Wisconsin football recruiting: Badgers make Dominic Sheppard's top 8; Luke Ancrum eying Madison visit

This recruiting notebook is going to be a tad on the short side for multiple reasons. Firstly, Rosin has a great post lined up for Friday that will walk you through all of the attendees at Wisconsin's camp this weekend, and secondly not a whole lot has happened 'crootin-wise since this past weekend. With that engaging and enthralling lede out of the way, let's get down to business!

Checking in with...

Dominic Sheppard: Sheppard is a middle linebacker that was offered by Wisconsin back in March, and even though he is a top target for the Badgers, not much had been heard from Sheppard's end since then. Well, that all changed on Tuesday night when he announced his top-9 schools on Twitter. The Badgers made the cut on a rather impressive list:

@Coach_Baez pic.twitter.com/zYR7UpwvRr

— GRANDEZA (@SheppardDominic) June 10, 2014

If there's anything I've taken away from doing these updates, it's that high school football recruits love emojis. I don't understand half of them, but two red circles are probably a good thing, right? The Miami native is currently a heavy Miami lean, according to 247, but UW is very interested in his services for the middle of its linebacking corps, so I'd expect a big push to get him to Madison this summer/fall.

Liam McCullough: The top long snapper in the country picked Ohio State. Wisconsin had been one of his top four choices.

I am incredibly excited to announce that I have committed to play football at THE Ohio State University!!! #GoBucks

— Liam McCullough (@LiamMcCullough2) June 10, 2014

I bet if you don't capitalize the "the" in your "I committed to OSU" tweet, Urban Meyer revokes your scholarship.

Luke Ancrum: This is another player that is flying under the radars of most major schools, that Wisconsin has been on for a few months. The Badgers were the first BCS (do we still call them that?) conference school to offer the 6'5 defensive end out of Sebring, Florida, this March. Since then, Ancrum has nabbed an offer from Pitt and interest from schools like Miami and Rutgers. He has named three official visits ($) that he'd like to take this fall, and Wisconsin made his first cut. In a brief interview with 247, Ancrum mentioned that academics were important to him followed by the campus. I suggest we tell him that everyone in Madison moves to Florida for the winter. His Hudl video shows promise and good instincts (look at him not lose contain on that reverse!):

Kevin Thomas: We briefly mentioned Thomas about a month ago when he was first offered by UW and the Badgers are still in the mix for the rangy wideout after he announced his top five schools. According to 247 ($), Clemson is still in the lead, but the Badgers have a punchers chance to come away with the DeSoto, Texas product.

A.J. Alexander: When we got needy here at B5Q last week, Rosin tabbed Alexander as a guy the Badgers should throw the kitchen sink at. Ending my sentence with a preposition and possible injury to Alexander aside, I think that's a good strategy. Despite offers from Penn State, Miami (man, they've been all over this post; screw those guys), Ohio State, UNC and (puke) Minnesota, Alexander still has the Badgers in his top four (with a bunch of nerd schools like Northwestern, Wake Forest and Boston College). Hopefully Wisconsin's combination of athletics and academics sways him away from places like Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.

Checking in with (South Oak Cliff edition)...

It is now the goal of Gary Andersen and his staff to make sure that every student scheduled to graduate from South Oak Cliff High School at least gets a phone call, if not a scholarship offer, even if you are already committed to play for another school or are a girl. Jordan Stevenson is one of those players that the Badgers are going to talk to even though he committed to play for Texas forever ago. If you take a gander at his scouting report, you'll see why teams are still sniffing around the four-star running back. Evan Flood over at 247 has heard rumblings ($) that Wisconsin could be in the mix to flip the SOC tailback, but these rumors have been out there since late March when Alabama came calling on Stevenson. Roll Tide. With Wisconsin nabbing two of Stevenson's teammates this past weekend (remember all the dancing GIFs?), Stevenson may take a second look at the Badgers and maybe even come visit in the fall.

I hope this little morsel holds you all over until Friday, when we'll take a look at everyone coming to Madison for Wisconsin's summer camp. Use the comments here to discuss what you hope to gain from this weekend, both personally and professionally.