Stats: 14 Tackles, 1 TFL

It was clear that the front sevens of both teams in the Muskego-Badger battle were going to be heavily tested in their run defense. Senior LB Brody Axelson Brody Axelson 6'0" | 210 lbs | LB Muskego | 2026 State WI was up for the challenge, flying around and making 14 tackles. Badger utilize wide splits and field multiple athletic OL, but Brody was able to turn that on its head and play quickly downhill, forcing missed blocks from the OL. The senior did really flying around the field, chasing down the ball to the sideline and making sound tackles. Brody is such a stout, strong defender too. He shrugged off blocks or ran through them to make tackles. The senior was everywhere Friday night putting quick ends to plays and making Badger earn every yard.

Coming in at 6′ 215 lbs was the Muskego LB Brody Axelson Brody Axelson 6'0" | 210 lbs | LB Muskego | 2026 State WI . Over and over I was impressed by the incoming seniors physicality, violence and power. He plays like an old-school LB. Someone that is going to attack, punch you in the mouth, and then hustle back for another rep. Obviously at these camps we don’t tackle to the ground but in drills where they were able to get hands on to work on shedding blocks or showing that ability to drive your hips through the opponent, Brody was leading the way. The ’26 is a tone setter that I can’t wait to see flying around the field on Friday nights this fall.

Brody is the first athlete in this article that has earned an offer. His first came a couple weeks ago from UW-Oshkosh. You have to love the athleticism that Brody brings to the field. He can knife through traffic, untouched, to the football with his burst, lateral agility, and vision to find the path of least resistance. The junior also shows off the speed to get outside the tackle and corral RBs one on one in space while also getting off or avoiding the blocks of a leading OL. I think we are set to see things pick up over the coming weeks at these early June camps.

Stats: 5 Tackles

A final standout from the D1 game was junior LB Brody Axelson Brody Axelson 6'0" | 210 lbs | LB Muskego | 2026 State WI . Brody impressed me with his quick closing burst leading to sound pops when he tackled. The athletic LB also made a lot of plays by flying through the front seven without getting touched by offensive linemen. Brody was quick to react and it made it hard for linemen to cut him off. The junior also showed that he could read the flow of the OL, move with the play, and then still come downhill to get involved in the tackle. Axelson will be one to keep an eye on this offseason as he prepares for his senior season.