Wisconsin Will Rely on Mid-Year Transfers to Round out Offense
Following a 5-7 season in which they missed a bowl game for the first time as a program since 2001, Wisconsin signed 18 scholarship transfers ahead of spring practice. In his introductory press conference, head coach Luke Fickell said he didn’t want the Badgers to become a transfer portal team, but for various reasons, that’s been difficult to avoid. Even leading up to fall camp, which begins July 29, UW has added three more additions from the portal — tight end Lance Mason (Missouri State), wide receiver Dekel Crowdus (Hawaii), and offensive tackle Davis Heinzen (Central Michigan), bringing the total to 21 if you include tight end Tanner Koziol and wide receiver Mark Hamper, who both transferred out in the spring after short stints in Madison.
The most important of the bunch might be Mason. Helping replace Koziol, who bolted for Houston after a few practices, Mason comes over from Missouri State, where he was an FCS third-team All-American in 2024. As a junior, Mason caught 34 passes for 590 yards and six touchdowns. His 17.4 yards per catch average ranked first in the Missouri Valley Conference. As a team, Wisconsin’s tight ends combined for just 28 catches for 202 yards and one touchdown last season.
Mason has yet to fully let it rip in a Badger uniform just yet, but thus far, Fickell feels good about the addition.
“Lance is obviously the guy, immediately, is a guy who has come in and grasped a lot of things,” Fickell said from Big Ten Media Days in Las Vegas. “He’s made a pretty good connection with Billy (Billy Edwards Jr.). He’s a guy that has a little bit of a different skillset. Knowing that he wanted to grow his skillset, he’s done a great job. Haven’t seen true live competition with him yet, but has done everything to say, ‘This is a guy we can count on.’
“So, we’re excited about him.”
Crowdus is one of the more intriguing additions. Replacing Hamper, who signed with California, the senior has battled injuries throughout his career, but flashes great speed on tape. As a junior, Crowdus played in nine games for the Warriors, recording 16 catches for 302 yards and four touchdowns.
“He’s been a guy who has been a little bit plagued with some hamstring stuff,” Fickell continued. “Just as he gets rolling, he has a little bit of a setback. I don’t know what Dekel can do. What he has grasped and the things he has done, looks good.”
Heinzen was added to the fold out of necessity. After projected starting left tackle Kevin Heywood went down with a season-ending ACL injury in the spring, Wisconsin had a huge void on its offensive line. Heinzen, a Manitowoc native, brings 40 games of experience, including 36 starts for the Chippewas.
“The strides he’s taken, you can tell he’s poised, confident, respectful,” said senior quarterback Billy Edwards Jr., a Maryland transfer. “He has all the right characteristics. His head’s on very straight. He’s played a lot of football. He’s learning the offense, coming on great.”
Fickell mentioned that the Badgers do have other options at left tackle. Redshirt freshman Emerson Mandell could slide to the other side from right guard. Junior Joe Brunner, the projected starting left guard, also has experience at tackle.
In spring, UW experimented with various combinations, including junior Leyton Nelson at left tackle. Whichever way the Badgers and offensive line coach A.J. Blazek decide to go, Edwards feels confident and comfortable under center, stating he feels UW’s offensive line can go 10-11 deep this season.
“The main thing has always been the main thing for them,” Edwards continued. “It’s really good to see that. It gives me the utmost confidence at quarterback in those guys, knowing it doesn’t matter where they are. Coach ‘Blaz’ and those guys will find the best spots for them and we’ll be ready to roll come August 28. The changes and moving pieces that have gone in that room, nothing has really affected them or steered them off course.”
Quotes courtesy of Max Siker
