Wisconsin Football: Jack Coan Injured per Report, Is Graham Mertz Up?

The Wisconsin Football program received some unfortunate news as quarterback Jack Coan is “out indefinitely” with a foot injury.

The Wisconsin Football team had just restarted practice recently, and from the sounds of it, they’ve received some devastating news. Jeff Potrykus of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported on Sunday morning that quarterback Jack Coan went down in practice on Saturday with a foot injury, and he is “out indefinitely.”

While he’s far from the flashiest quarterback, Coan is effective and made a big leap last season as the Badgers’ starter. He led Wisconsin to a Rose Bowl berth behind 2,727 passing yards, a completion rate of nearly 70 percent, and 18 touchdowns to only five interceptions.

And by all accounts, Coan was poised to take another step forward in 2020 as offensive coordinator Joe Rudolph was raving about him in a recent Zoom call (via Milwaukee Journal Sentinel):

"“You can see it in his eyes,” Rudolph said. “He is seeing the play call deeper and his anticipation has been really good. That’s been fun because that reflects confidence. His leadership is always outstanding and his confidence in what he needed to do. But I think right now there is a layer of understanding that is helping him to anticipate better than he ever has. I’m excited about that.”"

With Coan sidelined, that leaves Wisconsin with three options to be their Week 1 starter. This group includes Chase Wolf, Danny Vanden Boom, and of course, the highest-rated quarterback recruit in program history, Graham Mertz.

Vanden Boom is the likely long shot, after not taking any snaps in 2019 and being behind Wolf and Mertz on the depth chart. Meanwhile, both Wolf and Mertz did see a little bit of action last season, as Wolf would complete one pass for two yards, and Mertz would go 9-10 for 73 yards in two appearances.

Prior to Coan’s injury, we didn’t exactly know what the quarterback depth chart looked like behind him, but I’m sure most are expecting Mertz to win the job. Although it’s happening under unfortunate circumstances, is this the beginning of the Graham Mertz era at Wisconsin? Only time will tell.

As we continue to learn more, be sure to check back in with Dairyland Express for updates.