4 takeaways from Wisconsin's eighth spring session: Wide receiver Vinny Anthony III excels

MADISON – Wisconsin on Tuesday held its eighth of 15 scheduled spring football practices and head coach Luke Fickell spoke to reporters after the session.

UW is set to practice twice more this week – on Thursday and Saturday.

Fickell noted the No. 1 goal for the first two sessions of the week is to address and fix the mistakes the staff saw during a lengthy practice last Saturday.

“This is a big time for us because we find out mentally where we are as a football team,” said Fickell, who estimated UW had 65 snaps of live action on Saturday. “Our ability to come out here on Tuesday and Thursday and correct those mistakes and not make the same mistakes over and over and over again is important. But it only happens if we’re mentally in the right place.”

Following are several observations from practice Tuesday:

Wide receiver Vinny Anthony III flashes big-play potential

Fickell and the assistants continue to search for a second outside receiver to complement Bryson Green and slot receiver Will Pauling on the No. 1 offense.

Vinny Anthony III got plenty of work with that unit Tuesday and displayed the ability to get open, catch the ball cleanly and use his speed to run away from defenders.

The junior had two catches that would have been touchdowns in a game.

On the first, he caught a quick slant from Tyler Van Dyke and ran away from cornerback RJ Delancy III.

On the second, he got open deep down the middle, caught a pass from Braedyn Locke and ran away from several defenders.

The staff has been evaluating CJ Williams, Quincy Burroughs and Anthony for the third receiver spot. Anthony last season finished with just 10 receptions, the No. 9 mark on the team, for 99 yards.

However, with that position open there is no reason Anthony can't win the battle.

Braedyn Locke and Tyler Van Dyke -- Wisconsin's top two quarterbacks -- consistently inconsistent

Both Locke and Van Dyke made some solid throws Tuesday, as they have for most of the spring.

However, both threw interceptions that appeared to be avoidable.

Locke apparently didn’t see Jaheim Thomas dropping into coverage on one play and hit the inside linebacker between the numbers in the red zone.

Van Dyke tried to hit a receiver on an in-breaking route but apparently never saw nickel cornerback Owen Arnett drifting over into the throwing lane. Arnett broke on the throw for an easy interception and headed down the sideline for what in a game would have been an easy score.

Fickell acknowledged that Van Dyke is still working to get comfortable with UW’s offense and having both quarterbacks bounce back and forth between the No. 1 and No. 2 offenses isn’t ideal.

However, the reality is this: Neither quarterback has taken hold of the position yet.

“I want to see them both come out of their shells,” he said, referring to their ability to lead the offense. “I want to see consistency. I want to see leadership.”

Tailback Tawee Walker can run, catch and, it appears, block

One drill Tuesday featured a running back lined up next to the quarterback, who was in the shotgun.

The running back was tasked with preventing a blitzing linebacker from sacking the quarterback.

Tawee Walker, Cade Yacaemelli and Jackson Acker did the best job of protecting the quarterbacks.

Christian Alliegro, Jake Chaney and freshman Landon Gauthier excelled at defeating the blocker and getting pressure on the quarterback or recording a sack.

Austin Brown’s versatility could prove valuable for Wisconsin's defense in 2024

Junior defensive back Austin Brown started out as a safety but moved to nickel cornerback for the bowl game last season.

Defensive coordinator Mike Tressel likes Brown’s size – 6-foot-1 and 212 pounds – in the slot.

Brown has spent plenty of time in the slot this spring but with Kamoi Latu and Preston Zachman both sidelined because of injuries, Brown has been working at safety and he showed again Tuesday that he can make plays from that position.

Locke found Pauling open along the right hash and delivered an accurate pass but Brown read the play, broke on the ball and delivered a hit that dislodged the ball from Pauling.

More: Wisconsin defensive end T.J. Bollers plans to transfer

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 4 takeaways of Wisconsin spring practice: WR Vinny Anthony III excels