Headed toward what is sure to be one of the more trying seasons in recent Wisconsin football history, the Badgers are full steam ahead in summer preparation for the toughest schedule they've faced in years. It's been widely written about, so I won't bore you with the details, but good ol' Jim Ross would call it "bowling-shoe ugly." It's not out of the question for the Badgers to be 2-5 after a trip to Iowa City in Week 8. There is little doubt that this year's roster won't be more talented than last year's, but likely won't have the record to show for it.

This year, there are 61 true and redshirt freshmen on the roster. Not many things exhibit the youth movement the roster is going through, with now the third coaching staff in five years, more than that number of freshmen. All of this leads to an incredibly interesting 2016 season, which will likely test fans' patience. The roster for this season is now out, so let's take a look at some of the changes from spring ball.

Number changes

Senior wide receiver Reggie Love from No. 16 to No. 1

Redshirt freshman running back Bradrick Shaw from No. 27 to No. 7

Redshirt freshman linebacker Jake Whalen from No. 30 to No. 39

Position changes

Transfers

Running back Chris James has transferred from Pittsburgh and will sit out 2016

Cornerback Nick Nelson has transferred from Hawaii and will sit out 2016

Weight changes

Running back Corey Clement is now listed at 227 pounds, up from 219

Kicker Rafael Gaglianone is now listed at 219 pounds, down from 240

Linebacker Jack Cichy is now listed at 233 pounds, up from 223

Nose tackle Olive Sagapolu is now listed at 340 pounds, up from 332

David Edwards, now an offensive tackle, is now listed at 285 pounds, up from 239

Nose tackle Jeremy Patterson is now listed at 350 pounds, up from 335

Defensive lineman Connor Sheehy is now listed at 288 pounds, up from 272

What does all of this mean?

Truthfully, not a ton, but it's fun for us to over-analyze. The weight gains are encouraging, as they show the fruits of Ross Kolodziej as the strength and conditioning coordinator. Also, the rushing attacks Wisconsin struggled against last year were from bigger, more physical teams. The added beef will help with that.

Wisconsin is a program going through transition, odd for a normally consistent football team. This team, if it can survive this murderer's row schedule, will be as well prepared for the end of the season as any in recent memory.

The full roster