What we heard from Matt Mitchell after Day 2 of Wisconsin football fall camp
Matt Mitchell discussed Wisconsin’s improved edge depth, Sebastian Cheeks’ next step and why Nick Clayton is being pushed to evolve.
The Wisconsin football program lost a lot of proven production off the edge when Mason Reiger and Darryl Peterson exhausted their eligibility.
Outside linebackers coach Matt Mitchell doesn’t expect one player to replace it.
Two practices into fall camp, Wisconsin believes it has assembled enough depth, size and different skill sets to build the position differently in 2026. Sebastian Cheeks enters camp as the veteran and is expected to take another step. Even so, Nick Clayton is being pushed to challenge him, while Micheal Garner and Arkansas transfer Justus Boone give the Badgers bigger bodies capable of changing how the front looks depending on the opponent.
For Mitchell, that’s the point.
Here are the three things that stood out from his availability after Wisconsin’s second practice of fall camp.
Wisconsin wants 1A and 1B options on the edge
Mitchell watched Reiger and Peterson carry an enormous workload down the stretch last season, and the production justified it. The duo combined for 11.5 sacks, 72 pressures and 17.5 tackles for loss. But Wisconsin doesn’t want to operate that way again.
Ideally, the Badgers will have enough trustworthy options to rotate based on situation and personnel.
“I think we’ll use the different pieces situationally,” Mitchell said. “The other thing too is, like, with Coach Whitlow and I up front, we want depth. We want to be able to roll guys in.”
That could mean using bigger bodies against teams that lean heavily on 12 personnel, then turning toward more athletic pass rushers such as Cheeks and Clayton when matchups dictate it.
Garner is particularly interesting in that regard. The 6-foot-7, 310-pound edge defender who transferred in from Grambling State last offseason missed much of spring practice because of injury but is healthy again, and Mitchell believes he’s beginning to earn trust as a run defender.
“There’s some games in the Big Ten you’re gonna need to line up and stop the run,” Mitchell explained. “And right now Mike so far has put a product on tape and is building trust to be able to do that.”
Boone, meanwhile, brings SEC experience and another 275-plus-pound body to the rotation.
Mitchell’s goal isn’t necessarily establishing clear starters and backups.
“In the Big Ten, your best defense is going to have some depth and be able to have the trust that it’s not ones and twos — we really try to talk about one A’s and one B’s.”
That’s a significant change in philosophy if Wisconsin actually has enough playable depth to make it work. With Cheeks and Clayton leading the way, bigger options like Boone and Garner available situationally, and Jaylen Williams, Tyreese Fearbry and Division III transfer Liam Danitz pushing behind them, Mitchell might finally have enough different pieces to deploy this room based on matchups rather than necessity.
Sebastian Cheeks’ next step is finishing
Cheeks quietly produced 25 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, three sacks and 27 pressures last season despite making only three starts.
Mitchell believes there was considerably more production available.
“I’ve said this a lot, my goal, my mission, my responsibility is the jump that Daryl Peterson took from his junior to senior year,” Mitchell said. “We need Sebastian Cheeks to take that similar type of jump.”
The interesting part is what Mitchell believes that requires.
Cheeks was already solid against the run and capable when dropping into coverage, earning a 69.0 run-defense grade and 64.5 coverage grade from PFF last season. His 68.6 pass-rush grade wasn’t anything to shake a stick at, but that’s where Mitchell believes there’s considerably more production available. His offseason has focused heavily on improving his hands, hips and, most importantly, his ability to finish pass rushes.
“If you look at his tape last year, there’s probably five, maybe six sacks that he missed,” Mitchell said. “And if he had made those five or six sacks, then everybody would be talking about him.”
That’s a pretty significant what-if considering Cheeks finished with three sacks across 368 defensive snaps.
Wisconsin doesn’t necessarily need him to become a different player. It needs him to finish more of the opportunities he’s already creating.
Nick Clayton isn’t being asked to wait his turn
Cheeks may enter his senior season as the established veteran in the room, but Mitchell has delivered a very different message to Clayton.
Don’t defer to him.
“I just told Nick, don’t take a backseat to Sebastian Cheeks,” Mitchell said. “No offense. But don’t take a backseat to him. I don’t care he’s a senior. Like, and that’s not a disrespect from me. I mean, you got to push.”
Clayton arrived at Wisconsin weighing barely 200 pounds. Mitchell said he’s now around 245, and the former four-star prospect has put himself in position to compete for more playing time after appearing in 11 games last season, primarily on special teams, while logging just 15 defensive snaps.
“I’ve seen a lot of growth. Had it not been for some of the guys I had, I think Nick would have probably gotten a little bit more burn last year,” Mitchell admitted.
Now that roadblock is gone.
Wisconsin still needs to prove it can replace the production Reiger and Peterson provided. But two days into fall camp, Mitchell doesn’t sound interested in finding two players capable of simply replicating their workloads.
The Badgers want options.
If Cheeks makes the senior-year jump Mitchell expects, Clayton forces his way into a larger role, and Wisconsin can successfully deploy players such as Garner and Boone based on matchups, this room might have a chance to replace what it lost without asking anyone to become the next Mason Reiger.
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