Emerson Mandell’s first season as a starter gave Wisconsin plenty to work with, even if it came with some rough edges. Now the Badgers have him back where they want him, and that alone could make a big difference.
Mandell, a consensus four-star prospect and one of Minnesota’s top players in the 2024 class, played in 12 games and made 12 starts last season. One of those came at right guard, but the other 11 were at right tackle after Wisconsin’s tackle situation got scrambled early. When Davis Heinzen struggled in the opener against Miami University, the Badgers moved Riley Mahlman to the blindside and slid Mandell outside.
That was a tough assignment for a redshirt freshman still early in his college career, and the results showed it at times. Mandell had moments where he was overmatched, especially while playing out of position. But the experience mattered, and by the end of the year his game was starting to trend in the right direction.
Now Wisconsin has restocked at tackle, and Mandell is back at right guard, which offensive line coach Eric Mateos made clear is where he belongs.
“I just think that’s his future, that’s his best position. It doesn’t mean he can’t play tackle here.
I think his power, his force. We wanna have big guards, and right now, we do.
We wanna have big, wide bodies on the O-Line right now," new offensive line coach Eric Mateos said this spring.
At 6-foot-5 and 325 pounds, Mandell has the size to survive on the edge, but his game fits better on the interior. He’s the kind of blocker who can move people, not just absorb them, and that should show up more clearly at guard than it ever could at tackle.
If this season goes the way Wisconsin is hoping, Mandell becomes a problem for defenses in the run game. He should be able to settle in as a physical presence inside, then get chances to climb to the second level and punish linebackers and defensive backs. Mateos put it plainly:
“We have a 325-pound guy that likes to hit people, lets get him every opportunity to hit people inside rather than on the outside when sometimes they don’t get to do as much of that fun stuff," Mateos added.
The floor here is pretty straightforward unless injury gets in the way. Short of that, it’s hard to imagine Mandell completely unraveling now that he’s in his third year of college football and back at his natural spot.
Last year’s growing pains came while he was being asked to do something that didn’t fully fit him. This fall, the setup looks much better.
There may be a brief adjustment period, especially with the opener coming against Notre Dame, one of the national title favorites. But the expectation is that Mandell settles in and takes a real step forward.
The best version of this season has Mandell locking down right guard and becoming exactly what Wisconsin needs him to be: a big, physical force in the middle of the line.
In Other News...
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Wisconsins search for stability at center may have found a familiar kind of answer in a transfer who has already handled real snaps at the college level. Ausin Kawecki is coming in from Oklahoma State with 12 starts under his belt, and the Badgers are treating him like the kind of veteran presence their offensive line has been missing as they look ahead to the 2026 season.
For a program that spent last season trying to sort out the middle of the line, the appeal is obvious: a player who can step in, settle the position and help the rest of the front play cleaner football. Wisconsins staff believes Kawecki can do exactly that if he adjusts quickly to the Big Ten, and his arrival gives the Badgers a much clearer path toward fixing one of their biggest problem spots. [Read more 🡒]
Badgers May Be Betting Big On Another Left Tackle Gamble
Wisconsin is taking another look at PJ Wilkins as it sorts out the left side of its offensive line, and the transfer from Ole Miss has quickly become one of the more intriguing figures in fall camp. Coaches and teammates have been encouraged by his size, strength and overall potential, which is why he is in the mix at left tackle even though his background points more toward guard.
The question is whether the Badgers are asking him to make a leap that matches his tools. Wilkins has the kind of frame that can draw attention in camp, but his game experience has mostly come on the interior, leaving some uncertainty about how smoothly he can handle the blindside spot once the real pressure starts. For Wisconsin, the payoff could be significant if the gamble works, but the range of outcomes is wide enough to make this one of the more watchable battles of the preseason. [Read more 🡒]
Which New Badgers Will Decide Whether This Offense Finally Stabilizes
Wisconsin spent the offseason remaking its roster with 33 transfer additions, and the offensive side of that overhaul is where the real pressure lives. The Badgers needed help across the line, in the quarterback room and at receiver, so the early read on the incoming class is less about splash and more about whether enough of these newcomers can settle into defined roles quickly enough to keep the offense from stumbling again.
The most useful part of the evaluation is how many of these transfers are already being slotted into starting or key depth jobs, because that is usually where a new offense either finds stability or keeps searching for it. A few names stand out as potential tone-setters, and the next layer of the story is how the staff sorts out the rest of the hierarchy behind them, especially in a room where one more decision could shape the depth chart for the entire season. [Read more 🡒]