Wisconsin football flips 2026 safety Kah’ni Watts from Houston
Kah’ni Watts, a 2026 safety, flipped his commitment from Houston to the Wisconsin Badgers and officially signed during the early signing period.
The Wisconsin football staff didn’t waste any time on day two of the early signing period. After signing the bulk of its class on day one, the Badgers added one more player, who came from a Big 12 program.
Three-star safety Kah’ni Watts, out of Iowa Colony High School in Texas, announced that he was flipping his commitment from Houston and has officially signed with Wisconsin. And if you followed his recruitment over the last few days, you know this wasn’t your typical signing-day storyline.
Watts had been committed to Houston since June and was fully expected to put pen to paper on National Signing Day to make it official. But he didn’t. Wisconsin made a late push to bring him into the fold, ramping up communication down the stretch that paved the way for Watts to flip.
What changed? A few things, and they all moved quickly.
Wisconsin’s staff connected with Watts on a virtual visit to sell him on a place he’d never seen in person. And once Watts dug in a little more, the fit became clearer. Watts has Florida roots and hit it off with multiple Badgers assistants who share similar backgrounds. But the opportunity to play in the Big Ten ultimately proved to be too much for Watts to pass up.
Watts becomes the 13th signed recruit in Wisconsin’s 2026 class and joins defensive backs Carsen Eloms and Donovan Dunmore as part of the Badgers’ secondary. For a staff that’s been aggressive in reshaping the roster on short notice, adding a versatile safety with his profile is a win.
And Watts is more than just a late-cycle swing. He’s a real piece.
The 6-foot-1, 175-pound senior is coming off a strong season where he finished with 73 total tackles, six tackles for loss, four interceptions, six pass breakups, and two fumble recoveries. His film shows a defender who plays with physicality, gets downhill, has sideline-to-sideline range, and has a knack for finding the football. Before transferring to Iowa Colony, Watts spent time at Fort Myers (Fla.) South, where he played both ways.
During Watts’ junior season at South Fort Myers, he recorded 75 tackles, an impressive 14 pass breakups, and seven interceptions on defense. Offensively, Watts added 29 receptions for 380 yards and 13 touchdowns.
That background shows in how fluidly he moves in space.
What Wisconsin is getting is a safety who fits today’s game: athletic enough to cover, strong enough to tackle, instinctive enough to diagnose.
And while the film serves as the starting point, the recruiting profile helps frame the evaluation. According to the composite rankings, Watts is rated as the No. 1,412 player nationally, the No. 128 safety, and the No. 206 player in Texas. His offer sheet reflects a prospect who drew steady regional interest, holding offers from Houston, Wyoming, UTSA, Utah, Sacramento State, New Mexico State, New Mexico, and several others.
Watts plans to enroll in January and will benefit from winter conditioning and spring ball, a must for any defensive back hoping to push for snaps.
“Being here in January was a really big thing for us,” Fickell said. “If you can’t come in January, I think you’re starting to look at guys and say, well, how do we have a chance to play this guy in year one if they’re not here in January? You’ve gotta feel like the guys can get on the field. A lot of that has to do with some natural ability, but a lot of it has to do with a size that you have to have.”
This is also the kind of recruiting win that matters for Wisconsin’s broader efforts, even if it arrives late in the cycle.
Position coach Jack Cooper was the lead recruiter here, and after losing Zachary Taylor early on and missing on several top targets along the way, finally getting a safety into the fold is significant. The Badgers didn’t have months to build the relationship, they didn’t have the traditional visit cycle, and they certainly didn’t have the proximity advantages Houston enjoyed.
What they did have was a staff that stuck with its evaluation, kept the communication steady, and was flexible enough to close when the window opened.
For Watts, it’s a chance to chase playing the level of football he’s always envisioned for himself. For Wisconsin, it’s a late addition that strengthens a high school class that’s smaller by design, as the staff shifts toward a more portal-heavy, draft-pick style approach, focused on bringing in win-now players and being far more selective with the freshmen they take.
It’s not the splashiest signing, but flipping Watts without ever getting him on campus says something. Wisconsin stayed on him and closed when it mattered. In a cycle where nothing came easy, that persistence counts.
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