Wisconsin’s fall camp kept churning on Sunday, and the ninth day brought a little bit of everything: a running game that looked more dangerous, a receiver room with a few new names flashing, and a defense that kept making life miserable for the quarterbacks.
The clearest shift came on the ground. Early in camp, the Badgers had trouble finding much room to run.
That looked different Sunday. The offensive line opened up several big lanes, and the backs took advantage for chunk plays.
Abu Sama and Darion Dupree worked with the first-team offense, while Mason Lane and Harrison Bortolotti handled second- and third-team reps. Bryan Jackson, Nate Palmer, and Juju Pope were off to the side with the rehab group.
Sama, in particular, stood out. He looked sharp as a receiver out of the backfield, serving as both a designed target and a checkdown option without putting a ball on the ground from what was seen. On one snap, the defense sent an aggressive blitz and guessed wrong on the fit, and Sama burst through a huge opening for a massive gain.
That matters for Wisconsin. If the offense is going to move the ball this season, the run game has to be more than a supporting act. Sunday’s work suggested it’s heading that way.
At receiver, Eugene Hilton Jr., Chris Brooks Jr., Tyrell Henry, and Malachi Coleman have drawn most of the buzz so far in camp. But two other wideouts made the biggest noise on this day.
Shamar Rigby, the Oklahoma State transfer, has been working back after being a little banged up, and he started getting more first- and second-team work. He made a handful of plays that stood out, including a back-shoulder grab from Colton Joseph down the right sideline for a gain of 25+ yards - the kind of throw and catch that would have made Aaron Rodgers and Jordy Nelson proud.
Kash Brock also kept showing up. The freshman has earned steady second-team reps and is taking full advantage.
Whether it’s Ryan Hopkins or Deuce Adams throwing him the ball, Brock has been a frequent target. He caught several short passes Sunday, but the deep-ball juice is there too.
He got behind his defender once, only to see Adams overthrow him. Then on the second-to-last play of the day, Hopkins found Brock deep along the right sideline for what would have been a huge gain against the first-team defense.
He’s been impressive early, and even if the receiver room stays crowded, Brock looks like someone worth tracking soon.
Quarterback behind the starter remains unsettled. Adams and Hopkins continue trading turns with the second unit, while Danny O’Neil worked with the third team Sunday.
Both Adams and Hopkins had moments, but neither clearly pulled away. That’s not easy to do when the defense is constantly in the backfield.
Every quarterback had at least one throwaway because the pressure kept coming.
Up front, Emerson Mandell remained in rehab work on the side, so Blake Cherry and Stylz Blackmon split right guard reps with the first team. If Mandell is ready for Week 1, Wisconsin should have useful depth there no matter how the backup competition between Cherry and Blackmon shakes out.
The secondary battle at cornerback is still going. Jai’mier Scott and Eric Fletcher keep rotating opposite Javan Robinson. Scott may be technically ahead, but both are expected to play plenty.
There were a few more notable details from the day:
Kevin Heywood is still out after being labeled day-to-day, and Lucas Simmons-Johansson continued working at right tackle with the ones while Hardy Watts took second-team snaps.
Wisconsin also leaned heavily on 12 personnel, with one running back and two tight ends on the field. Grant Stec, Jacob Harris, Emmett Bork, and Ryan Schwendeman all rotated with the first unit, and Nizyi Davis has been flashing over the last few practices. The tight end room is looking deeper than it might have seemed at first glance.
On defense, Mason Posa had one of the day’s biggest plays when he tipped a Colton Joseph pass and came down with the interception - his second pick off Joseph in camp. The defense was clearly energized by it.
Sebastian Cheeks continued to be a headache for the offense, and the senior edge looks like he could be in line for a strong season.
More than anything, the defense again showed how much flexibility it has. Players are rotating at multiple spots without much drop-off, and that side of the ball looks loaded with depth.
In Other News...
Billy Edwards Jr's UNC Situation Says Plenty About Wisconsin's QB Problem
Billy Edwards Jr.s path since leaving Wisconsin has turned into a useful snapshot of the quarterback uncertainty the Badgers are still trying to sort out. The former Maryland transfer got hurt early in the 2025 season, entered the transfer portal and landed at North Carolina, where he has had to battle for a starting job rather than step into one. For Wisconsin, it is a reminder of how quickly the quarterback picture changed after Edwards arrived with the expectation that he could stabilize the position.
His situation also says something about how thin the room felt in Madison before the injury ended his season. Wisconsin brought Edwards in to be the answer, with no real competition for the job, and now his next stop is a place where the battle is very real. The Badgers are left watching a quarterback they once pinned their hopes on try to climb a depth chart elsewhere, which only sharpens the questions about what comes next in their own room. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsins Huge UDFA Class Is Already Giving Badger Fans Hope
The first preseason weekend gave Wisconsin fans an early look at just how much pro opportunity was waiting for a sizable group of Badgers who went undrafted this spring. Twelve former Wisconsin players signed with NFL teams for the 2026 season, and Week 1 offered the first real snapshot of who is already finding a way onto the field, who is carving out special teams work and who is making an initial impression in camp games.
For a program that prides itself on preparing players for the next level, even the uneven box scores mattered. Some of those former Badgers showed up with tackles, catches or other visible contributions, while others had quieter nights with little or no recorded production, which is normal this time of year but still worth watching closely. The bigger takeaway for Wisconsin is less about one preseason line and more about how quickly this group is spreading itself across NFL rosters with a chance to turn early reps into something more. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsin May Have Found An Unexpected Freshman Receiver Option
Fall camp has a way of sorting out the early surprises, and Kash Brock has become one for Wisconsin. The true freshman wide receiver has been getting work with the second team and has turned heads with a string of impressive catches in practice, giving the Badgers a young pass-catching option worth watching as preparations continue.
What makes Brocks rise even more notable is where he stands in the class hierarchy. He entered as the least highly ranked of Wisconsins three freshman wide receiver signees in 2026, yet his size and early flashes have put him in a better spot than the other two for now. How much of that carries into the season is still unclear, but he has at least put himself in the conversation. [Read more 🡒]