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Wisconsin football fall camp preview: Safety

The players to watch, storylines to follow, and the biggest questions for the Wisconsin Badgers at safety entering the 2022 season.

Matt Belz

In this story:

It is late July, which means we are closing in on Big Ten Media Days and the beginning of fall camp for the Wisconsin Badgers football team.

Contents

  1. Roster breakdown
  2. Projected depth chart
  3. Returning career production
  4. Position overview
  5. Young player to watch
  6. Biggest question

The Badgers enter the 2022 season looking to improve upon their 9-4 record from a year ago and aim to get back to the Big Ten Championship Game after missing out on a Big Ten West title in 2021.

After a busy off-season filled with coaching changes, recruiting news, and transfer additions, football is nearly back. With that in mind, it is time to preview each position group leading up to the start of fall camp.

Previously covered positions:

Up next in our rolling position preview series, we shift our focus to the secondary, beginning with the safeties. 

Wisconsin safety John Torchio returning an interception against Northwester last season.  / Mark Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

Roster breakdown

Coaches:

Returning players:

  • John Torchio (RS SR) 6-foot-1 210 lbs.
  • Travian Blaylock (RS SR) 5-foot-11, 205 lbs.*
  • Bryce Carey (JR) 6-foot-1, 183 lbs.
  • Preston Zachman (RS SO) 6-foot-1, 211 lbs. 
  • Hunter Wohler (SO) 6-foot-2, 206 lbs.
  • Owen Arnett (RS FR) 5-foot-11, 215 lbs.

Newcomers:

  • Austin Brown (FR) 6-foot-1, 191 lbs.
  • Jackson Trudgeon (FR) 6-foot-1, 175 lbs.
  • Charlie Jarvis (FR) 6-foot-1, 195 lbs.
  • Deven Magli (FR) 6-foot-1, 190 lbs. 

Projected depth chart

Starters

  • Safety: John Torchio (RS SR)
  • Safety: Hunter Wohler (SO)

Backups

  • Safety: Kamo'i Latu (RS SO)
  • Safety: Preston Zachman (RS SO) or Austin Brown (FR)

Returning career production

  • John Torchio: 26 career games (four starts), 41 tackles, four interceptions
  • Travian Blaylock: 25 career games, 25 tackles, two fumble recoveries*
  • Kamo'i Latu: 19 career games (ones tart), 23 tackles, three pass breakups (at Utah)
  • Hunter Wohler: 13 career games, 17 tackles, three tackles for loss, one sack
  • Preston Zachman: one career game

Position overview

A knee injury to Travian Blaylock in the spring quickly changed the entire complexion of Wisconsin's safety depth heading into the 2022 season. Blaylock came into the spring as a starter alongside fellow senior John Torchio, but a torn ACL leaves him unlikely to contribute this fall. 

As a result, Torchio and true sophomore Hunter Wohler enter fall camp as the probable starters. 

Torchio is the most experienced player in the room after playing 26 games and making four starters over the past three seasons. Nicknamed 'the jewelry thief' by his teammates, Torchio consistently makes plays and is seemingly always around the ball. He tied for the team lead with three interceptions last year despite primarily playing behind Scott Nelson and Collin Wilder in 2021. 

A former walk-on out of high school, Torchio is a reliable safety in the backend of Wisconsin's defense, and the senior from California has waited his turn to be a full-time starter. After finishing last year with an interception in the Las Vegas Bowl, the hope is that Torchio can continue to be a playmaker under Jim Leonhard in 2022. 

While Torchio brings experience to the position group, sophomore Hunter Wohler brings physicality and upside. The former four-star recruit from inside the state saw meaningful playing time as a true freshman last year, and he has the talent to be a difference-maker for the Badgers. Wohler's speed and hard-hitting style will allow him to cover a lot of ground in the secondary, and he will likely be used frequently as a blitzer and in the box at times to stop the run. 

The fact that Wohler did not redshirt last season and saw playing time in all 13 games speaks to his talent level, but there might still be some growing pains considering his lack of starting experience. 

Barring an injury, Wisconsin should be in a good place with Torchio and Wohler as the starting duo. The real questions begin after them. 

In an attempt to add further depth in response to Blaylock's injury, Jim Leonhard added Utah transfer Kamo'i Latu to the position room after spring ball. Latu has seen playing time the past two seasons and like Wohler, is a hard-hitting strong safety. Having not seen him in person, it is hard to predict exactly what kind of role he will play on the defense, but considering Wisconsin brought him in, it is a safe bet that he will see the field in some capacity. The Badgers rotate safeties frequently, and Latu should be one of the leading rotational players entering fall camp. 

The health status of Preston Zachman will be interesting to watch after he missed spring ball. If healthy, he could be in the two-deep for the opener against Illinois State, given his athletic ability. 

Walk-ons Owen Arnett and Bryce Carey saw plenty of reps in the spring with all of the injuries at the position. Of the two, Arnett made several nice plays at times, including an interception in the final practice of the spring. Arnett should give the team another viable option if needed, though I think Jim Leonhard will look for true freshman Austin Brown to compete for playing time too. 

Beyond Austin Brown, the Badgers also welcome three walk-on safeties from inside the state this fall. Jackson Trudgeon (Edgewood), Charlie Jarvis (Catholic Memorial), and Deven Magli (Deforest) should help strengthen the number of players in the safety room. While it is unlikely that the three freshmen walk-ons will play much of a role in 2022, each is talented enough to play a role down the road. Magli decommitted from North Dakota on scholarship to walk on with Wisconsin. 

Young player to watch

The Badgers have several young players in the safety room, but one player to watch is true freshman Austin Brown. 

Brown is a former four-star recruit according to 247 Sports, and he was one of the top signees for Wisconsin in the 2022 recruiting class. He chose the Badgers over other offers from Boston College, Illinois, Michigan, Northwestern, and others, and the hope is that he can help the team immediately. 

At 6-foot-1 and around 200 pounds, he has the strength and frame to contribute right away, and he is an incredibly physical hitter. With the speed to run sideline-to-sideline, it would not be surprising to see Brown carve out a role in the defense as the No. 4 safety behind Torchio, Wohler, and Latu. Wisconsin generally likes to use at least four safeties, and Brown's upside makes him one of the more intriguing players to watch from the freshmen class. 

Hunter Wohler saw action in all 13 games as a true freshman on special teams and sporadically at safety. Brown could have a similar impact in his first season with the Badgers. 

Biggest question

Jim Leonhard has prioritized versatility in the defensive backfield, and in the spring, multiple cornerbacks saw reps at safety, as well. 

Entering fall camp, will Leonhard move any scholarship cornerbacks to play safety? 

Leonhard mentioned that it was a possibility in the spring, but the addition of Latu and Brown should allow for a little less urgency. However, Alexander Smith, Avyonne Jones, and Max Lofy have each worked with the safeties in the past and could provide further depth in case of injury. 

With three transfer cornerbacks on the roster, the Badgers have some flexibility in the secondary, but I think in a perfect world, Smith, Jones, and Lofy can continue to stay at cornerback for the time being. 

Regardless, how Leonhard and cornerbacks coach Hank Poteat shuffle the available players will be something worth monitoring this fall. 

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Matt Belz
MATT BELZ

Title: Publisher, Beat Writer for AllBadgers.com, a Sports Illustrated Channel Hello, my name is Matt Belz, and I am the site manager at All Badgers. I previously wrote for multiple years at Buckeyes 5th Quarter and have been the leading publisher here since March of 2022.  When I am not covering the Wisconsin Badgers football and men's basketball teams, I enjoy being outside and spending time with family and friends.  You can follow everything I write about on several different platforms. First and foremost on our site...AllBadgers.com You can follow me personally on Twitter at @savedbythebelz or check out our Facebook page at Wisconsin FanNation on Sports Illustrated.

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