The Wisconsin Badgers had one of their biggest recruiting wins in program history last Fall when landing four-star quarterback Carter Smith one month after he de-committed from the Michigan Wolverines.
Smith, a native of Florida, had an extensive offer list and got interest from several high-quality programs after de-committing from Michigan, but Wisconsin was able to win out in that recruitment, despite having uncertainty at offensive coordinator amid Phil Longo’s firing.
The 6’3, 215-pound quarterback
was perceived as a ‘project’, possessing good arm strength and dual-threat ability, but needing to speed up his processing time and the mental aspect of the game.
In the spring, Smith looked how you’d expect a freshman to: inconsistency mixed with a couple of flashes here and there. The arm strength and ability to move in the pocket were visible, but the rest of his game needed to mature.
How has the quarterback grown throughout the offseason after arriving in Madison early?
“It’s nice and simple: urgency,” quarterbacks coach Kenny Guiton said this week. “Urgency. I think when he came in, he kind of had a feel as if, ‘all right, I’m coming in with a fifth-year guy that they brought in, and I see some backups that are pretty good, and I’m just going to be a guy that just redshirts.’
“And I thought he was looking at it the wrong way. And I can say that because I’ve had those conversations with him, but I think really, in the last, I want to say two weeks, man, it kind of started a little slow in fall camp. In about two weeks, I don’t know, something clicked. We sat down, we had a heart-to-heart, and I think he really understood, like, ‘hey, if I want to show I can be the future of this program, we need to see him now.’
Smith isn’t expected to play a key role as a freshman, given that Wisconsin brought in starter Billy Edwards and backups Danny O’Neil and Hunter Simmons from the transfer portal. But, that readiness factor and urgency towards it could spearhead the freshman’s push for additional playing time when that opportunity ultimately does arrive.
Guiton noted that the freshman has actually been confident in game-like situations during practice. Now, it’s time to be that on a consistent basis, rather than waiting for the opportunity to come to him.
“It’s funny because [when] you see him in game-like situations, he actually steps up and does a really good job,” Guiton continued. “But, it goes back to that leadership that I always talk about and just showing it every day and knowing that that’s who you are, and not just what you did at one point.
“And so now I think it’s turned into, ‘hey, that’s who he is now. He’s gonna be a leader. He’s gonna come out and have the fire every single day, and he’s gonna be urgent.’ That’s the number one thing, urgency, because we know what he can do as an athlete. So just show the urgency to go be great every day right now. Don’t wait.”
With the season arriving soon, the focus has been on Edwards with the starters and O’Neil competing with Simmons for the backup role. But, Smith is looking to capitalize on his opportunities, which comes with that coveted urgency.
