More Woes for Luke Fickell as Wisconsin’s Fatal Flaw Fuels $40M Hot Seat Buzz
Following his arrival in Madison with high hopes of championship contention and a new and brash vision, Luke Fickell’s first two years have been bumpy. Last year’s 5-7 finish was bitter – it was Wisconsin’s first bowl miss since 2001, adding to the pain of how it happened. The Badgers were coasting at 5-2, just one victory shy of bowl eligibility, before losing five in a row, capped by a season-finale defeat to Minnesota. That collapse has left fans and oddsmakers alike dubious, with the over-under for victories in 2025 at just 5.5, making even a bowl bid seem like a reach.

Some of the struggles go back to Luke Fickell going all-in to rebuild the offense. He let go of Phil Longo and replaced him with Jeff Grimes, trying to get that vintage Badger grit back while sprinkling in enough diversity to make defenses uncomfortable. The 2025 schedule doesn’t help him, either; it’s one of the most difficult in the nation, with only a few games in which Wisconsin will be the favorite. The margin for error is razor-thin, and everyone in Madison is aware of that. And so that takes us to what’s being said behind the scenes. Anonymous Big Ten coaches, speaking with Athlon Sports, have offered their opinions on Wisconsin’s predicament.

One of them states, “Nothing about the offense made sense here. [Phil] Longo moving on benefits everyone involved, and if they bounce back and become more of a modern version of that classic Wisconsin power run offense, you’ll wonder why they ever made the move in the first place.” Longo came to Wisconsin with a reputation for high-flying, pass-happy offenses—he set records at North Carolina and even helped quarterbacks like Sam Howell and Drake Maye become household names.