Let’s evaluate where the Badgers programs stand currently.
It’s the middle of the dead period for the Wisconsin Badgers, so it’s a good time to revisit the ‘State of the Program’, evaluating where the worry levels for certain teams stand currently.
Back in February, I opined on how concerned (or chill) Wisconsin fans should be about the state of several teams.
I will address all of these programs in a huge update this fall, but I want to do a quick mid-summer check-in on football and men’s basketball, given how much has occurred for each of them in the last four-plus months.
My concern scale is from 1-10, with 1 being no worries at all and 10 being a full-on disaster.
Football: 4 (Down From 5)
Look, I’m not going to tell you that there shouldn’t be a modest level of anxiety with this program. Between Wisconsin’s first losing season since early in George W. Bush’s first term and an absolutely brutal 2025 schedule, there aren’t many folks who are looking for Wisconsin to have a huge bounce-back season this fall.
But, spring practice gave some insight into the talent in the room, and it objectively appears higher than in 2024, especially at defensive line, wide receiver, and quarterback, where transfer Billy Edwards should be a substantial upgrade at the most important position on the field.
Questions remain. Will Jeff Grimes’ tougher, more run-heavy system elevate the Badgers’ attack enough to improve upon 5 wins? Can Mike Tressel’s unit make a jump from the porous, undisruptive unit we saw so often last fall?
There is no sure answer to either question, but considering the changes we’ve seen in 2025 combined with a small but (especially on offense) high-upside saturated 2026 recruiting class with recent four-star wins at running back and wide receiver, I can’t help but be a bit more optimistic about the overall direction of the program vs how I was feeling in February.
Men’s Basketball: 2 (No Change)
We’ve seen yet another early March Madness exit from Greg Gard’s unit since my last rating period. Still, the way that Wisconsin has deftly reloaded in the transfer portal, along with both Nolan Winter and John Blackwell returning, leaves me feeling just as optimistic about the direction of this program as I was in February.
The Portal additions are especially encouraging. Point guard Nick Boyd, West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year forward Austin Rapp, and the talented and battle-tested Andrew Rhode lead the fresh faces. Let’s just say, I like the cut of their jib.
While I don’t think this group of Badgers will be quite as deep, talent wise (but they could be if, for example, Zach Kinziger shows out as a true freshman), they might be a more dangerous team than last season’s, which rose/fell a bit too much with 2025 NBA Draft pick John Tonje.
Recruiting appears just fine, with Gard deftly tapping into New Zealand’s talented pipeline, and a loaded 2027 state of Wisconsin prep class likely to yield fruit for Bucky.
While showing out in March of 2026 will still be important, the chants of “Fire Gard” should be totally silent right now.