Wisconsin Football: QB Recruits Who Wisconsin Should Pursue Heavily

Seemingly every year, the Wisconsin football team comes in with three definitive statements about the offense: It has a fantastic stable of running backs, a phenomenal offensive line and a massive question mark as to whom the quarterback will be or how well he will do.

Scott Tolzien won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award for the top senior quarterback in 2010 as he completed a whopping 72.9 percent of his passes while Montee Ball came four yards short of reaching 1,000 yards, which would have given the team three 1,000-yard rushers.

After a miracle transfer and storybook season from Russell Wilson in 2011, the Badgers have faced nothing but questions at quarterback.

In 2012, despite reaching the Rose Bowl thanks to one great game and some luck involving the ineligibility of both Penn State and Ohio State, the Badgers were dreadful under center.  Three quarterbacks started multiple games that season including Danny O'Brien, Curt Phillips and Joel Stave.

Last season, Stave was the man under center; however, he struggled mightily with accuracy on downfield throws, and his lack of mobility forced him to remain in the pocket at all costs, with his brief forays outside the pocket ending horribly.

Coming into 2014, with 4-star dual-threat quarterback D.J. Gillins enrolling in January, Tanner McEvoy moved back to quarterback and Bart Houston still in the fold, there was a real, open competition at signal-caller for the team.

Unfortunately for the Badgers, instead of having four good options competing for the position, it seemed as if whoever won the starting job would be a stop-gap option until Gillins fully learned the offense or 3-star incoming freshman Austin Kafentzis got to campus.

McEvoy ended up winning the job, which caused Stave to get the "yips."  Fast forward six games into the season and Stave, clearing his mental hurdles, is back out as the starting quarterback.  Ineffective play-calling doomed McEvoy's tenure, as forcing him to stay inside the pocket is a recipe for disaster while his legs make him a difficult weapon to contain.

Conventional wisdom says to bring in a quarterback per class, even though the Badgers have good depth at the position.  With Kafentzis highlighting the Class of 2015, let's take a look at three potential options for the Badgers to bring in for the Class of 2016.

Jarrett Guarantano

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Jarrett Guarantano is at the top of the Badgers wish list when it comes to quarterbacks in the Class of 2016.

At the top of the Badgers' quarterback wish list is Jarrett Guarantano.  The 4-star pro-style quarterback from Oradell, New Jersey, goes to Bergen Catholic, one of the top high school football programs in the country.

Guarantano holds more than two-dozen offers, and the odds of the Badgers landing this talented quarterback are incredibly slim; however, that doesn't change the fact that he is the top of the list for the team.

The Badgers have mined New Jersey plenty of times, particularly with the verbal commitments of Sam Madden and Jake Pickard in the Class of 2015 as well as backup running back Corey Clement and part-time quarterback Tanner McEvoy.

I don't think the Badgers will land Guarantano.  They are competing with some real heavyweights here, such as Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Oklahoma, the latter two looking like the clubhouse leaders for the talented quarterback.  But a lot can happen, and Guarantano should stay on the Badgers' radar.

Malik Henry

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One of the top players in the country, Malik Henry would be a huge coup for the Badgers if they were somehow able to land him.

To say that Malik Henry would rocket the Badgers to the top of the recruiting rankings, no matter who else they sign, would be overstatement.  But that's not as crazy as it sounds.  Henry, a 5-star pro-style quarterback and the third-best player in the country according to 247Sports' composite rankings would easily be the best quarterback to don a Badgers uniform since Russell Wilson.

Currently holding 14 offers, a number that is sure to balloon in the coming weeks and months, Henry is being hotly pursued by Florida State, Notre Dame, UCLA and Ohio State, with signs pointing toward Notre Dame as a likely landing spot for the supremely talented quarterback.

With offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig being the primary recruiter of the Thousand Oaks, California, native, the Badgers are pulling no punches with this recruitment.  Whether Ludwig is still on the staff at the end of the year is another question, though his work as a recruiter has brought in excellent players.

If Henry comes to the Midwest, it's likely to South Bend, but that doesn't change the fact that the Badgers would love to see him in Cardinal and White.

Steven Frank

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Though currently without a scholarship offer, Steven Frank would be a great option for the Badgers at quarterback in the Class of 2016.

While the other two players listed are extremely unlikely to come despite holding scholarship offers, Steven Frank does not hold a scholarship offer from Wisconsin yet has a higher chance of becoming a Badger.

The 3-star pro-style quarterback from Oswego, Illinois, currently holds offers from Illinois, Illinois State and Miami (Ohio), though he is being watched closely by a number of bigger programs including Arkansas, Michigan, Vanderbilt and Wisconsin.

With great arm strength and prototypical size for a quarterback—he stands 6'4" and 219 pounds—this talented junior's name should start popping up more frequently as the recruiting cycle for the Class of 2016 heats up.

If the Badgers can get him on campus as a junior after camping with them over the summer, being the first top program to offer could go a long way in securing a commitment out of the Illinois native.

All recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.