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'Fire Fickell' chants break out at Camp Randall Stadium after Badgers slow start vs Maryland

Wisconsin Badgers fans are running out of patience for head coach Luke Fickell.
Lorin Cox|
Sep 20, 2025; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell looks on during warm-ups prior to the game against the Maryland Terrapins at Camp Randall Stadium.
Sep 20, 2025; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell looks on during warm-ups prior to the game against the Maryland Terrapins at Camp Randall Stadium. | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

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Wisconsin Badgers

Wisconsin Badgers fans are running out of patience for head coach Luke Fickell.

It didn't take long into the Week 4 matchup against Maryland for his seat to get hot.

Wisconsin once again started slow, struggling to move the ball on offense and making a lot of self-inflicted errors that made the Terrapins job too easy.

The crowd in Camp Randall Stadium aired its grievances and started chanting "Fire Fickell" before the end of the first quarter.

The list of mistakes that led to the boos was a long one, and they stacked up quickly.

In the first 20 minutes of the game, Wisconsin had a field goal blocked and gave up multiple sacks.

Then backup quarterback Danny O'Neil threw a bad interception while under pressure, and the Badgers trailed early to a Maryland team they were favored to beat.

They tried a direct snap to running back Dilin Jones that went over his head, and a couple of other trick plays yielded limited results.

Add in a blocked punt that led to another Terrapins touchdown, and Wisconsin fans had seen enough.

If the Badgers look this bad against Maryland, it could get really ugly against top teams coming on the schedule like Michigan, Ohio State and Oregon.

Fickell is officially coaching for his job as the season moves forward.

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Lorin Cox
LORIN COX

Lorin Cox is the managing editor of Wisconsin Badgers on SI. He has been covering Badgers sports since 2014, when he was an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin. He previously wrote for the Wisconsin State Journal, NBC Sports Chicago and USA Today Sports Media Group, and he is a former analyst for Pro Football Focus.

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