Wisconsin Badgers weekly recruiting rundown (May 29)

An overview of the news from this week in Wisconsin football and men's basketball recruiting.

The Wisconsin Badgers continue to identify players and add to their 2023 recruiting classes in both football and basketball. 

Contents

1. 2023 QB Lincoln Kienholz has Wisconsin in his top-4
2. Zach Ortwerth schedules OV
3. Brad Spence includes UW in his top-10
4. Two 2023 prospects commit elsewhere
5. Camp announcements
6. New offers from this week

While there was not much in terms of news for the basketball program, the football team made several cut-down lists and also extended some new offers. 

In an attempt to break down all of the news and notes that occurred this past week, here is our weekly recruiting rundown. 

I want to say thank you for this opportunity and to all the colleges who have recruited me throughout this process. With that being sad, Top 4!!!🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/NWPYcjknI1

— Lincoln Kienholz (@LincolnKienholz) May 25, 2022

2023 QB Lincoln Kienholz has Wisconsin in his top-4

Arguably the biggest recruiting news of the week came from South Dakota quarterback Lincoln Kienholz.

A dual-threat quarterback who was an all-state selection in three sports this year, Kienholz cut his list of offers down to four on Wednesday and included the Badgers.

Despite holding additional Power-5 offers from Illinois, Kansas State, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, and Washington State, Kienholz is focusing his recruitment on North Dakota State, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

At this point, Kienholz is the top quarterback target for the Badgers, and he will take an official visit to Madison next weekend. The visit will be a huge opportunity for the staff to grab ahold of his recruitment after offering him earlier this month. 

Zach Ortwerth schedules OV

One of Wisconsin's top 2023 tight end prospects went ahead and scheduled an official visit to Madison for next weekend. The talented tight end from Saint Louis has multiple visits planned for June, but the fact that the Badgers are still alive in his recruitment is significant given his talent level.

You can read our full breakdown on Ortwerth's upcoming visit here.

Brad Spence includes UW in his top-10

Wisconsin is looking to add multiple outside linebackers in the 2023 class.

On Friday, Texas outside linebacker Brad Spence took to Twitter to release his top-10 ahead of official visits and unsurprisingly included the Badgers. 

It is still unclear where the 6-foot-2 three-star will use his five allotted visits, but Wisconsin is considered a contender. Assuming the Badgers do land one of his paid trips, he quickly emerges as a name to watch in the class, though Jordan Mayer and Tackett Curtis are probably the top two targets at the position for now.

Also making the final list for Spence were: Arkansas, Arizona State, Cal, Duke, Mississippi State, Missouri, Nebraska, Texas, and Utah.

Two 2023 prospects commit elsewhere

Wide receiver Hilton Alexander and safety Damon Walters, both of whom held an offer from Wisconsin, committed to different schools this week.

Alexander included the Badgers in his top-6 last week but opted to commit to Wake Forest on Thursday. While he was not a top-of-the-board prospect for UW, the chances were slim between him and Wisconsin, considering he never visited campus.

Safety Damon Walters chose to commit to Northwestern following an official visit to Evanston. Wisconsin was a contender for Walters, and many had thought he might take an official visit to Madison this summer. 

Camp announcements

Multiple intriguing prospects in the 2023 class who do not currently hold an offer from Wisconsin took to social media to share that they will camp with the Badgers in June. 

Here is a quick breakdown of a few notable ones:

• Offensive lineman Austin Barrett

• Tight end Nollen Tabaska

• Beloit Turner athlete Brent Hoppe

New offers from this week

• 2023 Defensive back Saboor Karriem

• 2024 Defensive back Zavier Mincey

Related links:

• 2023 class offensive status report (May)

• 2023 class defensive status report (May)

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