5 Badgers that will be crucial for Wisconsin football in 2024

Wisconsin football head coach Luke Fickell is heading into his second season with the Badgers and he hopes things go better than the first. In his first season, the Badgers went 7-6 under Fickell and 5-4 in Big Ten play.

At Cincinnati, Fickell was known for his ability to bring in players of all levels and make them work to bring about a championship-caliber team. So, now at Wisconsin, Fickell has the resources to bring in even better players to make up an even better team than he could have at Cincinnati.

So looking ahead to the 2024 season, the Wisconsin offense is going to look very different with a new quarterback and running back. The loss of Braelon Allen is a big one for the Badgers as a lot of the offense ran through him literally.

So with new players in new positions, which players are going to be crucial in 2024?

With the loss of Allen, running back Chez Mellusi will become one of the most important people on this offense that leans so much on the running game. Mellusi spent two years at Clemson and saw time on the field, but never recorded over 300 years. When he transferred to Wisconsin he had a career had 173 carries for 815 yards and five touchdowns.

After his first season with the Badgers, Mellusics touches went down with the addition of Allen. Now with Allen off to the NFL, Mellusi has the perfect opportunity to return to the lead-back role and add a veteran presence to the offense.