2018 End of Season Football Grades
Here are the Badger defensive positional grades for the 2018 season.
DL: D +
Despite a strong duo of ILB behind them, the Badgers struggled to stop the run at times, finishing 59th in rushing defense efficiency and 54th in stuff rate. While they also struggled in allowing big plays on the ground (85th in rushing explosiveness), I think the former was the bigger issue as they had trouble getting teams into 3rd and long situations, finishing 118th nationally in terms of 3rd and long distance. This had an effect on the pass rush, as the Badgers were just 122nd in sack rate on passing downs. There just weren't enough bodies up front, and losing Garrett Rand for the year, and Isaiahh Loudermilk and Olive Sagapolu for large parts of the year certainly didn't help. In the 3-4 defense, much of the pass rush is designed to come from the OLBers, but the Badgers had just 4 sacks from the entire defensive line and their DL havoc rate of 1.9% was 127th in the nation. The kids they had playing played hard and improved as the season went along, but just were outgunned up front.
Sagapolu was playing the best football of his career when hurt, leading the DL in sacks with 2 and run stuffs with 5.5. He had a DL leading efficiency rating of -23.1%, which is outstanding.
His replacement, Bryson Williams was most likely not ready for full time duty , finishing the year without a run stuff and in contrast to Sagapolu, an efficiency rating of 2.5% (which is very poor). He will be fine, but he was put in a tough spot this year.
Loudermilk was effective when he played (-22.1 efficiency), but just didn't get enough snaps. It is not a coincidence that the run defense was better late in the year as he got healthy.
The other two DL who got regular time were Matt Henningsen and converted OL Kaden Lyles. Both worked hard but were basically just bodies at this stage on their careers and DC Jim Leohnard often resorted to 2 man fronts.
LB: B
The inside duo of Connelly and Edwards lived up to their billing for the most part, providing consistent interior linebacking play (after an early season blip against BYU). Edwards lead the team in tackles (89.5) and TFLs (11.5), while Connelly lead in run stuffs (17) and efficiency (-11.2%). Each had 3 sacks, with Edwards picking up his usual 3 picks.
On the outside, as noted earlier, the Badgers were not as explosive as years past. Andrew Van Ginkel lead the team in sacks, though his total of 5.5 was not a typical Badger OLB total. He was also limited for the early part of the year by a nagging ankle injury, leaving the team without its best chance at at outside pass rush. When he did play, he was active with 10.5 run stuffs and 9.5 TFLs. When he was out, Tyler Johnson and Christian Bell were a noticeable drop off.
Zach Baun started quietly, but was also playing better as the year went on. He will be looked on to make another step next year and will hopefully improve his modest total of 2.5 sacks. His efficiency rating was a solid, though unspectacular (-5.5%).
Another noteworthy stat was a big play rate of only 10.3% of blitzes (104th nationally). While I realize some blitzes are from DBs, I think this also speaks to the lack of explosive plays by the LBs, and the OLBs specifically.
DB: B-
Despite limited help with the pass rush, the defense finished with a passing marginal efficiency which ranked 35th in the nation. They were only 56th in adjusted completion percentage allowed, but did a nice job of preventing the big plays. Overall, the defense had a TD/INT rate of 14/14, which has to be considered a success. The overall 3rd down defense was not very good, but much of that was on 3rd and short. On 3rd and medium plays, the defense was 13th in the nation, which, again, is a credit to the rotating cast of DBs. While they did not generate a ton of big plays (havoc rate ranked only 71st nationally), they had a pretty good passes defended rate (27th nationally).
At least 10 DBs got solid playing time this year, which makes the performance of the group a credit to the coaching staff. When you look at individual grades, I am a believer that their whole was greater than the sum of their parts. Due to their youth, they lacked playmakers, but were put in solid schemes and were generally assignment sure.
Safeties Scott Nelson and D'Cota Dixon were the mainstays of the DBs, though both battle through injuries and were in and out of the lineup. They combined for 6 run stuffs, though Nelson in particular struggle tackling in space and missed too many tackles. However, Nelson did grade out higher in terms of marginal defensive efficiency (9.7% vs. 25.5%) and fewer yards per play than Dixon (5.5 vs. 7.9).
Of note was Reggie Pearson, who graded out at an outstanding -17.1%, though in limited time. Still, he bears watching in the future.
Of the corners, most had their moments, both positive and negative as Leonhard mixed and matched. Faion Hicks was probably the most consistent down to down , but was prone to giving up big plays (19.6 yards per play). After Cesar Williams struggled early, true freshman Rachad Wildgoose gradually took hold of he position. His defensive efficiency rating was a modest 34.1%, but I believe it was due to freshman struggles early on. Wildgoose was also prone to penalties at times, even though coverage often appeared to be pretty good. Trusting his abilities will come.
Like Pearson at the safety position, a name to watch is Donte Burton, who graded out very well (only 3.6 yards per play) in limited time. Whether that is a low sample size fluke or a sign of things to come remains to be seen.
P: F
There is no getting around the struggles of the punters this year as the Badgers finished 123rd nationally in punt efficiency. Anthony Lotti lost his job to Conner Allen for much of the year, though Allen was not any better. Both were under 50% in terms of punt success rate, which as the national ranking indicates, is a miserable performance.
QB: D
Hornibrook got off to a solid start through 5 games, completing 63% of his passes with only 2 picks (one off of a deflection). At the time, he was rated the top passer in the Big Ten per PFF, in large part because he had thrown the fewest "at risk" passes among all Big Ten starters. Then came the game at Michigan against an elite pass defense and the wheels came off, followed by a shaky game against Illinois, albeit in horrid weather, followed by the missed games due to a concussion, and uneven (to be kind) play through the end of the year. Hornibrook finished with a 132 QB Efficiency rating, a middle of the pack number for a Big Ten QB, but down from his underrated sophomore year. While he showed some improvement in his pocket sense, the turnover rate remained too high and consistency remained elusive.
Coan struggled in his ability to push the ball down the field, averaging a paltry 5.5 yards per attempt and featured a miserable explosive play efficiency rating. Whether he was unwilling or unable to make the throws required of a major college QB, the reality is that a 118 QB Efficiency rating just won't cut it. While he offered more with his feet than Hornibrook, the difference was negligible and he struggled with keeping his eyes up, even when his feet created additional time, with a similar result.
TB: A-
It is hard to find too much fault with Jonathan Taylor and the rest of the tailback crew. Despite a consistently stacked box, the tailbacks, lead by Heisman contender Taylor, all averaged 6.5 yards per carry or more. Taylor ran for 7.15 yards per carry and 16 touchdowns on his way to 2194 yards. After some ball security issues early in the year (4 fumbles), it became less of an issue as the year progressed and he showed outstanding patience and balance and was without question the primary offensive weapon on the team.
Taiwan Deal was an extremely effective backup, rushing for 545 yards on 6.65 yards per carry and 6 touchdowns. Finally healthy, he ran with purpose and power spelling Taylor effectively and making a case for more carries.
Garrett Groshek, functioning primarily as the 3rd down back, was also effective, albeit in more advantageous running situations than Taylor and Deal (rushing efficiency rating of 6.8%, compared to 15% for Taylor and 22% for Deal), which means his 6.5 yards per carry meant something different than the other two backs. After some hiccups early in the year in terms of handling the blitz, his pass protection improved and he was the sole receiving threat out of the backfield.
One small issue with all of the backs was the lack of explosive plays, as the team ranked 47th nationally in terms of rushing explosiveness (and 88th nationally on non-passing downs, meaning a significant percentage of their explosive plays came on 3rd and long type plays).
FB: B+
Alec Ingold moved into the fulltime fullback position and was effective around the goal line (6 touchdowns) and in short yardage situations, rushing for an impressive 5.5 yards per carry. His lead blocking seemed to get better as the year went along and he did his job well.
TE: C+
Tight end was a mixed bag for the Badgers in 2018. On one hand, Jake Ferguson emerged as a potential receiving star, ranking second on the team in catches (36) and yards (356) and forcing opponents to account for him. However, like many young tight ends, the blocking game was a work in progress as the loss of blocking tight end Zander Neuville early in the season forced him into a more pronounced role.
The other tight ends, namely Kyle Penniston and Luke Benzschawel were non-existent as receiving threats while also not offering dominant blocking on the edge. Benzschawel battled injuries for the early part of the season and seemed to be coming on late in the year.
WR: C
A season that began with huge promise could only be labeled a slight disappointment. Beginning with the loss of #1 Quintez Cephus (and the suspension of Danny Davis). While it is difficult to separate their performance from the mediocre quarterback play, the group as a whole failed to deliver the big plays the offense needed. It is hard to find specific fault with any one player as all showed flashes of production at times, but in a perfect world, when your QB is struggling, big time receivers make them look better with big time plays. The team as a whole ranked 104th nationally in passing explosiveness. Perhaps that was too much to ask of a still young group? Perhaps the loss of Cephus was too much to overcome?
AJ Taylor was the most explosive of the group, leading the team in yards (521) and yards per catch (16.3). His yards per target was a team leading 8.8. However, after two 5-catch games to start the year, caught more than 3 in a game, just once and his catch rate (catches vs. targets) was a disappointing 54%.
Danny Davis was the most consistent receiver, leading the team with 3.6 catches per game with a higher catch rate (68%) but averaging just over 10 yards per catch and not displaying much home run ability (all 5 touchdowns came in the red zone and a pedestrian 7.1 yards per target.)
OL: A
The OL has caught flack much of the year for not living up the the hype, but I believe much of this is due to unfair expectations. On the ground, the OL was dominant for much of the year despite not much help from the passing game, resulting in loaded boxes and difficult running situations. The Badgers ranked 2nd in the nation in terms of rushing efficiency, and were 3rd in terms of fewest run stuffs. Anyone saying the OL disappointed is uninformed.
In the passing game, they allowed a solid 24 sacks, which was a middle of the pack total. However, the sack rate was too high (about 8%), though I have to believe that a lot of that was Hornibrook's feet and Coan's overall awareness. (Coan's sack rate was actually considerably higher). While the pass blocking is certainly not the strength of the group, it was also not a weakness either and given their run dominance, is certainly acceptable.
Benzschawel and Dieter garnered many of the post-season accolades and played well, though it was Tyler Biadiasz who may have had the best season, as PFF graded him as the top center in the nation.
The other surprise was Cole Van Lanen. Despite sharing time with Jon Dietzen at left tackle, Van Lanen graded out very well and earned the majority of the snaps down the stretch.
PK: D
It was a rough year for kicker Rafael Gaglianone. After missing a crucial game-tying kick vs. Brigham Young, he made just 10 of 17 kicks for the season. His FG value per kick ranked 125th nationally, indicating his performance was one of the worst in the country. One has to wonder if Chryst's maddening decision to punt from around the opponent's 35 yard line was influenced by the lack of pop in Gaglianone's leg. With less of a margin for error he was really needed this year and he did not consistently deliver. What was supposed to be a strength, became a liability.
On kickoffs, Zach Hintze was outstanding with a touchback percentage of over 80% for the season and kickoff efficiency that was 15th nationally.
DL: D +
Despite a strong duo of ILB behind them, the Badgers struggled to stop the run at times, finishing 59th in rushing defense efficiency and 54th in stuff rate. While they also struggled in allowing big plays on the ground (85th in rushing explosiveness), I think the former was the bigger issue as they had trouble getting teams into 3rd and long situations, finishing 118th nationally in terms of 3rd and long distance. This had an effect on the pass rush, as the Badgers were just 122nd in sack rate on passing downs. There just weren't enough bodies up front, and losing Garrett Rand for the year, and Isaiahh Loudermilk and Olive Sagapolu for large parts of the year certainly didn't help. In the 3-4 defense, much of the pass rush is designed to come from the OLBers, but the Badgers had just 4 sacks from the entire defensive line and their DL havoc rate of 1.9% was 127th in the nation. The kids they had playing played hard and improved as the season went along, but just were outgunned up front.
Sagapolu was playing the best football of his career when hurt, leading the DL in sacks with 2 and run stuffs with 5.5. He had a DL leading efficiency rating of -23.1%, which is outstanding.
His replacement, Bryson Williams was most likely not ready for full time duty , finishing the year without a run stuff and in contrast to Sagapolu, an efficiency rating of 2.5% (which is very poor). He will be fine, but he was put in a tough spot this year.
Loudermilk was effective when he played (-22.1 efficiency), but just didn't get enough snaps. It is not a coincidence that the run defense was better late in the year as he got healthy.
The other two DL who got regular time were Matt Henningsen and converted OL Kaden Lyles. Both worked hard but were basically just bodies at this stage on their careers and DC Jim Leohnard often resorted to 2 man fronts.
LB: B
The inside duo of Connelly and Edwards lived up to their billing for the most part, providing consistent interior linebacking play (after an early season blip against BYU). Edwards lead the team in tackles (89.5) and TFLs (11.5), while Connelly lead in run stuffs (17) and efficiency (-11.2%). Each had 3 sacks, with Edwards picking up his usual 3 picks.
On the outside, as noted earlier, the Badgers were not as explosive as years past. Andrew Van Ginkel lead the team in sacks, though his total of 5.5 was not a typical Badger OLB total. He was also limited for the early part of the year by a nagging ankle injury, leaving the team without its best chance at at outside pass rush. When he did play, he was active with 10.5 run stuffs and 9.5 TFLs. When he was out, Tyler Johnson and Christian Bell were a noticeable drop off.
Zach Baun started quietly, but was also playing better as the year went on. He will be looked on to make another step next year and will hopefully improve his modest total of 2.5 sacks. His efficiency rating was a solid, though unspectacular (-5.5%).
Another noteworthy stat was a big play rate of only 10.3% of blitzes (104th nationally). While I realize some blitzes are from DBs, I think this also speaks to the lack of explosive plays by the LBs, and the OLBs specifically.
DB: B-
Despite limited help with the pass rush, the defense finished with a passing marginal efficiency which ranked 35th in the nation. They were only 56th in adjusted completion percentage allowed, but did a nice job of preventing the big plays. Overall, the defense had a TD/INT rate of 14/14, which has to be considered a success. The overall 3rd down defense was not very good, but much of that was on 3rd and short. On 3rd and medium plays, the defense was 13th in the nation, which, again, is a credit to the rotating cast of DBs. While they did not generate a ton of big plays (havoc rate ranked only 71st nationally), they had a pretty good passes defended rate (27th nationally).
At least 10 DBs got solid playing time this year, which makes the performance of the group a credit to the coaching staff. When you look at individual grades, I am a believer that their whole was greater than the sum of their parts. Due to their youth, they lacked playmakers, but were put in solid schemes and were generally assignment sure.
Safeties Scott Nelson and D'Cota Dixon were the mainstays of the DBs, though both battle through injuries and were in and out of the lineup. They combined for 6 run stuffs, though Nelson in particular struggle tackling in space and missed too many tackles. However, Nelson did grade out higher in terms of marginal defensive efficiency (9.7% vs. 25.5%) and fewer yards per play than Dixon (5.5 vs. 7.9).
Of note was Reggie Pearson, who graded out at an outstanding -17.1%, though in limited time. Still, he bears watching in the future.
Of the corners, most had their moments, both positive and negative as Leonhard mixed and matched. Faion Hicks was probably the most consistent down to down , but was prone to giving up big plays (19.6 yards per play). After Cesar Williams struggled early, true freshman Rachad Wildgoose gradually took hold of he position. His defensive efficiency rating was a modest 34.1%, but I believe it was due to freshman struggles early on. Wildgoose was also prone to penalties at times, even though coverage often appeared to be pretty good. Trusting his abilities will come.
Like Pearson at the safety position, a name to watch is Donte Burton, who graded out very well (only 3.6 yards per play) in limited time. Whether that is a low sample size fluke or a sign of things to come remains to be seen.
P: F
There is no getting around the struggles of the punters this year as the Badgers finished 123rd nationally in punt efficiency. Anthony Lotti lost his job to Conner Allen for much of the year, though Allen was not any better. Both were under 50% in terms of punt success rate, which as the national ranking indicates, is a miserable performance.
QB: D
Hornibrook got off to a solid start through 5 games, completing 63% of his passes with only 2 picks (one off of a deflection). At the time, he was rated the top passer in the Big Ten per PFF, in large part because he had thrown the fewest "at risk" passes among all Big Ten starters. Then came the game at Michigan against an elite pass defense and the wheels came off, followed by a shaky game against Illinois, albeit in horrid weather, followed by the missed games due to a concussion, and uneven (to be kind) play through the end of the year. Hornibrook finished with a 132 QB Efficiency rating, a middle of the pack number for a Big Ten QB, but down from his underrated sophomore year. While he showed some improvement in his pocket sense, the turnover rate remained too high and consistency remained elusive.
Coan struggled in his ability to push the ball down the field, averaging a paltry 5.5 yards per attempt and featured a miserable explosive play efficiency rating. Whether he was unwilling or unable to make the throws required of a major college QB, the reality is that a 118 QB Efficiency rating just won't cut it. While he offered more with his feet than Hornibrook, the difference was negligible and he struggled with keeping his eyes up, even when his feet created additional time, with a similar result.
TB: A-
It is hard to find too much fault with Jonathan Taylor and the rest of the tailback crew. Despite a consistently stacked box, the tailbacks, lead by Heisman contender Taylor, all averaged 6.5 yards per carry or more. Taylor ran for 7.15 yards per carry and 16 touchdowns on his way to 2194 yards. After some ball security issues early in the year (4 fumbles), it became less of an issue as the year progressed and he showed outstanding patience and balance and was without question the primary offensive weapon on the team.
Taiwan Deal was an extremely effective backup, rushing for 545 yards on 6.65 yards per carry and 6 touchdowns. Finally healthy, he ran with purpose and power spelling Taylor effectively and making a case for more carries.
Garrett Groshek, functioning primarily as the 3rd down back, was also effective, albeit in more advantageous running situations than Taylor and Deal (rushing efficiency rating of 6.8%, compared to 15% for Taylor and 22% for Deal), which means his 6.5 yards per carry meant something different than the other two backs. After some hiccups early in the year in terms of handling the blitz, his pass protection improved and he was the sole receiving threat out of the backfield.
One small issue with all of the backs was the lack of explosive plays, as the team ranked 47th nationally in terms of rushing explosiveness (and 88th nationally on non-passing downs, meaning a significant percentage of their explosive plays came on 3rd and long type plays).
FB: B+
Alec Ingold moved into the fulltime fullback position and was effective around the goal line (6 touchdowns) and in short yardage situations, rushing for an impressive 5.5 yards per carry. His lead blocking seemed to get better as the year went along and he did his job well.
TE: C+
Tight end was a mixed bag for the Badgers in 2018. On one hand, Jake Ferguson emerged as a potential receiving star, ranking second on the team in catches (36) and yards (356) and forcing opponents to account for him. However, like many young tight ends, the blocking game was a work in progress as the loss of blocking tight end Zander Neuville early in the season forced him into a more pronounced role.
The other tight ends, namely Kyle Penniston and Luke Benzschawel were non-existent as receiving threats while also not offering dominant blocking on the edge. Benzschawel battled injuries for the early part of the season and seemed to be coming on late in the year.
WR: C
A season that began with huge promise could only be labeled a slight disappointment. Beginning with the loss of #1 Quintez Cephus (and the suspension of Danny Davis). While it is difficult to separate their performance from the mediocre quarterback play, the group as a whole failed to deliver the big plays the offense needed. It is hard to find specific fault with any one player as all showed flashes of production at times, but in a perfect world, when your QB is struggling, big time receivers make them look better with big time plays. The team as a whole ranked 104th nationally in passing explosiveness. Perhaps that was too much to ask of a still young group? Perhaps the loss of Cephus was too much to overcome?
AJ Taylor was the most explosive of the group, leading the team in yards (521) and yards per catch (16.3). His yards per target was a team leading 8.8. However, after two 5-catch games to start the year, caught more than 3 in a game, just once and his catch rate (catches vs. targets) was a disappointing 54%.
Danny Davis was the most consistent receiver, leading the team with 3.6 catches per game with a higher catch rate (68%) but averaging just over 10 yards per catch and not displaying much home run ability (all 5 touchdowns came in the red zone and a pedestrian 7.1 yards per target.)
OL: A
The OL has caught flack much of the year for not living up the the hype, but I believe much of this is due to unfair expectations. On the ground, the OL was dominant for much of the year despite not much help from the passing game, resulting in loaded boxes and difficult running situations. The Badgers ranked 2nd in the nation in terms of rushing efficiency, and were 3rd in terms of fewest run stuffs. Anyone saying the OL disappointed is uninformed.
In the passing game, they allowed a solid 24 sacks, which was a middle of the pack total. However, the sack rate was too high (about 8%), though I have to believe that a lot of that was Hornibrook's feet and Coan's overall awareness. (Coan's sack rate was actually considerably higher). While the pass blocking is certainly not the strength of the group, it was also not a weakness either and given their run dominance, is certainly acceptable.
Benzschawel and Dieter garnered many of the post-season accolades and played well, though it was Tyler Biadiasz who may have had the best season, as PFF graded him as the top center in the nation.
The other surprise was Cole Van Lanen. Despite sharing time with Jon Dietzen at left tackle, Van Lanen graded out very well and earned the majority of the snaps down the stretch.
PK: D
It was a rough year for kicker Rafael Gaglianone. After missing a crucial game-tying kick vs. Brigham Young, he made just 10 of 17 kicks for the season. His FG value per kick ranked 125th nationally, indicating his performance was one of the worst in the country. One has to wonder if Chryst's maddening decision to punt from around the opponent's 35 yard line was influenced by the lack of pop in Gaglianone's leg. With less of a margin for error he was really needed this year and he did not consistently deliver. What was supposed to be a strength, became a liability.
On kickoffs, Zach Hintze was outstanding with a touchback percentage of over 80% for the season and kickoff efficiency that was 15th nationally.