Wisconsin Football: Top Five Position Battles in Fall Camp

#1 – Cornerback

Nick Nelson and Derrick Tindal were an excellent duo at cornerback in 2018. Tindal was one of the team’s most vocal leaders and a proven shutdown corner who had seen a ton of action over his career in Madison. Nelson only played one year for the Badgers, but he lived up to the hype that came with him when he transferred from Hawaii. He was one of the Big Ten’s best corners and was a third-round draft pick by the Oakland Raiders after leaving school with one more season of eligibility still left.

Needless to say, replacing those guys is going to be extremely difficult.

Sophomore Dontye Carriere-Williams is a lock to start at one spot on the outside, as he is by far the most experienced player in the cornerback room and performed relatively well as Wisconsin’s nickel corner in 2017.

The battle to start across from him is probably the most wide-open race of fall camp at this point. It is also one of the most important. Wisconsin has legitimate national championship aspirations this season, but to even get close to reaching that ceiling, they must have a reliable secondary that can limit big plays through the air.

The contenders

Faion Hicks

Hicks enrolled early as a freshman in Wisconsin’s 2017 recruiting class and redshirted last season. The coaching staff, namely defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard, liked what they saw from him during spring practices.

His successful spring performance seems to have paid dividends, as Hicks joined Carriere-Williams on the first-team defense at the start of fall practices last week.

Unfortunately, Hicks went down with an apparent hamstring injury during the August 3rd practice and then was out for the next. With how open this race is, Hicks probably cannot afford to miss much time if he is going to win this job.

Madison Cone

Cone saw limited action as a true freshman last season. He played in 9 games, including the Orange Bowl, and recorded one tackle and one pass breakup. It says a great deal about the inexperience of this cornerback group that Cone is actually its second most experienced player behind Carriere-Williams.

He doesn’t have ideal size for his position but makes up for that with great athleticism and ball skills. His game experience also gives him a bit of an advantage over the players he is competing with for this role. Indeed, most had him pegged as the favorite to win this job coming out of the spring.

Interestingly, though, Leonhard seems to like Cone’s potential as the slot corner in Wisconsin’s nickel package this season. That certainly doesn’t mean he can’t still ultimately win the starting position on the outside, but it is something to keep an eye on as camp moves along.

Caesar Williams

Williams played in 2 games last season as a redshirt freshman and started off the 2018 cycle well in spring practices.

He definitely uses his excellent height and length to his advantage, as he has really shown an ability to get in passing lanes and make plays on the ball.

Williams is a bit of a dark horse in this race, but if he can keep showing the coaching staff improvement in the coming weeks he has a good a chance as anyone at winning this battle.

Like everyone else on this list, he has seen first-team reps in the first few practices.

Deron Harrell

Harrell might be the most intriguing player in this race.

The redshirt freshman is still learning the position after making the move from wide receiver this fall but is already earning looks with the first-team defense.

He has the tools to be successful in his new role and appears to be succeeding at putting them all together. Listed at 6’2, he has great size, in addition to intriguing athleticism. It never hurts to have good genes, either, and Harrell’s father Damian is one of the best players in the history of the Arena Football League.

Not thought to be a factor in this battle when fall camp opened, Harrell is the sleeper pick to win this job.

Also in the mix: Donte Burton, Travian Blaylock