Recruiting never stops, and this week has again caused a major movement on the recruiting trail for the Wisconsin Badgers men’s football and basketball teams.
The football team missed out on another top prospect, while the basketball team hopes to make a splash in the 2022 and 2023 recruiting classes with a pair of their best remaining goals.
In order to give an overview of everything that has happened in the last seven days, here is the weekly recruitment recap.
Basketball: Nolan Winter plans an official visit
Greg Gard and the Wisconsin basketball team will host forward Nolan Winter for an official visit beginning August 3. Evan Flood of 247 Sports was the first to report the visit.
A Minnesota legacy, Winter received an offer from Wisconsin in June 2021 and has been a top target for the 2023 cycle ever since. In addition to offers from the Gophers and Badgers, Winter has also made official visits to the state of Minnesota. Oregon and Stanford last year and holds offers from Wake Forest and Xavier.
The 6-foot-10 forward’s game fits Wisconsin’s style of play perfectly. He is excellent in pick-and-pop situations and is a capable three-point shooter. Winter can also maneuver with the ball in his hands and has a good assortment of low post moves at this point in his career. Defensively, he’s a good rebounder and avid shot blocker, making him a potential center as he continues to grow.
Winter plays his high school ball for Lakeville North High School in Minnesota, the same school that produced Nate Reuvers and Tyler Wahl for Wisconsin. Wisconsin associate head coach Joe Krabbenhoft is leading the charge in recruiting Winter, and the Badgers are one of the top contenders, though Minnesota has long been the likeliest landing spot due to his family ties.
With several scholarships still available in the Class of 2023, Wisconsin will be looking to make a move to topple the Gophers for the No. 2-ranked Minnesota player. The Badgers currently have commitments of combo guard John Blackwell and forward Gus Yalden for 2023, but would like to pair Winter and Yalden together in the frontcourt.
Basketball: UW pushes for center Cyril Martynov
Still exploring the transfer portal and recruiting class of 2022 for a viable center to add to the roster for this season, Greg Gard and the Badgers have identified a new target.
Wisconsin is pursuing the promotion of 2023 center Cyril Martynov in hopes of having him reclassified to play as early as this fall for the team.
The Canadian center is 6-foot-11 and has a good size at around 230 pounds, but he still hasn’t decided whether he’ll sign in 2022 or ultimately stick around as a rookie in 2023.
Wisconsin has offered him as their 2022 rookie, as they have a growing offer list that includes Arizona State, Boston College, Eastern Michigan, Georgia Tech, Missouri and UC-Santa Barbara.
With his recruiting as a 2023 prospect likely to continue to gain momentum, Wisconsin’s offer to try and get him on campus early is a smart move on the part of the coaching staff. The Badgers need a big man to support Steven Crowl this season, allowing the staff to push immediate playing time for Martynov.
For Wisconsin, adding Martynov would be an ideal scenario. Not only would that help fill a major roster hole for this year, but it would do so with a younger player to help balance the number of center purses with Crowl entering his freshman year.
With the team heading to France soon, it will be fascinating to see if the Badgers can make a move with Martynov in the coming month and bring him to campus in August for an official visit. The regular season is still months away, but the logistics of adding a player to the 2022 roster are getting tougher as things drag on.
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After losing quarterback Lincoln Kienholz to Washington and tight end Zach Ortwerth to Iowa in recent weeks, Wisconsin’s 2023 recruiting class received another blow earlier this week.
On Tuesday, rookie safety Kahlil Tate announced his commitment to Iowa, ultimately choosing the Hawkeyes over the Badgers.
Tate made an official visit to Madison in June, and Wisconsin was the favorite after that trip. However, a late visit to Iowa changed the momentum.
Missing Tate leaves the Badgers with several purses still available, with needs still at quarterback and the tight end of the class.
Outside linebacker Tackett Curtis, offensive lineman Joe Crocker and cornerback Braeden Marshall each make their college decisions in the coming weeks, with the Badgers in the best position for Curtis of the three right now.
Sitting at 13 commitments in the recruiting class of 2023, it will be interesting to see where the Badgers go from here. Wisconsin will likely try to flip some prospects hired elsewhere this fall and come up with new deals after the first weeks of senior films become available for 2023 prospects, but the team could also save several purses for the transfer portal.
Joe Crocker will take his pledge tomorrow and referee between Michigan State, Mississippi State and Wisconsin.
Wisconsin added to its 2023 recruiting class earlier this week, securing a commitment from longtime snapper Keane Bessert.
Bessert will join the Badgers as a walk-on and is the first known walk-on commit in the class.
He was the top sniper at the Wisconsin Specialists summer camp and won similar awards at Kansas State and Oregon in June.
You can read the full breakdown of our commitments here.
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