Three Players Who Have Surprised in Wisconsin Football Fall Camp

Who's been a surprise standout with Badgers' fall camp at the two-thirds point?

Wisconsin CB Eric Fletcher. | Christian Borman.

The Badgers are officially two-thirds done with fall camp as we race towards the start of the season.

Fall camp has produced several compelling storylines thus far, including the emergence of multiple receivers and position battles that are tighter than initially expected.

But which specific players' performance has been the biggest surprise this August? Badgers On SI takes a look at three below:

1. CB Eric Fletcher

Wisconsin cornerback Eric Fletcher runs through a drill at spring practice. | Christian Borman.

Fletcher's standing in the Badgers' secondary has fluctuated all offseason. When they signed the transfer out of Oklahoma State in the winter, he was penciled in as a starting cornerback opposite Javan Robinson due to his experience at the Power Four level.

Still, my expectations weren't sky-high for the cornerback. While he flashed good physicality and a willingness to tackle in Stillwater, his coverage left a lot to be desired; particularly when he was isolated in man-to-man, which is an area Wisconsin has expressed a desire to improve in.

During spring ball, Fletcher nursed an injury and looked as if he was set to get leapfrogged by the younger Jai'mier Scott, who oozed talent and potential during camp and had players and coaches alive raving about what he could develop into.

In fall camp, however, the battle between Fletcher and Scott to the field side has been razor thin.

"Which one has the upper hand right there with Fletch and Jai’mier? I don’t know, it goes back and forth every day. And I don’t think there’s anything better for us," Fickell said during camp.

Fletcher looks better in coverage than I saw on film last season. He's taking the physicality with which he tackles and applying that to bump-and-run man coverage, which is a welcome sight to see. He's also extremely fast; cornerbacks coach Robert Steeples calls him "Flash."

Initially, it looked as if Scott would run away with the starting field cornerback gig. But Fletcher has made this position intriguing, and he's likely secured at least a rotational role on the outside this season with a strong fall camp.

2. DL Nolan Vils

Wisconsin defensive lineman Nolan Vils. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Vils is a player who's truly come out of nowhere. The walk-on fourth-year defensive lineman from Prairie Du Sac, Wisconsin has been a revelation and a surprise riser in defensive line coach EJ Whitlow's room.

Vils' ascension was notable in the spring, when defensive coordinator Mike Tressel noted that he'd taken "great strides" unprompted. Whitlow backed that up towards the end of spring ball:

“Nolan Vils has really worked his ass off. Coming from a guy that was a walk-on, he’s really put in the time. He’s changed his body. He’s got himself over 300 pounds. He’s worked in the offseason as far as increasing his foot speed," he said.

"But he plays the game the right way, too. He plays with a nastiness, he plays with an edge to him, which at the end of the day, that’s what it takes inside.”

Vils has steadily climbed the depth chart this offseason, to the point where he's rotating in with the twos along the Badgers' defensive line. The 6-2, 305 pound lineman being as high as the No. 4 player in the room in terms of total snaps is very feasible at this juncture. That's a massive rise for a walk-on who played 34 snaps last fall.

3. WR Kash Brock

Wisconsin WR Kash Brock. | Christian Borman.

We've already spilled some ink over Kash Brock's breakout performance at fall camp practice No. 9 on Sunday, but the true freshman began making waves well before that.

Even in a muddy and crowded wide receiver room, the 6-3 Arizona native Brock managed to climb up the depth chart this fall to the point where he's been rotating in for reps with the twos. Yes, the Badgers' wide receiver room still leaves a lot to be desired on paper, but there's still plenty of more experienced and higher-touted receivers in that room he's stealing reps from.

Brock predictably still looks a little slim, having not yet even started his first semester of college. But his 6-3 frame allows him to challenge defensive backs, and he's put very solid hands on display as well catching passes from Deuce Adams and Ryan Hopkins with the second-team offense.

Brock likely isn't poised to contribute this fall, but it's nice to see some development from the youngsters in a room that's been a problem for Wisconsin in recent years.