Wisconsin football lands Florida State transfer OL Lucas Simmons
Former Florida State offensive tackle Lucas Simmons has committed to the Wisconsin Badgers through the transfer portal.
The University of Wisconsin football program has made another intriguing addition to its offensive line, and this one comes with size, recruiting pedigree, and some developmental upside baked in.
Florida State transfer offensive tackle Lucas Simmons has committed to the Badgers, giving Wisconsin a high-ceiling young lineman as it continues to reshape the front under offensive line coach Eric Mateos.
He joins the football program with two years of eligibility remaining and brings the type of physical profile that immediately gets your attention.
Simmons stands 6-foot-8, roughly 308 pounds, and brings a unique background to the room. Originally from Stockholm, Sweden, he developed at Clearwater Academy International in Florida before signing with the Florida State Seminoles as part of the 2023 recruiting class.
Coming out of high school, Simmons was regarded as one of the top offensive tackle prospects in the country, earning composite four-star status as a top-150 national recruit with offers from USC, LSU, Oregon, Tennessee, Michigan, Miami, and Penn State, among others.
His time at Florida State was about patience and development.
Simmons redshirted in 2023 on a Seminoles team that went undefeated in the regular season, spending the year on the scout team. In 2024, he appeared in all 12 games primarily on special teams, logging just three offensive snaps at offensive tackle as a redshirt freshman. The role expanded slightly in 2025, when Simmons again played in all 12 games as a reserve lineman and special teams contributor for Mike Norvell.
That season offered a more meaningful glimpse.
Simmons logged 81 total offensive snaps, all at left tackle, with 61 coming as a run blocker and 20 in pass protection. According to Pro Football Focus, he finished the year with an 82.5 pass-blocking grade and a 74.3 run-blocking grade, numbers that stand out given the limited sample size. He allowed no sacks or pressures, a notable data point for a young tackle.
Those flashes help explain why Wisconsin prioritized him during the portal process.
This is an offensive line room in transition. Wisconsin had to replace starting center Jake Renfro, graduated veteran tackle Riley Mahlman, and saw left guard Joe Brunner enter the transfer portal in search of a fresh start.
In response, the coaching staff has been aggressive. The Badgers have already added Oklahoma State transfer Austin Kawecki and Arkansas transfer Blake Cherry, while also investing in a young nucleus that includes Kevin Heywood, Emerson Mandell, and Colin Cubberly.
Simmons fits into that picture as an option with real upside rather than a finished product. Mateos is clearly casting a wide net here. The goal isn’t just to patch holes, but to raise the overall athletic ceiling of the room and create legitimate competition across the depth chart. The combination of size, length, movement skills, and early pass-protection flashes makes Simmons another tackle who could grow into a larger role with some time.
For Wisconsin, this is a bet on traits and continued trajectory. For Simmons, it’s an opportunity to compete for a job and develop under a coach who’s actively rebuilding the room, and see how far his tools can take him in the Big Ten. He may not be penciled into a starting role immediately.
Still, as the Badgers continue adding to the offensive line room, this is precisely the type of addition that can pay off down the road, or even as soon as this upcoming season if Simmons proves capable.
It’s another reminder that Wisconsin’s offensive line rebuild up front is being approached with both the present and the future in mind.
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Probably took Lucas for lunch at Al Johnson's Door County Restaurant and Butik (a French word meaning boutique although I never saw it because there was always a crowd waiting to be seated.) Dillon, in reading about transfers I keep seeing "agency" being mentioned. Are these existing NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL agents like Boras expanding into NCAAF and NCAAM ? Or are these new companies of agents being created ? Didn't know how to pose a question for your mailbox.
Although a small sample, 82.5 and 74.3 are eye openers !