Jeff Potrykus

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Arlington, Texas — Leo Musso donned a Wisconsin uniform for the final time Monday in the Cotton Bowl.

The safety from Waunakee knows what the Big Ten should expect from the 2017 team, however.

“Expectations are always high,” Musso said. “Always high.”

Musso pointed to the 2016 team, which opened the season unranked but navigated a demanding schedule to reach the Big Ten title game and capped the season with a 24-16 victory over No. 14 Western Michigan in the Cotton Bowl.

“I’m just glad we proved we could play with anybody regardless of the rank coming into the season,” Musso said. “There were a million question marks coming into the season.

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“Everybody thought we were going to lose half our games. It is good to show that a lot of guys can step up and play. A guy goes down, next man in.”

UW’s personnel losses will be few in number from a team that finished 11-3.

Tailbacks Corey Clement and Dare Ogunbowale, who rushed for a combined 1,881 yards and 20 touchdowns this season, must be replaced. Clement announced via Twitter on Tuesday he has been invited to the NFL scouting combine.

Left tackle Ryan Ramczyk, an All-American who started all 14 games in his first season, is a projected first-round draft pick and could leave early. Ramczyk has to weigh whether to have hip surgery and a recovery of several months, which would make him unavailable for the combine.

The departure of wide receiver Robert Wheelwright should mean more playing time for several younger players.

UW must replace both starting outside linebackers as T.J. Watt announced Tuesday he is turning pro a year early. He joins Vince Biegel in heading to the NFL. Cornerback Sojourn Shelton and Musso also must be replaced.

If linebackers Jack Cichy (shoulder) and Chris Orr (knee) return from injury, UW should again field a physical and athletic front seven. Cichy can play on the outside or inside if needed.

Garret Dooley played outside linebacker in all 14 games this season and finished eighth on the team in tackles with 40. He will be a redshirt senior next season. Zack Baun, who will be a redshirt sophomore, battled injuries this season but has shown promise. UW is set to add two intriguing players. Christian Bell enrolled last spring at Alabama but transferred to UW during the summer. Andrew Van Ginkel will join the program from Iowa Western Community College. He chose UW in November over offers from Nebraska and Iowa.

The return of kicker Rafael Gaglianone, 7 for 8 on field-goal attempts before back issues caused him to undergo season-ending surgery, should boost the special teams. Both punter Anthony Lotti and kickoff specialist P.J. Rosowski return.

Center Michael Deiter, who will be a redshirt junior, believes that as well as Ramczyk played this season, UW will identify a successor if Ramczyk leaves for the NFL.

“If there is one guy that leaves it will be Ram and we’ll get him replaced,” he said. “We’ll get someone in there to do the job.

“The competition will be there if Ram does decide to take that route.”

The list of candidates includes current freshmen Patrick Kasl and Cole Van Lanen.

Joe Rudolph, UW’s offensive coordinator/line coach, showed in 2016 he was willing to juggle his line if needed. So if Ramczyk departs for the NFL the solution might not be as simple as just popping in a new left tackle.

“I think you have a ton of options,” he said, “and we’ll be trying to get the five best guys on the field. That is the important thing.”

Look for Bradrick Shaw and Pittsburgh transfer Chris James to battle for the No. 1 tailback position.

Shaw, who possesses an intriguing mix of power and speed, rushed for 457 yards and five touchdowns as the No. 3 tailback.

James, who redshirted this season and will have two years of eligibility remaining, impressed his coaches and teammates with his physical ability and work ethic in practice.

“I love the way he has practiced,” Rudolph said. “He practiced as though he was going to be the starter that week.

“Guys that take every rep and work their tails off, they get better. They have a vision of what they want to do and that is huge.”

Running backs coach John Settle believes James (5 foot 10 and 208 pounds) has the speed to make big plays and the power to be an every-down back.

“People are going to be surprised at how powerful he is and his ability to put his foot in the ground and take off,” Settle said. “He is power-packed and then he can take off.”

Taiwan Deal, limited to five games and 155 yards as a redshirt sophomore because of ankle injuries, is expected to undergo surgery and miss spring ball.

Quarterback Alex Hornibrook, who started nine games this season, should be the favorite to win the starting job over Kare' Lyles and incoming freshman Jack Coan.

“Alex is going to be another year older in this offense,” departing quarterback Bart Houston said. “Bradrick is playing out of his mind right now and there is no looking back for him.

“The line is young, too. They are going to be a sound offense as long as they keep grinding and keep getting better day by day.”

Shelton, who led UW in interceptions this season with four, was asked how the secondary might look in 2017 with two new faces.

“To be honest with you, I might be putting a lot on the group,” he said, “but I expect them to be better than this year.

“I practice with these guys every day. They’re going to be good.”

Nick Nelson, who started 21 games at Hawaii before transferring to UW, is expected to replace Shelton at cornerback. Nelson and Derrick Tindal, who will be a senior, should give UW a solid starting tandem.

Natrell Jamerson and Lubern Figaro both worked at nickel cornerback this season. However, the staff believes cornerbacks Dontye Carriere-Williams and Caesar Williams and perhaps Titus Booker could challenge for playing time.

Carriere-Williams did not work with the scout team in practice during the season and was close to playing.

“He got a lot of reps in our defense,” secondary coach Jim Leonhard said. “He wasn’t down with the scout team. He was with us. That will be very valuable going into the spring.”

Who will replace Musso at safety? The candidates are Arrington Farrar, who will be a junior; Patrick Johnson, who worked mostly on special teams this season; and Eric Burrell, who will be a redshirt freshman.

“It is going to be an exciting group to watch in the future,” Musso said. “I hope these guys come in and smash any type of expectations that are set out for them. I’m very excited to see this group play.

“As an older guy you kind of hope that. I think that reflects your leadership and the way you approach things, the lessons that you’ve taught.”

Jeff Potrykus can be reached at jpotrykus@journalsentinel.com or twitter.com/jaypo1961.