Wisconsin center Jake Renfro made the Rimington Trophy watch list earlier this week.
Renfro was one of seven Big Ten centers on the 40-player list, along with Oregon’s Iapani Laloulu, Iowa’s Logan Jones, Indiana’s Pat Coogan, Michigan State’s Matt Gulbin, Rutgers’ Gus Zilinskas and Ohio State’s Carson Hinzman. He will look to join Tyler Biadasz (2019) as the only other Wisconsin Badger to win the award.
The veteran center is entering his third year with the Badgers. He transferred to the program from Cincinnati after the 2022 season, following head coach Luke Fickell. After missing most of the 2023 campaign due to injury, the former first-team All-AAC center anchored the Badgers’ offensive line in 2024. He is set to do the same in 2025.
The biggest threat to that status is the center’s health. He is currently considered week-to-week after suffering a lower-body injury during training camp practice on Thursday. While he has not been ruled out for Wisconsin’s Week 1 matchup on Aug. 28, his status for that game appears in question.
Wisconsin can ill afford another long-term injury along its starting offensive line, especially after projected starting left tackle Kevin Heywood suffered a season-ending knee injury during spring practice. Wisconsin’s replacement at blindside tackle is one of the team’s biggest questions in training camp.
Given health, Renfro should be one of the Big Ten’s better centers in 2025. However, with kickoff less than three weeks away, that health is already a question.
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This article originally appeared on Badgers Wire: Wisconsin starting offensive lineman makes notable preseason watch list
Reporting by Ben Kenney, Badgers Wire / Badgers Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
