WISCONSIN BADGERS

Badgers finish No. 9 in both polls

Jeff Potrykus
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Wisconsin head coach Paul Chryst will be entering his third season as Badgers football coach in 2017.

Madison – Wisconsin’s players and coaches can soon turn their attention to the 2017 football season – if they haven’t already done so.

UW finished No. 9 in both the Amway coaches poll and in the final Associated Press poll. Both polls were released Tuesday, after Clemson’s 35-31 victory over Alabama in the College Football Playoff title game in Tampa, Fla.

The Badgers finished in the AP top 10 for the 13th time in program history but the first time since 2011. UW finished in the top 10 of the coaches poll for the fifth time.

UW will move forward without two of its best players from the team reached the Big Ten title game and defeated Western Michigan in the Cotton Bowl to finish 11-3.

Redshirt junior left tackle Ryan Ramczyk on Monday informed the UW staff he will enter the 2017 National Football League draft. Ramczyk joined outside linebacker T.J. Watt in giving up his final season of eligibility to enter the draft. Both players garnered All-American honors this season.

The decision doesn’t come as a major surprise since Ramczyk is projected to be taken in the first round of the draft, set to be held April 27-29 in Philadelphia.

"This was a very difficult decision," Ramczyk wrote on Twitter. "Growing up as a Badger fan, it was an absolute dream come true to play for Wisconsin.

"Now I look forward to fulfilling next dream of playing in the NFL."

Ramczyk sat out the 2015 season after transferring from Division III UW-Stevens Point and started all 14 games this season.

The Journal Sentinel reported last month that Ramczyk would need surgery to repair a torn labrum in his hip and could be sidelined up to four months.

Ramczyk reportedly underwent surgery on Jan. 5. He could miss the NFL scouting combine, set for Feb. 28-March 6 in Indianapolis.

UW’s staff used bowl prep to evaluate potential replacements for Ramczyk. That group included freshmen Patrick Kasl and Cole Van Lanen, both of whom redshirted.

Joe Rudolph, UW’s offensive coordinator/line coach, hasn’t hesitated to juggle his lineup in order to get the best unit on the field.

He could move David Edwards, who started the last seven games at right tackle, to the left side. Edwards will be a redshirt sophomore next season.

UW also expects Jacob Maxwell, who started the first seven games of the season at right tackle, to return. He underwent right-shoulder surgery but is expected back for summer workouts.

“I think you have a ton of options,” Rudolph said before the Cotton Bowl, “and we’ll be trying to get the five best guys on the field.”

Meanwhile, California officials hope to interview UW defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox for their vacant head coaching position.

Head coach Sonny Dykes was fired on Sunday.

UW finished No. 4 nationally in scoring defense (15.6 ppg) and No. 7 in total defense (301.4 ypg) in Wilcox’s first season on the staff.

Wilcox is set to be paid $950,000 in 2017 and will receive an additional $100,000 if he is still on the staff on Jan. 1, 2018.

Wilcox coached linebackers at Cal from 2003-’05. However, Cal interim coach Jake Spavital has reportedly emerged as a strong candidate and the school reportedly is in the midst of a massive financial crunch. The San Jose Mercury News reported that school officials project the athletic department will lose $21.76 million for the 2016 fiscal year and project a deficit of $18.8 million for 2017.

UW’s players noted after their 24-16 Cotton Bowl victory that one of their goals for ’17 would be to win the Big Ten title.

The Badgers fell short of that goal when they suffered a 38-31 loss to Penn State in Indianapolis.

“For me, I’m not satisfied,” safety D’Cota Dixon said. “I feel like we left something in Indiana.

“That was one of our goals. We just didn’t accomplish it. That is OK. Sometimes it goes your way, sometimes it doesn’t.

“I’m ready to get back to work.”