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Wisconsin Football: Current state of the 2019 recruiting class

By Sam Land

MADISON, WI - OCTOBER 14: Head coach Paul Chryst of the Wisconsin Badgers congratulates Jonathan Taylor (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
MADISON, WI - OCTOBER 14: Head coach Paul Chryst of the Wisconsin Badgers congratulates Jonathan Taylor (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /
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Wisconsin Football QB Alex Hornibrook
(Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images) /

Quarterback

Commitments

Graham Mertz- Mission, KS (Blue Valley North)

Other current targets

None

Wisconsin nabbed the leader of its 2019 recruiting class early on with Graham Mertz’s commitment. Along with offensive tackle Logan Brown (more on him later), the 4-star signal caller is the crown jewel of this group.

When Mertz committed to Wisconsin last October, his only other offers were from Kansas and Minnesota. That did not last long.

We see this quite a bit with Wisconsin recruits, in both football and basketball. Both coaching staffs excel at identifying and getting involved with talented prospects before other programs take notice. Once Wisconsin offers those other schools quickly follow suit. What happened with Mertz’s recruitment is an extreme case of this.

Following his commitment, some of the nation’s best programs started to evaluate Mertz, and he proceeded to blow up on the recruiting scene. In the end, he could have chosen pretty much any school he wanted. His offer list includes Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, and Texas A&M, among many others.

As these offers flooded in, many Badger fans were certain that Mertz would decommit and end up elsewhere. There was a nail-biting period of uncertainty, but he ultimately ended all speculation for good in June, officially signaling the end of his recruitment.

Wisconsin fans are obviously very excited for Mertz’s rival in Madison, and they should be. Per the 247Sports composite, Mertz currently ranks as the No.4 pro-style quarterback and No. 83 overall player nationally in the 2019 class and will be the highest-ranked quarterback to ever sign with Wisconsin.

While fans should not expect him to come in as a true freshman and steal then-senior Alex Hornibrook’s job, Mertz has the goods to be that star quarterback fans have been clamoring for ever since Russell Wilson’s departure. There is a very long way to go until the 2020 season, but it should be a fascinating battle for the starting quarterback gig between Mertz, Chase Wolf, and Jack Coan.