The Wisconsin Badgers are transitioning to the second half of their spring ball schedule as their new-look team continues to improve and install the playbook.

There’s been a lot of change around the Badgers program this offseason, stemming from the players to the coaching staff to the expectations around the team.

But, that has all been set aside as Wisconsin looks to get back to its old form, starting off with progress made in the spring.

Through the first eight practices, there have been several position groups that have started to shine. Among them? The new-look safety room without Hunter Wohler.

Coming into the offseason, there were questions on how this room would grow after Wohler’s departure, which prompted Wisconsin to hit the transfer portal for some key depth.

However, as spring has come along, the safeties have been making plays, both in the passing game and near the line of scrimmage.

“Right now, in that room in particular, you’ve got the competitiveness that we need,” head coach Luke Fickell said this week about the safeties. “It’s not just solidified that Preston [Zachman] and AB (Austin Brown) are your two safeties. I think by bringing some of those other guys in that are really competitive guys that are showing that they can play the game at this level and can make plays at this level, I think it’s applying pressure to everybody in that room.

“Even if the young guys, you know, that start to recognize what it looks like on a daily basis, and you could take a guy like Preston Zachman and say that he’s been here for four or five years, how many reps does he need in spring? But he understands what it is we’re trying to do. He understands what the competitive nature looks like. And I think it’s just raising the level in that room that I think is going to be a really good thing for us.”

Brown has made the transition to safety after handling the nickel responsibilities for much of the 2024 season, and he’s gotten his hands on a few balls thus far. He and Zachman are expected to start at safety, but Wisconsin has depth, adding Richmond transfer Matthew Traynor and Bethel transfer Matt Jung to the room.

With a variety of different skillsets, Wisconsin’s secondary is starting to look better at one of the most important times of the offseason.