Omillio Agard seizing opportunity in Wisconsin Badgers CB competition
Wisconsin Badgers redshirt freshman Omillio Agard is making his case for the No. 2 cornerback job opposite Ricardo Hallman in 2025.
Sometimes opportunities in college football arrive right on schedule, when a player has paid his dues and earned his role on merit. Other times, they appear suddenly, shaped by roster changes that no one saw coming. For redshirt freshman cornerback Omillio Agard, the latter is true, and as always, it is what you do with that opportunity that matters most.
The Philadelphia native, once considered to be the highest-rated cornerback to sign with Wisconsin football in the Rivals era, spent 2024 redshirting and watching from the sidelines. Agard did not see any game action, but he did see how quickly things can change at this level.
Opportunity knocked after Nyzier Fourqurean, arguably Wisconsin’s top cornerback in 2024, had a court ruling overturn the preliminary injunction that had allowed him to play, leaving him ineligible for the 2025 season unless a pending appeal somehow breaks in his favor. It left Wisconsin without an experienced piece in the secondary, and it opened a vacancy at the No. 2 cornerback spot opposite veteran leader Ricardo Hallman.
With that uncertainty, depth became a real concern for this group.
The Badgers welcomed a freshman class at the position, featuring Jaimier Scott, Cairo Skanes, and Jahmare Washington. None of them were initially expected to push for roles in the Badgers' two-deep, but a lack of bodies at the position has opened the door for them to be thrown into the fire.
By all accounts, the group has shown plenty to like about the future, even if they do not play a ton of snaps this season. And while the top of the team's depth chart has plenty of experience, the secondary is likely just one injury away from finding itself in a tough spot. That reality has made every defensive rep in fall camp matter even more for players like Agard.
Agard and Miami transfer D’Yoni Hill have split first-team reps on the outside throughout fall camp, and right now they look like the two players this staff trusts most to handle that spot when the season kicks off.
Jacksonville State transfer Geimere Latimer has handled most of the work in the slot, and the staff seems committed to keeping him there, given how well he’s performed in spring and fall. Meanwhile, the Badgers are still working through exactly how the rest of the defensive back rotation behind them will shake out before the Aug. 28 opener against Miami (OH).
For Wisconsin cornerbacks coach Paul Haynes, Agard’s growth has been a byproduct of something he simply could not get a year ago: volume.
“Yeah, that’s the one thing, the opportunities that he has gotten. I mean, it’s probably close to 400, 500 reps in this camp,” Haynes said. “You can always kind of get it from the film and watch it, but when you’re out there getting reps, it just helps you. And that’s where his growth has come. With all those reps, he just gets better and better the more reps he gets.”
The former four-star recruit arrived with plenty of accolades. Agard was a three-time 6A state champion at St. Joseph's High School, an Adidas All-American, and a first-team all-state selection as a senior after posting three interceptions and 20 pass breakups in 2023. Agard's signing in the 2023 recruiting class was a significant win for Luke Fickell and his staff, marking an East Coast pull that turned some heads in recruiting circles.
Wisconsin’s staff has always valued corners who can hold their own in man coverage without needing constant safety help. At 5-foot-11 and 183 pounds, Agard may not have the staff's ideal size, but his quick change of direction makes him a natural fit for that mold.
He plays with confidence at the line of scrimmage, showing a willingness to challenge receivers early in the route, and his high school tape showcased a knack for disrupting timing. In a league that increasingly tests corners with quick concepts and deep sideline throws, those tools give him a chance.
Still, the jump from being a high school standout to a Big Ten contributor is rarely a quick one. Agard had the technical proficiency, instincts, and ball skills to project as a starter this season, but the physicality and speed of the game at this level take time to absorb. According to Haynes, the next step in Agard's development is as much mental as it is physical.
“With a young guy, it’s always just the things that don’t happen all the time,” Haynes explained. “They may have a play, and they may run a play. I may see that play, but then there’s a play after another play. He just needs to see it all and then be able to recognize, but that comes with more reps, to understand that it’s not just what you study on film. You have to understand the concept, and it will all play out how it needs to.”
In many ways, Agard’s development comes at a crucial time for Wisconsin’s cornerback room. The top of the depth chart is loaded with experience. Still, the team's depth has been tested by lingering concerns over Fourqurean’s eligibility and the offseason loss of Xavier Lucas, who essentially found a loophole to get out of the agreement that he signed with the varsity collective so he could enroll at Miami. If the Badgers can hit on a young corner like Agard, it could bring some much-needed stability to a 2025 rotation and give the secondary a cornerstone to build around for the future.
Haynes is not naming a starter opposite Hallman just yet, and it sounds like both Agard and Hill will see the field early in the season.
“As of right now, it’ll be a rotation,” Haynes told reporters. “I think both of those guys have had a good camp and played well enough that both of them deserve to play. I haven’t really thought about it on the percentage of it [snaps], but both of those guys will play for us.”
No matter who starts, both will be tested. The boundary corner spot, whether it belongs to Hallman or the rotation, gets more action by nature.
“I don’t know if they’re going to go away from him,” Haynes said of Hallman, who was among the least targeted Power 4 cornerbacks last season. “But usually that boundary side gets a lot more work and a lot more action. Those guys have to be prepared for the ball to come their way. They have to be ready and prepared to tackle. That's just the nature of that boundary corner position. They’re going to get more action."
For Agard, that means opportunity is no longer hypothetical. It is here. And while the circumstances that brought him to this point might not have been part of the plan, his performance in the coming weeks could shape not only this season’s rotation but the future of the Badgers’ secondary.
We appreciate you taking the time to read our work at BadgerNotes.com. Your support means the world to us and has helped us become a leading independent source for Wisconsin Badgers coverage.
You can also follow Site Publisher Dillon Graff at @DillonGraff on X.