weekend of June 13th. Both players have multiple official visits before then, and Wisconsin’s room could fill up, so those two visits will be a wait-and-see.
It’ll be a good weekend if Wisconsin can close out on Samuels-Ford, and a great weekend if they can nab both him and Blade.
Update: Charles has committed to Minnesota.
Linebacker
Wisconsin already got a commitment from Aden Reeder ahead of official visits. Now, their top remaining target is in-state linebacker Ben Wenzel, who is between Wisconsin and Oklahoma.
Really, it feels like this: if Wisconsin can close out this recruitment this weekend, he’ll be a Badger. If not, he’s more likely to be a Sooner. The former feels likelier, but the latter is also a possibility.
Wisconsin was in on a few other linebackers earlier in this cycle, including Tristan Phillips, Storm Miller, and Mason Marden, but all three are headed elsewhere. So, for now, Wenzel is their top (and only) target at the position remaining.
Update: Wenzel has committed to Wisconsin
Cornerbacks
Wisconsin got a commitment from three-star Carsen Eloms earlier in the cycle, starting off their class.
Now, the Badgers have one scheduled visitor coming in the summer: three-star Jamyan Theodore, who is currently on a visit to Kentucky. Theodore will visit Wisconsin next weekend and has Tennessee and Louisville after that.
A Tennessee native, Theodore is a top target at the position for the Badgers, and is a big need, given their current numbers.
A late offer in the class went out to Maryland commit Khmari Bing, who has official visits planned to Tennessee and Miami. We’ll see where the Badgers stand there.
But, Wisconsin has some work to do here, hoping to land one of the two targets remaining on their board.
Safeties
Safety may be one of the more loaded position groups for official visits this summer.
Wisconsin already got top target Messiah Tilson for an early official visit back in April, with the four-star visiting Illinois, Iowa, Iowa State, Minnesota, and Kansas as well.
The Badgers seemed to do well on the official visit, but there’s still a few visits to go here for the Michigan native.
Three-star Nick Reddish is currently on campus after an early official visit to Indiana. He still has Virginia Tech, Notre Dame, and USC on the docket, but the Badgers have been a strong contender for quite some time.
High school teammates Tony Forney and Jowell Combay are scheduled to visit in two weekends. Forney sees Missouri this weekend, bumping that visit up, and is scheduled to also visit Vanderbilt. Combay has Missouri, South Carolina, and Tennessee, so there’s serious competition for the duo.
Then, there’s Zachary Taylor, who has a couple of schools after him as well.
It’s a big group of targets. Just a matter of who ends up at Wisconsin for safeties coach Jack Cooper.