Wisconsin's elite portal haul at CB should pay big dividends

Wisconsin football's spring practices are scheduled to kick off on March 19. With dozens of incoming transfers, a handful of new position coaches and a new starting quarterback once again, there'll be no shortage of intrigue when the Badgers hit the practice field.

At Badgers On SI, we'll preview spring ball position-by-position. Today, we keep it going with the cornerbacks.

Best Badger CB During Spring Practice

Javan Robinson.

Make no mistake, there's plenty of talent in this room and it wouldn't surprise me if any of the other three incoming transfers at corner stake their claim as the best of the bunch. But Robinson is the clear and obvious CB1, and he should play like it.

Robinson is a former two-year starter at Arizona State after he transferred from Washington State, and he's racked up 1,623 career snaps, the vast majority of which came at outside corner. He's not dominant in coverage (62 percent completion allowed the past two seasons), but he's no slouch in that department either. And despite being one of the smaller corners on the roster at 5-foot-11, he's extremely physical as well, and not afraid to throw his body around.

Man, the #Badgers’ new CB1 Javan Robinson is a stud.

Grizzled vet (1,600+ snaps) and it shows. Physical, opportunistic, relentless.

The Arizona tape in particular was quite entertaining: pic.twitter.com/fCE4rMoLnv
— Seamus (@seamus_rohrer) February 3, 2026

Biggest Question

Who's got the inside track for the second outside corner spot?

Ohio State transfer Bryce West appears locked into the nickel role given his experience there and impressive pedigree. That leaves the remaining two transfers, and potentially a couple redshirt freshmen, competing for the second starting outside corner role.

Still, Oklahoma State transfer Eric Fletcher and Florida State transfer Cai Bates appear to be the frontrunners. Fletcher has 247 career snaps at outside corner, and played in 10 games for the Cowboys last season. The Florida native has good size at 6-foot-1 and looks ready to compete for a starting role.

Bates is intriguing as well, however. The former blue-chip recruit was one of the top cornerbacks in the nation coming out of high school, and racked up a staggering 43 offers including every blue blood program you can name. He's got a great frame at 6-foot-2 and with arms that were described as "tentacle-like" by 247Sport's Andrew Ivins. Still, he has just 52 career snaps at outside corner and remains unproven on the gridiron.

Player to Watch

Bryce West.

West flashed serious potential at Ohio State; he simply couldn't earn consistent playing time.

Ohio State transfer CB Bryce West should earn the #Badgers’ starting nickel gig immediately.

Love his technique in coverage, and he’s not afraid to get his hands dirty/make tackles 👇 pic.twitter.com/LRFaoSTCMI
— Seamus (@seamus_rohrer) January 26, 2026

With just 120 career snaps, West is certainly somewhat baby-faced. But he's been part of an elite Buckeye defense and demonstrated good technique and physicality (see above). Another former blue-chip recruit, West's potential looks sky-high.

West figures to be the plan A at nickel, and it's unclear what the plan B would be given the inexperience in this room behind the top three players.

Most to Gain

Cai Bates.

Bates could have the most upside of anyone in this room. While Robinson, Fletcher, and to a lesser extend West have proven they can start at the Power Four level, Bates is the wild card here. He could drastically improve the depth of this position if he begins to live up to his potential, or in the (seemingly unlikely) event that he's unplayable, could force Wisconsin to rely heavily on a redshirt freshman.

Bates began his football career as a receiver, and so by all accounts, his ball skills are top-notch. That's another intriguing quality, as the Badgers have struggled to generate turnovers on defense under Mike Tressel.

With Robinson, Fletcher and West essentially known quantities, Bates holds the key that could unlock the elite potential of this room or seriously handicap it.

One Bold Prediction

Cornerback looks like one of the best positions on the team.

None of the projected starters in this room have worn the Cardinal and White yet. This is a new-look position, with the expected top four players all having transferred into the program this offseason. Still, the talent looks legit in new position coach Robert Steeples' room.

Robinson is a grizzled veteran who should provide a steady hand at starting field corner. Fletcher was thrown into the fire last season at Oklahoma State and performed admirably, and has plenty of positive attributes for the coaching staff to work with. West looks incredibly skilled on tape and should emerge as a stud in his first full-time starting role. Bates' aforementioned potential is through the roof.

Jai'mier Scott, a redshirt freshman, is also someone to keep an eye on. He's yet another lanky corner at 6-foot-1, and he stood out to me in his first spring camp as a Badger last year.

Inside linebacker and running back should be the top positions on this team, but corner appears to have the potential to be right there as well.

Projected Depth Chart

Boundary Corner	Field Corner	Slot
1. Eric Fletcher	1. Javan Robinson	1. Bryce West
2. Cai Bates	2. Jahmare Washington	2. Jai'mier Scott