If you had to predict one Badger to come out of nowhere and surprise everyone, who would you pick? It can't be one of the known players. Colton Joseph, Abu Sama III, Mason Posa, Cooper Catalano, and even Eugene Hilton Jr. can't count. Though Hilton is probably a gray area one, as he's known mostly because of his namesake and one remarkable play where he deked out his defender last season. Let's say he's off limits, too. What player comes out of nowhere and surprises the Big Ten and the college football world?
It could be an offensive player or a defensive player. But you can only pick one. If I were going to pick one, hand down, only one player...it would be edge rusher Liam Danitz. He fits the profile of a completely unknown player. If he has any notoriety, it's because of his obscurity. He was at a D3 school last year and yet picked up a few offers as a transfer.
Danitz is unknown to everyone; even the people who heard the story about how Danitz was a freakish athlete at Hope College in Michigan have long forgotten the name. And even that was a very niche population of football weirdos. Danitz could truly shock some people this fall, and he has to, as he only has one year to do it.
Liam Danitz is a rare athlete that could truly surprise football fans off the EDGE this Fall
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If you don't remember Danitz, he's a rare specimen of an athlete with incredible numbers. To start, he's 6'4 and 242 pounds and was also a track star running a 10.55 sprint in the 100-meter dash with a 20.92 in the 200-meter. He's fast and explosive. He put up video game numbers in his final season at Hope College (D3) with 46 tackles, 21 tackles for loss, and 15 sacks. He also notched two fumble recoveries. This is impressive at any level.
He had offers when he hit the transfer portal from Michigan, Missouri, UCLA, and Wisconsin, among others. It was Luke Fickell who got him to come and play for the Badgers. With only one year left to play, he wanted an opportunity to explode right away. Danitz could truly be the next Mason Reiger as he has a similar motor, work ethic, and rare natural athletic ability.
While Danitz is not on the offensive side of the ball, so it's going to be hard for him to completely rise to the top of the ESPN SportsCenter, there's still the idea that he can come out of nowhere and be circled on other teams' scouting reports.
The senior OLB for Wisconsin was already popping up on the spring practice highlight reels, and many of the reporters were showcasing him as a player who "stood out." While he wasn't so incredible that he made enough waves to shock...as Ryan Hopkins did, Danitz still stood out. Which means he's on the right track to really burst on the football scene in the fall.
Sure, it may not be him, but the point of the exercise is to take a no-name and predict star status by the end of the season. Who's your pick?
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