How Billy Edwards Jr.’s preparation is opening up Wisconsin football’s offense for Jeff Grimes

It didn't take a lot of film study to know that the University of Wisconsin football program needed a reset on offense.

The Badgers stumbled their way through two straight seasons of scoring futility under Phil Longo, averaging just 22.5 points per game in 2023 and 22.6 last fall, the program’s worst back-to-back stretch since the early 1990s.

By year’s end, Wisconsin finished the season ranked 106th nationally in EPA per play, 104th in EPA per dropback, and 100th in EPA per rush. For a program that once built its reputation on consistency, balance, and physicality, those numbers weren’t just bad. They were downright problematic.

So, Luke Fickell made a change, turning the keys of the offense over to new coordinator Jeff Grimes, whom he hired away from Kansas after firing Longo. With a track record of building versatile, physical, and adaptable offensive systems, Grimes was brought in not just to patch holes but to reestablish an identity. And the first step was hand-picking the quarterback to run his offense: Maryland transfer Billy Edwards Jr.

Edwards arrives in Madison with meaningful Big Ten experience. Last season with the Maryland Terrapins, he started 11 games and completed 65% of his passes for 2,881 yards, 15 touchdowns, and nine interceptions.

That came while operating behind a poor offensive line and without much help from the run game. Even so, Edwards still finished third in the Big Ten in passing yards per game (261.9) and added a layer of mobility to the equation, rushing for 148 yards and five touchdowns on the ground.

Since joining the program, he’s fully embraced what it means to play for Wisconsin, taking on a leadership role in the quarterback room. In doing so, Edwards has shown teammates Danny O'Neil, Hunter Simmons, and Carter Smith what it means to prepare like a pro and represents the kind of stability the program has been searching for at quarterback.

Grimes has already seen enough in camp to believe Edwards was the right choice.

"I've said this about Billy a lot, and probably everybody has, but his preparation and his willingness to study and be ready for every single day is phenomenal, maybe the best I've been around," Grimes said. "He allows us to be as multiple as we are. You guys watch us practice, and you see the multiple formations and shifts and motions, and you see the quarterback directing things at the line of scrimmage. That takes a lot of work, and we wouldn't be able to do the things we're doing in terms of pure volume schematically if we didn't have a guy like him.

Jeff Grimes on #Badgers QB Billy Edwards:

“His preparation and willingness to study and be ready for every single day is phenomenal, maybe the best I've been around. And really, he allows us to be as multiple as we are.” pic.twitter.com/OA4fNh5KTC
— Dillon Graff (@DillonGraff) August 16, 2025

That foundation has also allowed Edwards to grow in another critical area, his timing and chemistry with the pass catchers around him.

"He's gotten comfortable with the receivers, and they're getting more and more in sync every day," Grimes said. "He's throwing with anticipation, and making those throws where a guy's tightly covered, but he's still open, and putting the ball where he needs to put it to make it happen."

That’s a long way of saying Wisconsin doesn’t just have a quarterback in Edwards. They have a system fit, someone capable of handling the complexity of Grimes’ scheme while also offering the necessary amount of mobility and toughness to hold up in the Big Ten. And around him, the Badgers have a handful of intriguing options, burners like Vinny Anthony and Jayden Ballard at receiver on the outside, Trech Kekahuna in the slot, and a backfield led by Dilin Jones and Darrion Dupree, giving fans plenty to be excited about in what this offense could potentially become.

Whether that translates into the kind of production Wisconsin has lacked the last two seasons remains to be seen, but for now, the Badgers appear to have paired the right coach with the right quarterback at a time when the team needs to see signs of progress entering Year 3 under Fickell.