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Wisconsin football: Chez Mellusi and Isaac Guerendo at full speed in fall camp

The Wisconsin Badgers backfield has plenty of weapons to turn to in 2022.

Matt Belz

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The Wisconsin Badgers had two running backs finish in the top-10 of the Big Ten in rushing yards a season ago. Freshman Braelon Allen was No. 2 in the conference despite not carrying the ball more than seven times in the team's first four games. At the same time, Chez Mellusi began the season as the starting running back before a knee injury derailed his 2021 campaign at Wisconsin. 

The star tailbacks were instrumental in helping the Badgers win five-straight games a year ago, and the duo each broke the 100-yard mark in the same contest on two occasions during that period. 

However, Mellusi's knee injury at Rutgers left several questions about the backfield this off-season. The former Clemson transfer was unable to practice in the spring, and he was attempting to be back on the field in under a year from major knee surgery. 

Through the first three weeks of fall camp, one thing is readily apparent. Mellusi is back. On Monday, the senior running back broke off a huge touchdown run, and throughout the practices available to media members he has run with the same level of quickness and explosiveness as previously seen before the injury. 

Mellusi stated that he would be ready for the opener back in spring practice, but the Florida native has even surprised his head coach with how quickly he has come back and jumped right back into full availability this fall. "He has been getting good work and honestly a little bit more than I maybe anticipated," Paul Chryst said following practice on August 8. 

Since that practice, Mellusi has continued to flash in fall camp and passed every hurdle or benchmark the staff had hoped to see. 

After running for 815 yards and five touchdowns last season, expectations are very high for what he could bring to the offense inside and outside the program. One area in which Mellusi has impressed the coaching staff is his physicality this fall after adding some upper-body strength in the off-season. "I think he has been working his way back in and working hard. I think what you see with Chez is you see a guy who is willing to be a physical runner. That's the one thing that's really jumped out to me," offensive coordinator Bobby Engram told All Badgers last Saturday. 

Mellusi is not the only ball carrier back in the fold after missing time last season and in the spring. Senior Isaac Guerendo is back to 100% after being limited to only four games a year ago because of a foot injury. 

The Indiana native is arguably the fastest player on the entire roster, and he has quickly reasserted himself in the running back rotation as well in fall camp. Fans will remember his breathtaking 82-yard touchdown run against Eastern Michigan last September, and through the first few weeks of practice, he has once again shown that speed, but also some added power of his own. 

"I'm excited for Isaac. He is a big, strong, explosive guy. He's another piece that he's a running back who has some receiving skills, so No. 1 he has worked really hard to get back, and he's a consistent worker that can help us win some games for sure," coordinator Bobby Engram said of the fifth-year senior. 

"Isaac is more than just a speed guy," Paul Chryst noted to local reporters on Monday, acknowledging that Guerendo has improved as a runner between the tackles and in other nuances of the game such as pass protection. 

As a former wide receiver recruit, Guerendo is finally settled in at running back, and he has strung together some great practices. On Saturday, he caught a crossing route out of the backfield and was able to beat the linebacker in coverage to the corner and turn up field for a significant gain. He also broke off a couple of great runs in the team portion of practice. 

Entering 2022, now with a three-headed rushing attack, there is no one more excited than starter Braelon Allen who was admittedly worn down physically at the tail-end of last season. When asked about the importance of Mellusi to the offense, Allen said, "Chez adds a lot, in many different ways. I'm definitely excited to have him. Both him and Isaac back, it will help me be able to recover, rest a little bit both in practice and in games." 

Quarterback Graham Mertz believes that the running back room could be special this season. "I'm excited to see what those guys can do. We've got some complete dawgs in that room that are ready to go. Chez coming off his ACL and Isaac coming back, they're going to be ready to rock."

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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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