Badgers Make Surprising NFL Hire as New WRs Coach—What Does This Mean for Their Offense?

It’s quite the shake-up in Madison as the Wisconsin Badgers have locked down Ari Confesor, fresh off a stint with the Jacksonville Jaguars, to steer their wide receivers next season. You can almost hear the buzz—this guy’s been around the block, from the NFL’s Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship to some solid gigs at the Chiefs and stints shaping talent at Wake Forest and Air Force. And here’s the kicker—he’s replacing Jordan Reid, who just took off to coach quarterbacks with the Falcons. Confesor’s roots run deep with an impressive playing career at Holy Cross, setting records and earning All-American honors, before diving headfirst into coaching roles across college and the pros. Wisconsin, meanwhile, didn’t hold back this offseason, reloading their wideout arsenal with transfers from powerhouse programs and fresh talent. So with a fresh face at the helm and a revamped roster, Badgers fans might just be onto something big this year—third wide receivers coach in four years under Luke Fickell’s watch, no less. It’s a bold move, and I’m curious to see how it all plays out on the gridiron. LEARN MORE

The Wisconsin Badgers are hiring Jacksonville Jaguars assistant Ari Confesor as their next wide receivers coach, according to 247Sports’s Matt Zenitz and Nick Osen.

Confesor joined the Jaguars staff as a part of the NFL’s Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship program, initially spending the 2025 offseason with the team before continuing to be on the staff. He’s also been with the Kansas City Chiefs before.

Prior to that, Confesor was the wide receivers coach at Wake Forest in 2023 and 2024 after four years coaching wide receivers at Air Force. Now, he’s back in college football with the Badgers, replacing Jordan Reid, who left to take an assistant quarterbacks position with the Atlanta Falcons under head coach Kevin Stefanski.

Confesor has been a longtime college football assistant after a stellar career at Holy Cross from 2000-03, where he was a two-time All-American and set records as the school’s all-time leader in receiving yards, kickoff return yards, and all-purpose yards.

After his playing career, Confesor kicked off his coaching career at Rhode Island, spending time as the secondary, linebackers, special teams, and wide receivers coach from 2009-17, with a stint with the Kansas City Chiefs in their scouting department in 2012.

He then returned to his Alma Mater, Holy Cross, for a season as their receivers coach and passing game coordinator before heading to Air Force from 2019-22.

Wisconsin overhauled its wideout room this offseason, adding a multitude of transfers. They brought in Oklahoma State’s Shamar Rigby, Southeastern Louisiana’s Jaylon Domingeaux, Nebraska’s Malachi Coleman, and Oklahoma’s Zion Kearney in addition to three freshmen.

Now, they’ve also got a new position coach, marking head coach Luke Fickell’s third wide receivers coach in four years.