Wisconsin Football: Badgers in position to make College Football Playoff push

Offense

There were times in 2017 where Alex Hornibrook struggled at the quarterback position, but a promising sign for Badgers fans came in the team’s Orange Bowl victory over Miami to end the year.

In a game where the defense struggled and Jonathan Taylor was slow out of the gate, Hornibrook converted multiple clutch conversions and kept the Badgers in the game when they faced an early deficit, which was something they had not seen much all year. While it is indeed a small sample size, the talent and potential of Hornibrook are evident and if he can mirror his performance of that game in the majority of the 2018 season, the offense will become that much more dangerous.

Of course, all eyes will be on sophomore running back Jonathan Taylor. After a historic freshman campaign in which he began the year third on the depth chart, Taylor finished sixth in the Heisman Trophy voting and now enters this year one of the more likely candidates to take home the coveted award. Taylor finished third in the NCAA in rushing with 1,977 yards and will benefit from an improved passing attack in 2018 to open up more opportunities.

Perhaps the most under-the-radar units of the entire Wisconsin team is the receiving corps. Returning as the team’s top pass catcher is Quintez Cephus, who missed half of 2017 with a leg injury. While a major blow at the time, it opened up more opportunities for the rest of unit and now presents multiple options through the air. Cephus will be joined by junior A.J. Taylor, who was second in receiving yards amongst wideouts. Sophomores Danny Davis and Kendrick Pryor will also look to be major players in the passing attack.

The main question mark will be at tight end after losing All-American Troy Fumagalli. The Badgers have several options that have seen playing time already, as well as a couple incoming freshman that could see time as well.