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In-state DE Will McDonald earns a walk-on offer from Wisconsin

The Badgers are looking to bring in the younger brother of current defensive lineman Cade McDonald as a walk-on in the 2023 recruiting class.

Matt Belz

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The Wisconsin Badgers have had tremendous success with brothers from inside the state in the past. In fact, the Badgers have multiple sets of brothers on the 2022 roster entering fall camp.

On Wednesday, the Wisconsin coaching staff extended a new opportunity in the 2023 recruiting class in hopes of continuing the longstanding tradition.

Hudson High School (Wis.) defensive end Will McDonald took to Twitter to announce that he received a preferred walk-on offer from the Badgers as the team looks to add to the defensive line.

Will is the younger brother of current redshirt sophomore defensive end Cade McDonald, who earned second-team reps in spring practice, and is entering his redshirt sophomore year with the Badgers. Will noted that he is "super excited" about the opportunity, and that "it's something that my brother and I have been talking about since we were kids" in regards to potentially playing together in college. 

Rated as a three-star prospect by both 247 Sports and Rivals, Will McDonald is considered the No. 2 prospect in the state by 247 Sports and holds several scholarship offers to date.

In addition to the new opportunity with the Badgers, McDonald has scholarships from Akron, Army, Illinois State, Iowa State, Kansas, Kent State, North Dakota State, Northern Illinois, and South Dakota, among others.

At 6-foot-5 and around 240 pounds, McDonald is a great athlete who excels in lacrosse. A two-time All-American in lacrosse, his ability to move well for a player his size makes him an intriguing defensive end prospect for the Badgers in the 2023 cycle.

McDonald has been a frequent visitor to Madison over the past few years, most recently for one of the UW's summer camps and in April for spring practice. During those trips, he had the chance to speak with Wisconsin assistant coach Ross Kolodziej, and McDonald is very familiar with the program given his brother's involvement on the team. 

Going forward, it will be interesting to see what McDonald does. He has Power-5 offers from Iowa State and Kansas, but there is also a draw to Wisconsin, where his brother plays. He told All Badgers that he "would like to be committed by September," but that he just needs to "take a few more visits and weigh my options following those visits." Of the schools that have offered him, McDonald noted that North Dakota State, Northern Illinois, and Kansas are still on his radar, but that "Wisconsin is definitely up there" as one of his top schools. 

The Badgers recently added walk-on long-snapper Keane Bessert out of Colorado, and McDonald is the fifth known player with a walk-on offer to date. In terms of in-state prospects, he joins Evan Van Dyn Hoven of Menasha and Zack Mlsna of Cashton as the only players from the state with a walk-on offer, though running back Nate White is committed on scholarship.

After missing out on some of their other top recruits along the defensive line, there is always a chance that McDonald's offer could be upgraded to a full-ride scholarship after a year or two in the program. He recorded four sacks and 52 tackles in nine games a season ago for Hudson High School and has a frame to grow further.

The Badgers currently have 13 commits in the 2023 class, with Chicago d-linemen Roderick Pierce and Jamel Howard committed at this time. 

You can check out McDonald's junior highlights below. 

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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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