Wisconsin Football: Lineman leaves the program

 Offensive lineman Patrick Kasl is leaving the Wisconsin Football program.

Paul Chryst announced on Wednesday that offensive tackle Patrick Kasl is leaving the Wisconsin football program to focus on academics.

Kasl, a redshirt sophomore, was expected to compete for playing time at left tackle this season. Instead, he will be focusing on his school work.

From Bucky’s 5th Quarter, Paul Chryst was asked about Kasl not being on the roster.

"“Patrick has decided to not play football, and he’s going to focus on his academics,” Chryst said. “Had a really good conversation with him about it. He was involved with a really dynamic summer program. I think it got him in a spot where you got a conversation. He wants to focus on that, so he won’t be with the team."

Coming out of high school, Kasl was a 3-star tackle from Forest Lake, Minnesota. He picked the Badgers over his home-state Gophers and Vanderbilt among others. He was considered to be one of the better linemen on the roster that would make a real impact on the team in the future.

Kasl leaving the program is certainly a surprise, but it makes you wonder, why? It could be because he really wanted to focus solely on his education. Who could fault a guy for that? Especially when you are majoring in biomedical engineering.

Although unlikely, another possibility is just having too much depth at the position. It’s no secret Wisconsin has done well recruiting offensive lineman. They are getting an elite prospect coming in Logan Brown in the upcoming recruiting class. Competition could be stiff and playing time could be tough to come by in the future.

Next man up

With Kasl leaving, that leaves an opening for someone else to slip into his place as the backup tackle. Which lineman could step up?

Evan Flood from 247 Sports seems to think redshirt freshman Logan Bruss is the next man up. Bruss is from Wisconsin powerhouse Kimberly High School. Bruss was often considered a guard, but linemen at Wisconsin are generally versatile and can move around the line.

Cole Van Lanen is another name to keep an eye on. He is a natural tackle. He was a highly-touted player out of Port Washington, Wisconsin. He was the number 10 ranked tackle in the country when he signed as a part of the class of 2016 according to 247 sports. I think he will definitely be in the discussion to be the backup to All-American and All-Big Ten tackle, David Edwards.

Even though Kasl was a solid player and possibly would have been a great part of the program in the future, I’m sure Chryst and the rest of the coaching staff will keep the train moving. Wisconsin football will still produce an elite offensive line in college football for years to come.