Wisconsin Badgers freshman CB Xavier Lucas is 'mature beyond his years'

The Badgers freshman has already become a key piece in the secondary

The Wisconsin Badgers secured a massive recruiting win in the 2024 class when they went into South Florida and pulled four-star cornerback Xavier Lucas away from his home state football programs.

And that win is already translating into on-field success this season.

Lucas has quickly established himself as a key contributor in Wisconsin’s secondary and has shown flashes of the skillset that made him such a coveted recruit. His ability to adapt to the speed of the college game has been evident, especially in a unit that needed an injection of young talent.

Against Rutgers, the 6-foot-2, 198-pound cornerback played a career-high 38 snaps and recorded two tackles plus a pass breakup while allowing only two catches for 10 yards despite being targeted six times.

According to Pro Football Focus, Lucas currently holds a 79.5 coverage grade on the season, the highest among Wisconsin Badgers cornerbacks. That mark also ranks sixth in the entire Big Ten among corners who’ve played at least 20% of their team’s defensive snaps—a testament to how impactful the true freshman has been on the team’s secondary.