Wisconsin Football Soars in Recruiting Rankings After Four-Star Commits

Don't look now, but the Badgers are off to quite the hot start in the 2027 recruiting cycle — and they have yet to leave the state for a commitment.

Wisconsin football landed long-time in-state target Cole Reiter on Friday. The offensive lineman from Germantown is the second blue-chip recruit in the Badgers' young 2027 class, joining tight end Korz Lorken of Iola.

BREAKING: Four-Star OT Cole Reiter has Committed to Wisconsin, he tells me for @Rivals⁰⁰The 6’7 315 OT from Germantown, WI chose the Badgers over Ohio State, Penn State, and Kansas

“Proverbs 4:23”⁰⁰https://t.co/zcuo3pfdV8 pic.twitter.com/kCq1elu7Mr
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) March 26, 2026

The top recruiting services in the industry, 247Sports and On3, have rewarded Wisconsin for its recently-bolstered class, which now features two consensus four-stars and three three-star prospects.

247 Sports has the Badgers at No. 20 nationally (7th in the Big Ten), while On3 has Wisconsin slightly higher at No. 18 nationally (5th in the Big Ten).

Recruting rankings should always be taken with a grain of salt, especially in March. There's plenty of time for this class to unfold, but Wisconsin has secured some big-time foundational pieces from inside the state early on that should allow it to be a little more selective when recruiting out-of-state.

Wisconsin Quickly Flushing Rough 2026 Cycle

It's also imperative that the Badgers bounce back from the 2026 cycle, one of their worst in recent seasons. It was a class severely hampered by the team's abysmal on-field performance, with several key blue-chip prospects (Amari Latimer, Jayden Petit) de-committing as Wisconsin limped to a 4-8 record.

The 2026 class checked in at No. 68 on 247Sports (17th in the Big Ten) and No. 65 on On3 (16th in the Big Ten), with just 13 enrollees making their way to Madison. The class featured zero consensus blue-chip prospects.

Wisconsin is officially dominating recruiting inside the Dairy State, but the Badgers aren't done just yet. There's a handful of other local prospects Wisconsin is after, most notably running back Kingston Allen (Green Bay) and offensive linemen Hunter and Reece Mallinger (Sussex).

Official visit season, which begins in late May and stretches through June, is typically the hottest time on the recruiting calendar. It can make or break a class, and that's when we'll begin to get a much clearer picture of what the Badgers' crop of 2027 signees will look like.

However, it's important to enter official visit season in good shape, and that certainly applies to Wisconsin right now. It'll be fascinating to see if the Badgers can land another in-state prospect or two before the huge visit weekends begin.