Wisconsin was the favorite to land top tight end target Gavin Mueller, a 3-star player with family ties to the University. His uncle played for the Badgers years ago, and Mueller said he grew up rooting for Wisconsin. However, Colorado came in and was able to get him instead.
This caused Luke Fickell and his staff a bit of a pivot. While they have their lures out there for other TE targets, Mueller was a miss. Very quickly after Mueller announced for the Buffs, Fickell's staff came in to check on 2026 recruit Nick Lautar of Lebanon, Ohio, and gave him an official offer.
TE Nick Lautar picks up an offer from Wisconsin and schedules a visit
Nick Lautar received the offer and immediately started working on a visit to check out Madison. That visit will take place June 5-June 8. Lautar is a tall tight end with a ton of potential; he's 6'5, 215 lb. He is rated as a 3-star player by 24/7 Sports, but that's only recently. He's pretty unheralded, but his recruiting is starting to pick up steam.
He holds 24 offers but has only recently collected them from Power-4 schools. The two favorites now seem to be Wisconsin and Cincinnati. It feels almost fitting that Luke Fickell is coming in on the heels of the Bearcats in the recruitment of Lautar. Lautar will be visiting Cincinnati this week starting on May 20.
His junior season highlights show how his frame allows him to use his body in space to create separation and make contested catches. He fits the mold of what they were looking for in Mueller, and Lautar may end up being better in the long run if the Badgers can haul him in and develop him over his first year or two.
It certainly is a recruitment to watch for Badger fans, as tight ends are a big part of the new offensive scheme, both in blocking and catching.