5 players who could make an All Big Ten team in 2026
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It’s been a rough couple of years for the Wisconsin Badgers, who have underperformed under head coach Luke Fickell, as the team has struggled to adapt in the NIL era.
That all could be changing after a major offseason where the Badgers landed over 30 players in the transfer portal and are trending up with key players returning in 2026. Wisconsin is set to have a new starter at nearly every position on the roster.
One area Wisconsin has been lacking over the past few years is the lack of All-Big Ten selections and NFL Draft picks. The Badgers didn’t have a player selected in the NFL Draft for the first time since 1990 this year, and they also haven’t had a first-round draft pick since T.J. Watt and Ryan Ramczyk in 2017. They’ve also only had two second-round picks in the last five years (Joe Tippmann, Keaanu Benton).
Can Wisconsin get back to an All-Big Ten first-team selection in 2026?
The Athletic revealed its preseason All-Big Ten teams ahead of the season, and the Badgers did not have a player on the first or second teams.
On the third team, Wisconsin had Mason Posa and Sean West listed at linebacker and punter, respectively. There were 10 different schools that had first-team nominees, with a couple of others earning second-team nominees.
Looking at Wisconsin’s roster, there are a few players who could end up earning an All-Big Ten honor this season. Immediately, Mason Posa and even Cooper Catalano are both players who could make that jump in Year 2 as starters.
On the offensive line, there could be several candidates, although a majority of Wisconsin’s starters outside of Austin Kawecki are fairly unproven at the college level.
At safety, Marvin Burks could be a candidate, given his expected role and impact in the secondary. And West could be an option at punter after exceeding expectations as a freshman.
Wisconsin needs to return to churning out more All-Big Ten candidates if they are to take that next step and return to being one of the top powers in the Big Ten. That means identifying and developing young talent, which they’ve seemed to do with their young linebacker duo. Let’s see if they can translate results elsewhere in 2026.
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