This is unreal, but not in a good way. Over the last week, it has been hard to keep track of all the Wisconsin football players who have decided they'll be entering the transfer portal when things open up on Dec. 9. We've reached double digits for head man Luke Fickell.
The latest player to do so was offensive lineman James Durand, a former 4-star signee from the 2023 class. The guard didn't see much playing time in 2024 and it didn't look like he was going to be able to make a big difference for this team moving forward.
Durand was one of 15 players to sign with the Badgers in '23 as a member of Fickell's first recruiting class in Madison. The concerning news is that class is nearly fully wiped out. With Durand planning to make his exit, only four players from the '23 haul are still on the squad. Yikes:
Wisconsin offensive lineman James Durand announced on his Instagram account that he intends on entering the transfer portal.
— Jesse Temple (@jessetemple) December 6, 2024
That leaves Wisconsin with four players remaining from its 2023 class: DL Jamel Howard, TE Tucker Ashcraft, ILB Tyler Jansey and OLB Christian Alliegro.
Wisconsin Badgers OL James Durand will enter the transfer portal
With Durand heading out of town, that only leaves Jamel Howard, Tucker Ashcraft, Tyler Jansey and Christian Alliego. The bad news for Fickell is that he indeed only has four guys left from his first group of signees. However, the future is looking bright thanks to a great 2025.
Wisconsin just put the finishing touches on a great group for '25, highlighted of course by the signings of 4-star playmakers Carter Smith and Jaylen Williams - both players were once committed to Michigan, but flipped things to Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin coaches are going to be busy going after talent in the transfer portal too, as there are now plenty of needs on both sides of the ball with so many departures. It's been alarming to see so many Badgers players say they'll be leaving, but it's on Fickell to fill the gaps. With that said, it's not a great look when the majority of his first class is done playing for him.