MADISON, Wis. – It was just three seconds from when he was Wisconsin’s quarterback Braedyn Locke he released a shotgun snap as his pass landed in his hands Penn State safety Jaylen Reed. Three seconds to turn a game around, with Reed returning the interception 19 yards for a touchdown and a Penn State lead they would not relinquish during a 28-13 win Saturday night.

The moment came and went quickly. But it was representative of something bigger about Wisconsin football because The badgers they need better quarterback play if they want to step up as a program under luke fickell. There are four regular season games left, as well as a potential bowl game. However, the quarterback question remains.

“You saw Tyler Van Dyke for two games, or two and a quarter games, not even,” Fickell said this week. “Obviously, you’ve seen the most from Braedyn and you’ve seen nothing but a few snaps from Mabrey (Mettauer). So to say you know what development is like is hard.

“It’s a constant thing. You can never have enough and depth will always be a problem until maybe you can truly believe you can build from within. But that being said, it’s even harder because you’ve got a talented guy and not a lot of people want to sit.”

What should Wisconsin do going forward at the top position? Here’s a look at the possible options:

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Tyler Van Dyke

Pro: Van Dyke is the best quarterback on Wisconsin’s roster, which is why he earned the starting job this preseason. It is unclear at this time whether Van Dyke will elect to return to Wisconsin for a sixth college season after tearing the ACL in his right knee on Sept. 21 against Alabama. He would have one more year of eligibility due to the timing of the injury – a combination of using the extra year NCAA players granted in 2020 and a redshirt year.

Wisconsin would seem to be the best college spot for him considering he’s already been a starter, and if he’s healthy, he could try to make one last run to show he can be a NFL quarterback Of course, the roster will be based on who the offensive coordinator is and whether Fickell still sees Phil Longo as the answer there. Fickell made it clear after the injury that while he had not yet spoken to Van Dyke about the future, “we would put a plan in place” for him to return for another season.

Van Dyke is the most experienced player in the room with 31 career starts. He completed 43 of 68 passes for 421 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions this season. His arm strength and running ability were elements that elevated him and had the potential to make Wisconsin’s offense more dynamic — but that was before the injury.

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Cons: Who knows how long it will take Van Dyke to recover and if he will be close to the same player he was before the injury. Recovery time can usually be between 6-12 months. That means Van Dyke won’t participate in spring training and there’s no guarantee he’ll be at full strength until preseason practice or early next season. It also remains to be seen how the injury affects his ability as a runner.

Wisconsin could use some certainty at quarterback in Year 3 of the Fickell era. If Van Dyke returns for another season, which was unanticipated when this season began, perhaps that could lead to a roster shake-up with other defenders entering the transfer window. It would also mean Wisconsin would be relying on a player with only one season of eligibility remaining, which may not be ideal for room development.

Braedyn Locke

Pro: There have been times when Locke has made some impressive deep shots since replacing Van Dyke. He threw a 63-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Vinny Anthony against USC on a nice ball down the left sideline and had other touchdown passes of 52 yards to Anthony and 69 yards to wide receiver Trech Kekahuna. Locke also threw a 47-yard punt to Anthony to the 2-yard line against Rutgers who set a score. He has the ability, but also mixes in too many mistakes.

Locke would enter his third season at Wisconsin and have 12 or 13 starts under his belt, assuming he stays healthy the rest of this season. His knowledge of the offense is one of his biggest strengths and allows him to stand out from some of the younger quarterbacks on the roster.

Cons: Locke has shown that he has limitations that prevent Wisconsin from consistently taking another step as an offense. That doesn’t mean he can’t show improvement in his third year with the program. But some trends have emerged that are of great concern.

Locke has thrown at least one interception in all five of his starts this season and has seven total turnovers. He’s not a mobile quarterback, which Longo would prefer. He’s had 13 punts at the line of scrimmage in two seasons, according to Pro Football Focus, and has a low completion rate (54.1 percent), though he hasn’t been helped by 12 dropped passes this season. Drafting Locke as a redshirt junior next season could limit Wisconsin’s cap if he doesn’t show more growth.

Pro: Mettauer was the first high school prospect to commit to Fickell and Longo as a member of the 2024 recruiting class, a four-star player from Texas who fits the mold of what Longo wants. He’s 6-foot-4, 230 pounds and has dual-threat ability. Mettauer threw for 7,550 yards with 88 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in high school and also ran for 1,717 yards and 31 touchdowns.

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How Mabrey Mettauer grew (and was thrust) into Wisconsin’s backup QB role

Fickell has said he wants to develop from the inside at quarterback, and Mettauer is the perfect example of that approach. He is gaining valuable practice time as a backup after Van Dyke’s injury. He also played 16 snaps in three games, including 11 against Purdue which featured a 2-yard completion and a 2-yard run. Mettauer noted how much his understanding of defense has improved in his first year as a college player, and his growth numbers will continue to accelerate entering the offseason.

Cons: Would Mettauer be ready to be a Big Ten starting quarterback as a redshirt freshman? He hasn’t been better than Van Dyke or Locke this season, so it seems hard to believe he’d outperform either player if they remain on the roster.

Mettauer also figures to take his share of youth lumps, which is typical, and Wisconsin probably won’t want to be in that position with a schedule that includes road games against Alabama, Indian, Michigan, Minnesota and Oregonnot to mention home games against Ohio State and Iowa. He may still be a year or two away, and ideally having a veteran quarterback lead Wisconsin.

Portal player transfer

Pro: Wisconsin needs a difference maker at quarterback, and if the Badgers can find one (and have the financial resources to land one), then it makes sense to explore that avenue. Transfer portal quarterbacks are the new norm. When this season began, 14 of the 18 Big Ten teams had a starting QB transfer, including Wisconsin.

The fact that Wisconsin has gone the transfer portal route the past two seasons at quarterback under this coaching staff means the Badgers at least have experience managing the transition. The first transfer portal window runs from Dec. 9 to Dec. 28, meaning Wisconsin could determine its potential quarterback for next season before spring practice begins.

Cons: Going the transfer portal route for a third straight offseason would send the exact opposite message of what Fickell said he wants to do at quarterback. Very clearly, Wisconsin will need at least a dozen transfers most offseasons based on how the last two have gone under Fickell. But doing it again at quarterback, especially if he only has one year of eligibility left, makes continuity at the position difficult.

Wisconsin’s coaching staff has shown that they will do whatever it takes to find the best players at a given position. Of course, this means a program risks alienating those players already on the roster and could lead to transfers. Young defenders on the list include Cole LaCrue and Mettauer, with Locke’s younger brother, Landyn, a Class of 2025 commit. LaCrue hasn’t played at all in two seasons while battling injuries, and Landyn Locke will have a torn ACL during his senior season.

(Photo of Tyler Van Dyke: Jeff Hanisch / Imagn Images)