Wisconsin Badgers freshman guard Zach Kinziger ‘contemplating’ redshirting in 2025-26

• Wisconsin freshman guard Zach Kinziger is considering redshirting the 2025-26 season.
• Wisconsins coach Greg Gard believes Kinziger has a bright future and can learn from veteran players on the team.
• The decision might not be official until the end of the season, Gard suggested.

MADISON — Wisconsin freshman guard Zach Kinziger may potentially redshirt the 2025-26 season, UW coach Greg Gard told reporters after the Badgers’ Nov. 7 win over Northern Illinois.

“Zach came to me probably a week ago, and we talked about it, and he’s contemplating it,” Gard said. “He wants to get his degree from Wisconsin. He wants to contribute at a high level. But he knows he’s got experienced and older guys in front of him that, quite frankly, are older and more experienced, so they have a head start.”

Gard emphasized that he and Kinziger are “still thinking about it,” and there is not necessarily a deadline to make a decision. The freshman from De Pere did not play in either of UW’s first two regular season games. He was the only player who did not see the floor in the Badgers’ 97-72 win over Northern Illinois.

“That really won’t become official until after the season if he doesn’t appear in any games,” Gard said. “But I said right now, if you’re undecided, we’ll just not put you in until we get to a point — and hopefully, knock on wood, nothing happens and nobody gets hurt.”

Kinziger, a former four-star recruit, is among a particularly crowded group of guards. San Diego State transfer Nick Boyd, preseason all-Big Ten honoree John Blackwell and Virginia transfer Andrew Rohde have been Wisconsin’s starters. Others in the rotation include Jack Janicki, Braeden Carrington and Hayden Jones.

If the 6-foot-3 guard indeed sits out his freshman season, that would leave the Badgers with 13 players who are available in the 2025-26 season. Gard’s group is short one player in the frontcourt after Temple transfer Elijah Gray was dismissed from the team.

“His future can be very impactful here,” Gard said. “He’s just got really good guards in Blackwell and Boyd that he can learn from, and that’s what I told him. … ‘Your best teacher and best experience for this year has been eyed up, nose-to-nose with Nick Boyd every day.’ And that’s going to help him more than anything and more than he realizes it right now.”