Nate Letton

Biography

Nate Letton enters his fourth season as tight ends coach in 2026. Letton was named tight ends coach in February 2023 after joining the Badgers as a quality control coach in January 2023. Letton leads the Badgers' tight ends unit after coaching the TEs at Cincinnati in 2022. Letton helped Lance Mason to a special season in 2025. Mason earned second team all-Big Ten honors after posting a team-high 398 receiving yards on 30 catches while finding the end zone four times. That marked the most yards for a Badger TE since Jake Ferguson in 2021. In 2024, Letton mentored senior Riley Nowakowski and sophomore Tucker Ashcraft as the lead TEs for the Badgers. Ashcraft made 12 catches for 82 yards and a score while team captain Nowakowski caught 11 passes for 74 yards. In his first season in 2023, Letton led a unit that lost three of its key contributors at the onset of fall camp. TE Hayden Rucci emerged as a key leader and freshman TE Tucker Ashcraft made an impact in his first collegiate season. Rucci led the unit with 125 receiving yards on 11 catches and earned the ReliaQuest Bowl 'Make it Possible' award, a recognition for his character, toughness and hard work. Under Letton’s watch, tight end Josh Whyle earned first team All-AAC honors. Whyle, a fifth-year senior and team captain, was a three-time All-AAC selection and finished his career with 88 receptions for 1,062 yards and 15 touchdowns. His 15 scores were the most ever by a Bearcat tight end and he became the third in program