Badgers’ Nelson is set for a big season
MADISON – Jim Leonhard always has been a fan of safety Scott Nelson.
Leonhard took over as Wisconsin’s defensive coordinator in 2017, Nelson’s redshirt season. He looked at Nelson and saw a tall, athletic safety who could move well and had a high foot
ball IQ.
Nelson, 6-foot-2 and 205 pounds, showed promise as a redshirt freshman in 2018 with eight starts in nine games, though his tackling wasn’t up to par.
His 2019 season ended in the opener at South Florida when he suffered a torn ACL.
Nelson did not play in the 2020 opener against Illinois after missing time in camp but started the final six games, performing at a high level and more consistently than he had in previous seasons.
“I think he had a huge last year,” Leonhard said. “You look back at what he was able to do. Unfortunate that the season got cut short because you just don’t see players sustain it for 12, 13, 14 games. I think he was ready to do that.”
Nelson recorded 17 solo tackles and 22 total in six games. He had four tackles for loss, tied for second on the team, and led the team in interceptions with two.
“I think he was playing so much faster and more confident than he was even going into (2019),” said Leonhard, who thought Nelson was ready to break out in 2019 before the knee injury. “He learned a lot from his freshman year when he was playing a lot of football. It took a while for it to come to fruition.”
Nelson has started 15 of the 16 games he has played at UW. He enters the opener Saturday against Penn State paired with fellow starter Collin Wilder.
Wilder had just one start last season but played in all seven games. He had 17 solo tackles and 30 total, the latter the No. 3 mark on the team behind linebackers Jack Sanborn (52) and Leo Chenal (46).
“When we get on the field it is very easy to be on the same page,” said Wilder, noting he and Nelson are roommates. “We’re bouncing questions and answers off of each other. When we screw up, we know.
“We know when one of us makes a mistake. It is very easy to coach each other up. That is why I’m really excited about this year, getting to play more with him.”
Wilder and Nelson also both know what it takes to recover from a torn ACL.
Wilder suffered his injury in the third game of the 2017 season, his final season at Houston before he transferred to UW.
“It is a mental game,” Wilder said, “finally trying to get to where you want to be, to be back to normal. He has done a great job.
“He hasn’t even watched the play and I think that is a great thing. Mentally, if you see that play over and over in your head you might play less aggressive. He doesn’t let that bother him or even get into his mind. He has done a great job of that and then just playing.
“I would say he is 100% back. I forget that he even had knee surgery.”
According to Leonhard, Nelson entered the 2020 season having already surpassed the weight-lifting marks he established before the 2019 opener.
“I think you’re starting to see the confidence in his body,” Leonhard said. “He is able to push himself and do things that maybe even last year he was not quite sure he was ready for.
“Making plays helps with that confidence. And now you’re really starting to see the belief that he is not only where he was before that ACL, he is significantly past it and the consistency in his play is showing up.”
Nelson opened and closed the 2020 with a flourish and was consistent throughout.
He recorded five tackles and an interception in the 49-11 victory over Michigan and made key plays on the Wolverines’ first two offensive series.
His interception on the Wolverines’ first offensive play gave UW the ball at the Michigan 33. That led to a four-play touchdown drive and a 7-0 UW lead.
On the Wolverines’ second series, Nelson quickly diagnosed a running play on first and 15. He tackled tailback Blake Corum for a 3-yard loss and Chenal intercepted a pass two plays later. That led to a four-play touchdown drive and a 14-0 lead.
Fast-forward to the bowl game against Wake Forest. Nelson recorded five tackles, all solo, and returned an interception 60 yards to the Wake Forest 2 with UW holding a 28-21 lead early in the fourth quarter. UW scored two plays later to push the lead to double figures.
Nelson, who had five tackles in four of the six games he played last season, worked in the off-season on being more efficient.
His goals: recognize plays more quickly, cut down on false steps either in his backpedal or coming out of his break and intercept more passes.
“Sometimes I just freestyled it,” he said, referring to footwork. “Not hopping around as much. Because I can tell at practice when I hop, I get myself in trouble.
“I want to finish more plays.”