Wisconsin Football: Badgers land in-state sleeper Cade McDonald

Wisconsin Football has picked up its eighth commitment in the 2020 class, with in-state defensive end Cade McDonald giving his pledge to the Badgers on Monday.

The latest commitment for Wisconsin in the class of 2020 comes from a recruit who was not on very many Badger fans’ radars leading up to last weekend.

Hudson (WI) defensive end Cade McDonald came to Wisconsin’s high school camp on Saturday a little-known name to most casual followers of recruiting news. Currently rated as a two-star prospect by 247Sports, the only scholarship offers that he had to his name at the time were from FCS programs Illinois State, North Dakota and South Dakota. However, he proceeded to put forward such an eye-opening performance that the coaching staff, for all intents and purposes, decided to add him to their recruiting class on the spot by extending a scholarship offer that he had long coveted.

Helping to seal the deal for McDonald was his strong showing against some of the top offensive line prospects at the event, including 4-star 2020 tackle (and current Wisconsin commit) Jack Nelson and 4-star 2021 prospect Riley Mahlman, with Paul Chryst and defensive line coach Inoke Breckterfield looking on.

Once the staff extended the offer, there was little doubt that it was just a matter of time before McDonald announced that he would be a Badger. In fact, soon after receiving the offer on Saturday, he had this to say to Jon McNamara of Rivals:

"Yeah, the Badgers is the way to go for me. I plan to commit very soon. Not an exact time, but sometime within this week."

“Sometime within this week” ultimately turned out to be just two days later, with McDonald announcing his commitment on Monday afternoon. Of Wisconsin’s current group of eight pledges, he is now the seventh member of the class to hail from inside the state.

Given his status as a sleeper prospect who seemingly emerged out of nowhere (at least to the casual observer) to claim a coveted spot in this class, many Wisconsin football fans are probably wondering what exactly McDonald will bring to the table once he joins the program in 2020.

Well, for starters, McDonald’s traits are not those of a two-star prospect, and he appears to be the classic type of late-bloomer who Wisconsin has identified and turned into stars in the past. At a legit 6’7 and 240 pounds, he has the frame that the Badgers love to have at defensive end in their 3-4 defense and also displays impressive quickness and agility in his film. Once he bulks up, I envision an Isaiahh Loudermilk-type prospect who will be able to hold his own against blockers to clear up space for Wisconsin’s linebackers to make plays and use his length to disrupt passing lanes.

He’s a bit raw and will likely need a few years in the program to refine his technique and pack some more weight on before being ready to see significant snaps, but this is a kid who has all the tools that the coaches love their ends to have. He may be a two-star right now, but I would expect him to climb up those rankings by the time he signs with Wisconsin in the winter. Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but the Badgers look like they may have found yet another diamond in the rough.