Wisconsin Football: Breakout Candidate Bradrick Shaw
Badger of Honor will look at Wisconsin Football players to watch as “breakout” candidates for the 2017 Wisconsin Football season
This is clearly the most obvious of all the Wisconsin Football players included in Badger of Honor’s look at breakout candidates for the 2017 season. Shaw was clearly the #3 option at RB last season and options #1 and #2 are now pursuing NFL careers.
Predicting Shaw to breakout at RB for Wisconsin Football is something short of venturesome as far as internet hot takes. I also have a pretty good idea you’re going to jump at the breakout song at Camp Randall preceding the 4th Quarter but I won’t spoil it for you.
There is a Melvin Gordon-sized hole in my heart since MG3 left Madison. Good news, Shaw is listed at 6’1″ 208 pounds by Wisconsin Football. Gordon is listed at 6’1″ 215 pounds by the LA Chargers. Shaw will have plenty of time to add extra muscle without sacrificing pace and quicks.
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He is a redshirt sophomore from Birmingham, Alabama. After a 2015 redshirt, he carried the ball 88 times for 485 yards (5.2 yards per carry) and five TDs for Wisconsin Football in 2016. Montee ball actually recorded 483 yards from scrimmage and four TDs in his first season for Wisconsin Football (391 rushing on 98 carries, 92 receiving on nine receptions).
In three fewer games played, Shaw was actually only three carries behind Dare Ogunbowale for the season. Unlike Ogunbowale, Shaw is unknown as a receiving target having caught just a single pass in 2016 for Wisconsin Football.
His bio indicates prep success on the football field of course but also some notable accomplishments in track and field. Also like that he was a two-time football captain which is a great signal of his maturity and leadership capabilities.
"Four-star recruit by ESPN and Rivals … three-star recruit by 247 Sports and Scout …named second-team all-state by Alabama Sports Writers Association as a senior … helped Hoover win Alabama Class 7A state title for its third-straight state championship … two-year team captain … won the Emerging Elite long jump at New Balance Indoor Nationals as a junior … winning Class 7A triple jump (47-1 3/4) and finishing second in long jump (22-7 1/4)"
I always like seeing Wisconsin Football players, or any Badger athlete for that matter, with a background in more than one sport. I think it helps your overall athletic profile to have experience in other sports.
Next: Wisconsin Football Breakout Candidate: Jack Coan
As Badger of Honor has reported, Wisconsin Football has added a pair of transfer RBs from Pittsburgh in Chris James and Rachid Ibrahim both of whom can certainly contribute this season. I expect Shaw to be the first on the depth chart at RB and show he can be an every down back. Obviously, Wisconsin Football will rotate to keep guys fresh all season long and mix up personnel packages and formations.
Shaw has a nice blend of explosiveness, quickness, and physicality that makes him a logical candidate to at least push Penn State’s Saquon Barkley and Northwestern’s Justin Jackson for the Big Ten rushing title. Starting at 1:56 in the video above, the runs against Purdue and Nebraska show some nice patience and vision before he gets north-south and to top speed in a hurry. That ability to stick your foot in the ground and explode through the hole will be a nightmare for Big Ten defenses to contend with this season. I’m all-in as Bradrick Shaw as a bell cow back for Wisconsin Football in 2017.