Interesting (weird?) shift in the portal this year for the Badgers. In 2022-23 and 2023-24 they focused on getting transfers from Power-4 and FBS programs. They signed them up in good numbers, with limited results. You could argue that the handful of guys they picked up from the lower divisions were some of their better gets.
In this cycle (2024-25) they seem to have done a complete 180. Almost completely focused on players from lower level programs with only a handful from P-4 schools. Is this because they aren't attracting kids from bigger programs like the last 2 years, or is this a conscious choice?
Maybe they've found that under-performing guys from big programs just continue to be under-performers at another big program, while high level performers from smaller programs are eager to prove themselves at a higher level and will continue to work hard and produce. Maybe they are onto something, or maybe this will blow up in their face next fall and force them to re-think. We'll see. I'm hopeful, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't concerned with such a drastic shift in portal strategy/results.
