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Wisconsin Badgers are considered favorites to flip 4-star LB who just de-committed from Louisville

The Wisconsin Badgers could parlay their win on the field against Illinois to a win in recruiting for a top prospect.
Lorin Cox|
The Wisconsin Badgers are showing strong interest in St. Xavier linebacker Karsten Busch (80) after he de-committed from Louisville this week
The Wisconsin Badgers are showing strong interest in St. Xavier linebacker Karsten Busch (80) after he de-committed from Louisville this week | Timothy D. Easley/Special to the Courier-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

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The Wisconsin Badgers could parlay their big win on the field against Illinois to a win in recruiting for a top prospect.

On Monday, four-star linebacker Karsten Busch announced that he was de-committing from the Louisville Cardinals.

Soon after, On3 national recruiting writer Keegan Pope reported that Wisconsin, Miami and Vanderbilt are the three schools to watch for Busch's interest.

Related: Wisconsin pursuing D-II defensive tackle in transfer portal with ties to Badgers roster

More importantly, On3's Vice President of Recruiting Steve Wiltfong filed an expert prediction that the Badgers will land him.

Busch is rated as a four-star linebacker by Rivals, and 247 Sports has him as the No. 1 recruit in the state of Kentucky and the No. 38 linebacker in the country.

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Wisconsin has only one linebacker committed for the 2026 class in Appleton North's Ben Wenzel, who is also Fickell's only in-state scholarship commit for next year.

The school is becoming a linebacker factory, and it's easy to sell recruits on playing in a defense that has featured standout true freshmen Mason Posa and Cooper Catalano this season.

The Badgers don't have any home games left to get Busch in for a gameday visit this season, but the recruiting staff seems to be working quickly to win him over.

Adding another four-star recruit for 2026 would go a long way toward rebuilding the class that has lost three players to de-commitments this season.

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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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