Wisconsin Badgers: It’s that time of the week again when I run through football scholarship offers that have been sent out over the last week. I’ll also add in players that may have changed their commitment statuses and that have included Badgers in their top school lists.
Brandyn Hillman- DB Class of 2023
Brandyn Hillman is a 6’1″, 200-pound 4-star athlete out of Virginia. This is the first player I’ve covered in this series in the class of 2023. If it seems strange, it’s because Hillman recently de-committed from Notre Dame. Since his change in commitment status, offers have been pouring in with Michigan, LSU, and the Wisconsin Badgers being the biggest three so far. With his physical abilities, he would be a great addition this late in the cycle.
Virginia isn’t known for being a high school football powerhouse but Brandyn’s tape is fun to watch either way. He played quarterback and defensive back in high school and it’s easy to see why. He’s the best athlete on the field and getting the ball in his hands in any way possible will help the team. He doesn’t look like a natural thrower of the ball however does show solid results. As a defensive back, he shows crazy speed and is a very physical tackler. The only downfall is there isn’t much tape of him in coverage due to their opponents rarely throwing the ball.
Daniel Freitag- WR Class of 2024
If this name looks familiar, it’s because he’s been written about a lot in connection with Wisconsin athletics. The interesting part is, it hasn’t been connected to the football program until now. Freitag is being recruited by both the basketball and football programs at a few schools now. The 6’3″, 175-pound athlete out of Minnesota is listed as a point guard in basketball and wide receiver in football.
He’s currently trying to decide which sport he’d prefer to play but this offer makes me think he may try to do both. I doubt Fickell makes this offer without talking to Gard first but the 4-star athlete may be good enough to give it a shot. His football highlights make me think he has a higher ceiling in basketball but can see him being a useful piece in football as well. He doesn’t appear to be lightning fast but highpoints the ball well and is very physical for a 175-pound receiver. Commitment lean: He was very high on Wisconsin for basketball and getting an offer for football as well could push them over the top.
Gatlin Blair- WR Class of 2024
Gatlin is a 4-star receiver out of Idaho with a 6’2″ 180-pound frame. Idaho isn’t known for having the greatest high school football competition but he does exactly what you’d expect a big fish in a small pond to do, dominate. His film makes it easy to picture him in a Phil Longo air raid offense. He’s not overly shifty but looks like the perfect fit as an outside receiver. He has great hands, adjusts to the ball well, comes down with contested catches, and has surprising straight-line speed. Commitment lean: According to rivals, he isn’t leaning in any specific direction yet but fans think he’ll be playing at Nebraska.
Marquise Davis- RB Class of 2025
Marquise is a 6’1″, 195-pound running back out of Ohio. He already has an impressive list of offers and it’s easy to tell why. Davis is a strong, physical, and explosive athlete that does virtually anything he wants on the field as a sophomore. There really isn’t much to say about his tape other than wow. He has the speed to take any play to the house and powers through most tackles. He hits the hole with so much speed that it takes 2-3 defenders just to slow him down. Commitment lean: Rivals feels very confident Ohio State will be where he ends up but he hasn’t officially stated anything yet.
Ousmane Kromah- RB Class of 2025
Wisconsin is targeting some big running back recruits for the class of 2025 and Ousmane can be added to the list. He’s a 6’1″, 205-pound stud out of Georgia. He has offers from all of the big boys and more will jump in as time goes on. His tape is what you’d expect, a dominant high school player. It’s more impressive that he’s doing it in a state that produces so many high-level athletes. He is an extremely powerful back with enough speed and agility to complement it. He has a great contact balance and appears to be a receiving back as well. Commitment lean: Georgia is the obvious pick here as that’s his home state team, but nothing official has been recorded to this point.
Andrew Brinson- WR Class of 2024
Andrew is a 6’2″, 180 athlete out of Florida. The 3-star prospect plays wide receiver and defensive back in high school and has the frame to play either at the next level. All of his regular-season highlights show him as a receiver and he produces well. He has the speed to score on every play and takes initial contact very well. He doesn’t need to run overly crisp routes in high school but it looks like he greats out of his breaks well. He does have some defensive back clips on his hudl page and he looks very promising there as well. Commitment lean: He has a lot of offers but Wisconsin is arguably his biggest so far.
Zy’marion Lang- WR Class of 2024
Zy’marion is another wide receiver out of Florida as Wisconsin continues to send out a lot of offers down south. Lang is 6’3″, 175 pounds, and listed as a 3-star prospect. He plays quarterback and receiver in high school but his film shows a future at receiver. He does well with the ball in his hands and has the height to go up and get the ball. He also appears to do a good job of settling into soft spots of defenses to make life easy on his quarterback. Commitment lean: Ole Miss, Texas A&M, and Wisconsin are his biggest offers so far and he isn’t leaning anywhere in particular yet.
Owen Strebig- OL Class of 2025
Owen is a fast-rising offensive line prospect out of Wisconsin. The sophomore is already 6’8″ and 290 pounds. He’s impressive on film as he continually works his way through the defense on run plays and uses his hands very well in pass protection. He obviously has a size advantage in high school but he makes sure he has control of every blocking situation. Commitment lean: There is nothing official yet but Wisconsin will likely be in a very good spot here.
That’ll do it for this week as we see an emphasis on skill position players this time around. There are some big names out there Wisconsin is focusing on and we should see some cut-down lists coming in over the next couple of weeks.
Follow me on Twitter at DrewEsports and us at WiSportsHeroics. To read more of our articles and to stay up to date on the latest in Wisconsin sports, click here.
