The Wisconsin Badgers have slowly started to figure out their wide receiver room as fall camp has come and gone, with the top five starting to settle in ahead of the season.
Wisconsin added quite a few players this offseason, both from the transfer portal and in the freshman class, to revamp a receiver room that brought back just three returners: Eugene Hilton, Chris Brooks, and Tyrell Henry.
Wisconsin is expected to rotate its receiver room around this season, with Malachi Coleman, Shamar Rigby, and
Jaylon Domingeaux also finding themselves regularly in the mix in fall camp. But there has been one surprise who has seen a ton of second-team reps this offseason: true freshman wide receiver Kash Brock.
A 6’3, 190-pound wideout from Arizona, Brock was a three-star commit in the 2026 class and a longtime Iowa State commit. But he decommitted in December and flipped to the Badgers on January 1st, enrolling with the team in the spring. He joined four-star Zion Legree and three-star Keeyshawn Tabuteau as the freshmen wideouts in the 2026 class.
However, despite being the final addition to the room, he’s been the surprise that has stood out the most in the fall, catching the eyes of his coaches.
“He’s a tremendous young man,” offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes said of Brock. “He’s bright-eyed, he’s intelligent, he’s competitive, he’s vocal. I think he’s got natural leadership capacity, especially once he gets older. Already just as a freshman, he’s one of the more vocal guys in the huddle when that second or third group is going, and he’s in there, and he’s a willing blocker.
“He’s got toughness. And he’s going to be a guy that I think is going to play some role this year. How much that is is yet to be determined. But really just impressed with his overall game and skill set.”
To hear that Brock has already become somewhat of a leader in the room with a few upperclassmen is impressive. Wisconsin has prioritized those bigger-bodied outside receivers, and Brock has done a good job earning his reps this offseason.
“I mean, he earned it himself,” wide receivers coach Ari Confesor said of Brock. “I think from the first time we got here, the kid, unbelievable work ethic, super smart kid, cares, wants to be great. And when you get those guys and they’re freshmen, you know, usually it takes a little bit of time, but I mean, the work [he] puts in off the field is what translates on the field.
“So when he first got here, you could see a couple mistakes, but you see the effort and the ability, which we all loved as coaches. And now you’re starting to see that he understands what he’s doing. He understands the plays, and now he’s making more plays. I mean, today was probably, even though he didn’t catch tons of passes. In terms of leadership, now he’s getting guys lined up out there, which is unbelievable to see. You know, hey guys, we got this. And he’s motivating guys. Why? Because he feels confident in what he’s doing, you know.
“And I think when you got a guy with that length and that competitive nature, I mean, he’s only going to continue growing. I mean, he’s gonna be a guy to watch. It’s gonna be fun to see him develop and see how he does over time. But I’m excited about him. He earns wherever he’s at. It’s not me, trust me. If he’s with the 2s, he earned it. He earned it.”
How much Brock ultimately plays as a freshman is yet to be seen. The Badgers do have a solid foundation of six players who have seen first-team reps this offseason: Hilton, Brooks, Henry, Rigby, Coleman, and Domingeaux. Some iteration of those six should take up most of the game reps, but Brock could be next up with an injury, which is good to see from the true freshman.
