The National Football League said in a study almost a decade ago that the O-line is the hardest position to develop these days and this problem continues to persist. Wisconsin Badgers will hope to address this and that is what Maddox Cochrane is looking forward to once he joins the team in 2026.
Maddox Cochrane
Cochrane, a 6’7 offensive tackle from Richmond, committed to the team back in April. He is currently the biggest in the team’s current O-line for next year.
He sat down for an interview with Badger 247 and there he revealed that the team wants him to play more of the tackle position. This is despite his willingness to play multiple roles.
This insistence is rooted on the Badgers’ target to develop a formidable offensive line commensurate to a report made by the NLF sent to college teams.
“They are trying to really rely on the O-line, and, the NFL recently had sent out a study that the only position that had not developed as much as any others in the past 12 years, were O-linemen,” Cochrane shared.
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“Their goal was, we don’t care what any other school does about it. We are gonna make that different, and change that statistic, at least for guys coming out of Wisconsin.”
Maddox Cochrane wants to develop under Badgers
Badgers is known for producing great offensive linemen and the most notable of them is Joe Thomas who was named to the First Team All-Pro six times.
There’s also the likes of Joe Tippmann, Tyler Biadasz, and Tanor Bortolini. Jack Nelson is the latest on the list of former Badgers O-line member who made it to the big league as he is now part of the Atlanta Falcons.
Jack Nelson, NFL Combine, Wisconsin Badgers
Mar 1, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; University of Wisconsin offensive lineman Jack Nelson (OL31) answers questions at a press conference during the 2025 NFL Combine at Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Jacob Musselman-Imagn Images
Cochrane has the same goal and he believe he’ll get that with UW. He hopes to develop by his second year in college.
“I think we are really ready to get developing, however long that takes,” he said.
“Whether that takes two years, or hopefully, my goal is to at least be able to get some time by sophomore year. Everybody wants to come in and start, but that isn’t realistic. So, I think they like me at tackle, getting in, working hard, and figuring it out from there!”
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