Latest news with #LukeFickell
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Fox Sports: Luke Fickell among top college football coaches with most to prove in 2025
Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell was included in Fox Sports' list of the 10 college football head coaches with the most to prove entering the 2025 slate on Thursday. Fickell, who joined the Badgers program at the tail end of the 2022 campaign, landed at No. 6 in the hierarchy. Penn State's James Franklin captured the top spot, followed by USC's Lincoln Riley (No. 2), Oklahoma's Brent Venables (No. 3), Miami's Mario Cristobal (No. 4) and Nebraska's Matt Rhule (No. 5). Florida State's Mike Norvell (No. 7), LSU's Brian Kelly (No. 8), Colorado's Deion Sanders (No. 9) and Alabama's Kalen Deboer (No. 10) rounded out the list. The former Cincinnati head coach's position on the 10-coach grouping doesn't come as much of a surprise. Fickell arrived in Madison after captaining the Bearcats to a combined 57-18 mark in six seasons at the helm, which included a 13-1 output and College Football Playoff appearance in 2021. Naturally, the expectations for Fickell were sky-high when he began pacing the sidelines for his first full season with the Badgers in 2023. Wisconsin entered that season at No. 19 in the AP Poll. Disappointing losses to Washington State, Iowa, Indiana and Northwestern then turned a season of hope into one of disappointment for Badger fans. UW finished with a 7-6 record and a 35-31 loss to LSU in the ReliaQuest Bowl in January. Fickell's program followed 2023 with a 5-7 finish in 2024, a season which saw the Badgers miss a bowl game for the first time since 2001. Wisconsin did start the year at 5-2, although the team concluded the campaign with five consecutive defeats to Penn State, Iowa, Oregon, Nebraska and Minnesota. While the 2024 schedule was far from a walk in the park, the team's 2025 slate may be even tougher. The Badgers are set to lace up against Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Michigan in Ann Arbor, Oregon in Eugene, Indiana in Bloomington and Minnesota in Minneapolis. UW will also welcome Iowa, Ohio State and Illinois to Camp Randall. Following the departures of Tyler Van Dyke and Braedyn Locke, Wisconsin will trot out transfer quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. against Miami (OH) in Week 1. New offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes, who abides by the ground-and-pound offensive philosophy, will be calling plays in his first season in Madison. If the Badgers fail to win more than four or five games this season, Fickell will likely face even more scrutiny than he has previously, even with his 12-13 record in two full years at the helm. Contact/Follow on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion This article originally appeared on Badgers Wire: Wisconsin football Luke Fickell Fox Sports coaches on notice ranking
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Fox Sports: Luke Fickell among top college football coaches with most to prove in 2025
Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell was included in Fox Sports' list of the 10 college football head coaches with the most to prove entering the 2025 slate on Thursday. Fickell, who joined the Badgers program at the tail end of the 2022 campaign, landed at No. 6 in the hierarchy. Penn State's James Franklin captured the top spot, followed by USC's Lincoln Riley (No. 2), Oklahoma's Brent Venables (No. 3), Miami's Mario Cristobal (No. 4) and Nebraska's Matt Rhule (No. 5). Florida State's Mike Norvell (No. 7), LSU's Brian Kelly (No. 8), Colorado's Deion Sanders (No. 9) and Alabama's Kalen Deboer (No. 10) rounded out the list. The former Cincinnati head coach's position on the 10-coach grouping doesn't come as much of a surprise. Fickell arrived in Madison after captaining the Bearcats to a combined 57-18 mark in six seasons at the helm, which included a 13-1 output and College Football Playoff appearance in 2021. Naturally, the expectations for Fickell were sky-high when he began pacing the sidelines for his first full season with the Badgers in 2023. Wisconsin entered that season at No. 19 in the AP Poll. Disappointing losses to Washington State, Iowa, Indiana and Northwestern then turned a season of hope into one of disappointment for Badger fans. UW finished with a 7-6 record and a 35-31 loss to LSU in the ReliaQuest Bowl in January. Fickell's program followed 2023 with a 5-7 finish in 2024, a season which saw the Badgers miss a bowl game for the first time since 2001. Wisconsin did start the year at 5-2, although the team concluded the campaign with five consecutive defeats to Penn State, Iowa, Oregon, Nebraska and Minnesota. While the 2024 schedule was far from a walk in the park, the team's 2025 slate may be even tougher. The Badgers are set to lace up against Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Michigan in Ann Arbor, Oregon in Eugene, Indiana in Bloomington and Minnesota in Minneapolis. UW will also welcome Iowa, Ohio State and Illinois to Camp Randall. Following the departures of Tyler Van Dyke and Braedyn Locke, Wisconsin will trot out transfer quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. against Miami (OH) in Week 1. New offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes, who abides by the ground-and-pound offensive philosophy, will be calling plays in his first season in Madison. If the Badgers fail to win more than four or five games this season, Fickell will likely face even more scrutiny than he has previously, even with his 12-13 record in two full years at the helm. Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Popular analytics guru projects Wisconsin football win total for 2025 season
The calendar is just days away from reading 'August,' which means it's time for final preparation before the 2025 college football season. One notable milestone in that preparation is Big Ten media days, which are currently taking place in Las Vegas, Nevada. Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell and player representatives quarterback Billy Edwards Jr., cornerback Ricardo Hallman and center Jake Renfro all spoke on Wednesday. Here is further coverage of their comments. Another important stage of the season countdown is updates to various power ratings and projection models. One leader in that regard is Parker Fleming (@statsowar on X), who released his model's projected win totals for every Football Bowl Subdivision team on Monday. Wisconsin's projected win total: 5.2. Meanwhile, Wisconsin's Big Ten schedule includes games against Ohio State (10.1 projected wins), Oregon (10), Indiana (8.6), Michigan (8.4), Illinois (7.6), Washington (7.3), Iowa (7.2) and Minnesota (6.2). Of course, each team's schedule heavily weighs into their projected final record. But in Fleming's model, eight of Wisconsin's nine Big Ten opponents are projected bowl teams, with three potentially representing the conference in the College Football Playoff. Wisconsin's projection of 5.2 wins falls in line with the consensus. ESPN's Football Power Index projects 5.6 wins for the Badgers, while most sportsbooks hold their line at 5 1/2. We at Badgers Wire are a bit more optimistic -- we picked a 6-6 record for Luke Fickell's team with wins over Miami (Ohio), Middle Tennessee, Maryland, Iowa, Washington and Indiana, and losses to Alabama, Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon, Illinois and Minnesota. College football's current structure creates a significant discrepancy between five and six wins. If Fleming's projection comes true, Wisconsin would miss a bowl game for the second straight season and risk falling even further in the Big Ten pecking order. 6-6 finish to the regular season, meanwhile, would represent a step in the right direction and build tangible momentum entering 2026. The Badgers begin their quest for a return trip to the postseason with a Week 1 matchup against Miami (OH). Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Where Wisconsin football's Week 1 opponent landed in MAC preseason coaches poll
The Wisconsin Badgers will open their 2025 football season on Thursday, Aug. 28, with a home matchup against the Miami (OH) RedHawks. The opener will be Wisconsin's third straight against a MAC opponent. The Badgers defeated Buffalo 38-17 to open the 2023 season, then triumphed over Western Michigan 28-14 to open 2024. The Miami (OH) matchup will open what is a gauntlet 2025 schedule for Luke Fickell's program. Following a Week 2 contest against Middle Tennessee State, Wisconsin travels to Alabama (No. 3 in ESPN's Football Power Index) in Week 3, visits Michigan (No. 17) in Week 6, hosts Iowa (No. 39) and Ohio State (No. 4) in Weeks 7 and 8, respectively, visits Oregon (No. 6) in Week 9, hosts Washington (No. 27) in Week 11, then closes the season at Indiana (No. 31) in Week 12, vs. Illinois (No. 44) in Week 13 and at Minnesota (No. 43) in Week 14. Week 1 vs. Miami (OH), Week 2 vs. Middle Tennessee State and Week 5 vs. Maryland appear to be the only lighter matchups on the schedule. That is, light in comparison to the rest of the team's opponents. Miami (OH) is still a formidable MAC team -- it recently slotted in at No. 2 in the conference's preseason coaches poll. However, while the second-best MAC team entering the season, the RedHawks rank No. 79 nationally in ESPN's FPI and No. 96 in SP+. Anything less than a decisive victory would be a disappointment for a Wisconsin team with expectations of a resurgence entering the season. Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell comments on Billy Edwards' leadership at Big Ten media days
Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell and several player representatives -- center Jake Renfro, cornerback Ricardo Hallman and quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. -- were on hand at Big Ten media days on Wednesday, officially kickstarting preparation for the fast-approaching 2025 football season. As is often the case, one major storyline surrounding the team is its quarterback situation. Wisconsin welcomed in experienced transfers in Tanner Mordecai and Tyler Van Dyke, respectively, before each of the last two seasons. However, the team never saw those plans through to completion, as both players battled significant injury. They combined for only 13 total starts, a number that drops to 11 when the two games during which they were injured during the first quarter aren't considered. Related: Big Ten football starting quarterback rankings: Where does Billy Edwards slot in? Those injuries and resulting inconsistent play under center were a major reason for Wisconsin's offensive struggles in 2023 and 2024 under now-former coordinator Phil Longo. With the team entering 2025 with a nearly identical plan as it did the last two years, this time with Maryland transfer Billy Edwards Jr. at quarterback and Jeff Grimes at OC, maybe the third time becomes the charm. Edwards completed 65% of his passes for 2,881 yards, 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions last season, operating behind a Maryland offensive line that was among the worst in the Big Ten. Many are expecting a breakthrough 2025 campaign from the veteran signal-caller. Wisconsin's supporting cast, from the offensive line to the skill positions, is far better suited to help its quarterback succeed. Fickell's tone from media days didn't necessarily focus on the expectations surrounding Edwards' play. Instead, it was on the veteran's leadership -- a quality seen by him representing the Badgers at conference media days after just seven months with the program. "I think first and foremost, he's a guy that has walked in knowing that the whole idea is that we're going to hand over the keys to this new offense, but everything that we do is earned. " Fickell began. "There's a uniqueness to that that you have to be able to handle. He's walked in, humbled himself in a lot of ways, earned and gained the respect of not just the locker room, but everybody within the coaching staff. In order to do that, it takes somebody that's well in-tune to all the things around him. It started there, his voice has to grow from the time he came in in January to where he is now. It started there, his voice has to grow from the time he came in in January to where he is now. And I think he's done it in an unbelievable way." "He's earned and gained the respect of not only the locker room, but everybody within the coaching staff."Luke Fickell on how transfer QB Billy Edwards Jr. has settled in at @BadgerFootball 👇#B1GFootball Wisconsin enters the 2025 season looking to bounce back after a program-worst finish in 2024. While the Badgers face one of the sport's toughest schedules, they are set to do so after an offseason full of notable roster improvements, headlined by Edwards' addition. The veteran quarterback's play will go a long way toward deciding the team's fate in 2025, which will directly affect the program's overall trajectory under Fickell. Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
