Wisconsin Football Moves Michael Deiter to LT
Wisconsin Football reshuffles its offensive line as training camp opens in advance of the 2017 season
One of the largest holes for the Wisconsin Football offense to replace for the 2017 season was at Left Tackle (LT). Ryan Ramcyzk spent a reliable season in Madison manning the all important LT spot.
Ramcyzk was drafted in the 1st round of the NFL Draft and may soon be starting for the New Orleans Saints. Ramcyzk was the only significant loss up front for Wisconsin Football and now the Badgers have made a move. Center Michael Dieter will kick outside to the LT spot to try and solidify the edges opposite incumbent RT Dave Edwards.
Deiter is a mammoth individual at 6’6″ 328 pounds but you already knew that since he is in fact a rostered OL for Wisconsin Football. That height and weight gives him more than enough size to manage the extra wingspan to cover as an OT.
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Back in April I looked at the NFL Combine marks for former Wisconsin Football OL in the NFL. Obviously we don’t have numbers on Deiter since he’s only a redshirt junior. But he ranks on the bigger end of the scale in every sense in terms of height-weight.
He has started all 17 games in two seasons for Wisconsin Football with 11 starts at Left Guard and 16 starts at Center. Deiter was an “All-Big Ten honorable mention” by the media in 2015 and “Big Ten All-Freshman” by ESPN in 2015. He was a consensus “All-Big Ten honorable mention honoree in 2016.
You need some serious athleticism to play OT for Wisconsin Football. Deiter was a 3-star recruit from Scout, Rivals, ESPN, and 247 Sports. He did letter in baseball which is a good to see in terms of a more balanced athletic makeup. A highlight video of Deiter as a 2014 recruit shows him playing a little defensive tackle as well.
In the video you can see Deiter moves well for being the biggest guy on the field. In high school he could use pure power and didn’t have to rely as much on finesse or technique.
This position switch could give Deiter a major lift for his NFL resume. We already know he can play in the interior of the OL. But if he can add LT to his resume that would make him a unique NFL prospects who can line up nearly anywhere on the OL.
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According to an article from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Deiter will kick outside while redshirt freshman Tyler Biadasz will take over the duties as Center.
"Joe Rudolph’s desire to play Wisconsin’s five best offensive linemen, coupled with a lack of experienced depth at tackle, has led to more intriguing personnel moves on the eve of preseason camp."
Perhaps Wisconsin Football determined that Deiter was a great center but the drop-off (if any) to him and Biasdasz wasn’t too significant considering the upgrade he could provide at the vacant LT spot. Said in baseball, Deiter’s Wins Above Replacement number is probably higher at LT than at C.
The surest bet, this will not change the Wisconsin Football identity in the slightest. Wisconsin Football will still be a power running team and throwing off play action.