30 college football players with big shoes to fill in 2017
By Brad Weiss
David Edwards
Offensive Tackle, Wisconsin
For the Wisconsin Badgers, the last couple of seasons have meant not having to worry about who will be their starting left tackle. Ryan Ramczyk was the crown jewel of tackles in the Big Ten, and parlayed his illustrious collegiate career into being a first round selection in the 2017 NFL Draft. He is going to be very hard to replace, but someone who started on the line with him last season just may be the one to do it in 2017.
David Edwards was the other tackle for the Badgers last season, and all indications are he will be the one to replace Ramczyk in 2017. He is a tremendous athlete, and has the size and feet to make an easy transition to the other side of the line. Quarterback Alex Hornibrook is the unquestioned signal-caller heading into this season, and he has to be comfortable having Edwards as one of his two tackles.
Wisconsin will have to replace Corey Clement at running back this season, and he did a phenomenal job carrying the load in 2016. Hornibrook will likely take the next step forward in his development, and having a veteran step in for Ramczyk will help him do that. Wisconsin was the class of the Big Ten West Division last season, and they have the talent to make a return trip to the Big Ten title game.
It is always going to be hard to replace a player who has been All-Conference for multiple years, but Edwards is a solid player in his own right. At 6-foot-7, Edwards certainly has the size to play left tackle, and he has done a nice job putting on weight in his three years on campus. He was a quarterback in high school, and will now get the opportunity to be the leader on the Wisconsin offensive line in 2017.