Luke Fickell is just 13-13 since being hired by the Wisconsin Badgers.
What needs to happen this season for Wisconsin football coach Luke Fickell in order for him to keep his job?
The Badgers are in a very dark place as a football program. There was a time when the Badgers could regularly bank on 10+ win seasons and major bowl appearances.
It was one of the most consistent and winning programs in America for decades. The identity of the program was one built on developing players, finding diamonds in the rough and physical football in the trenches.
The team won an impressive 112 games from 2009 through 2019. The team made four Rose Bowl appearances, won the Cotton Bowl and Orange Bowl during that window. An incredible run.
However, those days are a distant memory. The Badgers are just 13-13 since hiring Luke Fickell to replace Paul Chryst, and the team’s 22-year bowl streak came to an end after going 5-7 last season.
Wisconsin’s football program has fallen on very hard times. (Photo by Ross Harried/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Will Wisconsin fire Luke Fickell?
While Fickell came to Madison with huge expectations, plenty of hype and lots of hope, none of that has materialized through two seasons.
Not even close.
The state of the program is the worst it’s been in at least 30 years. Fans have turned on Fickell, and that leads us to one big question:
What must he do in order to keep his job?
Wisconsin Badgers Billy Edwards (Credit: Scott Ash / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
The answer, in my humble opinion as a Wisconsin man, is shockingly simple. He must get to a bowl game. Back-to-back seasons of not hitting 6-6 in the regular season, and I think it’s very reasonable to believe he’ll be gone.
The Badgers go 4-8 or 3-9, and fans will be at his office helping him back up. They’ll be buying his plane ticket to get the hell out of town.
The problem for Fickell is crystal clear, and it’s one he has zero control over. The team’s schedule is arguably the hardest in America.
Let’s take a look at the 2025 slate:
- Miami (OH)
- Middle Tennessee
- Alabama
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Iowa
- Ohio State
- Oregon
- Washington
- Indiana
- Illinois
- Minnesota
Luke Fickell’s seat is warming up with the Wisconsin Badgers. (Credit: Scott Ash / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
Outside of the games against Miami (OH) and Middle Tennessee, there are zero obvious wins on that schedule.
The Badgers will likely be favored against Maryland. Other than that, there’s a *VERY* real chance Wisconsin could be an underdog in the remaining nine games.
That means Fickell and the Badgers will have to find a way to win every game the team is favored in, and then steal three more wins on the season simply to get to 6-6.
That’s the bare minimum for Fickell to still be running the show at Camp Randall in 2026. Do you have a lot of confidence that’s possible? I’m not ruling it out, but I damn sure wouldn’t bet on it.
Will Wisconsin fire Luke Fickell? (Credit: Scott Ash / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
As sad and pathetic as it sounds, Fickell needs to get six wins, or he’ll likely be updating his resume. I can’t believe this is the current state of Wisconsin football, but here we are. Welcome to my hell. Let’s hope Fickell and everyone else can crawl out of it. Let me know what you think about his job prospects at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.
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