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Wisconsin Badgers add standout in-state specialist from Division-III UW-La Crosse

The Wisconsin Badgers haven't been afraid to take a chance on small-school prospects in the transfer portal as Luke Fickell fills out last spots on his roster.
Lorin Cox|
Wisconsin Badgers punter Gavin Meyers (28), long snapper Peter Bowden (47) and place kicker Nathanial Vakos (90) celebrate after a field goal by Vakos against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Camp Randall Stadium.
Wisconsin Badgers punter Gavin Meyers (28), long snapper Peter Bowden (47) and place kicker Nathanial Vakos (90) celebrate after a field goal by Vakos against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Camp Randall Stadium. | Tork Mason-Imagn Images

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Wisconsin Badgers

The Wisconsin Badgers haven't been afraid to take a chance on small-school prospects in the transfer portal as Luke Fickell fills out last spots on his roster.

The latest addition is a standout punter from the Division-III level who also happens to be an in-state standout.

Ethan Tranel from UW-La Crosse announced on Saturday that he's transferring down I-90 to the Badgers.

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He played his high school football at Mount Horeb, about 20 minutes outside of Madison.

Tranel has punted at UW-La Crosse for the last two years, averaging over 40 yards per punt each season.

Only six of his 86 punts have gone into the endzone for touchbacks. 20 of them have gone for over 50 yards, and 30 of them have landed inside the opposing 20-yard line.

He'll have two years of eligibility left, joining a group of specialists at Wisconsin that is going through some turnover this winter.

Related: Wisconsin Badgers add pass-rushing track star who had 15 sacks at Division-III level

Starter Atticus Bertrams left via the transfer portal and is now at UCF with a number of former Badgers players and coaches.

Starting kicker Nathanial Vakos and long snapper Nick Levy both graduated after the 2025 season.

That left Sean West as Fickell's returning punter, so Tranel gives them more depth and an alternative option if West struggles or is injured.

The team also added in-state recruit Brady Mellum as a freshman walk-on in the 2026 class who both kicked and punted in college.

Tranel is the second Division-III player the Badgers have added in the last week. They made headlines by signing pass rusher Liam Danitz from Hope College, who is also an All-American sprinter despite playing defensive line.

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Lorin Cox
LORIN COX

Lorin Cox is the managing editor of Wisconsin Badgers on SI. He has been covering Badgers sports since 2014, when he was an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin. He previously wrote for the Wisconsin State Journal, NBC Sports Chicago and USA Today Sports Media Group, and he is a former analyst for Pro Football Focus.

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