Badger football suffered a major blow at Thursday's practice with their tight end going down with a lower body injury.
Tucker Ashcraft, a potential starter on the Wisconsin offense, left practice on crutches today local media reported. While a timetable is not yet know, he will be held out for the remainder of camp with his week one status up in the air.
#Badgers tight end Tucker Ashcraft has a lower-body injury and will be out the rest of camp. Status for Week 1 wasn't shared.
— Colten Bartholomew (@CBartWSJ) August 14, 2025
He left Tuesday's practice on crutches keeping his left foot up.
While Tucker could still potentially play a big role in 2025, for now it seems like head coach Luke Fickell and company will have to plan to move forward without him for at a few weeks. Tight end was already a position that lacked depth, and now Ashcraft's injury complicates that situation even more.
How does Wisconsin move forward potentially without Tucker Ashcraft?
The likely candidate to fill in is Missouri State transfer Lance Mason, who the Badgers added to the roster this spring after the Tanner Koziol fallout. Last season, Mason led all FCS tight ends with 590 yards. He added six touchdowns as well. The word throughout camp has been that Mason is progressing well, and would've challenged for some serious reps regardless of the Ashcraft injury.
“Lance has done impressive things,”said Fickell during fall camp. “There’s a lot on the plate of these tight ends...and it’s not just making plays, it’s the commitment to doing all the things to play at the next level. That’s what’s impressive.”
Still, tight end is so thin that Badger fans' are hoping and praying that Ashcraft's time missed is minimal. Wisconsin has been fairly lucky this offseason to avoid any major injuries, and hopefully that trend continues.