Luke Fickell Has His Deepest QB Room Yet In Madison

On the seemingly endless list of problems head coach Luke Fickell has encountered since arriving in Madison, quarterback ineptitude is probably at the top.

Wisconsin has suffered some of the worst quarterback play the Power Four has seen in the past few years. Not all of that is the fault of the coaching staff, of course — Fickell has never had a full season (or anything close to it) with his starting gunslinger.

Still, the quarterback play in the Fickell regime has been abysmal. But in year four, the Badgers finally appear poised to change that narrative.

Not only does Wisconsin have its most promising starter since Tanner Mordecai in 2023, the entire position from top to bottom looks to be in excellent shape. And given the morbid injury history at quarterback since Fickell took the reins, depth is obviously crucial as well.

Colton Joseph

Joseph waltzed into Madison the unquestioned starter. No matter how many times the coaches tell you about "competition" and earning every rep, this was a foregone conclusion. Still, that doesn't mean he didn't have some growth to undertake in a new offense.

“You can feel (his growth) when his pocket presence comes. He’s a guy that we all knew could run and do different things, but he didn’t really do a lot of the things that we do in the pass game. He was a guy that took a lot of shots and had some RPOs, and that was cool to see. But his transition of having to take a drop in the pocket, you could tell was just a little different for him," quarterbacks coach Kenny Guiton said.

That being said, the gunslinger's talent was extremely evident this spring, according to Guiton. By the time he settled down and just started to "play football" around the third or fourth practice of spring, he put his unique tools on full display, affirming to the coaching staff why they brought him in. With his dynamic legs and strong arm, Joseph is the most exciting starter Fickell has deployed yet. He's not as developed of a passer as Mordecai was, but he has arguably a higher ceiling.

Ryan Hopkins

Hopkins has been the buzz of spring camp. The true freshman early-enrollee from the legendary Mater Dei High School in Stanta Ana, California, has wasted no time raising the eyebrows of just about everyone who's watched him play this spring.

“He’s been a treat to coach. He comes in with the right mentality, he wants to lead. One of my biggest things is, yes the football is working well, but he’s bringing people along with him. He just comes in with a business mentality. He’s kinda an older guy in a young guy’s body," Guiton said.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever had a high school senior come in and split reps with the twos."

That last quote is telling and lets you know just how advanced Hopkins game already is. We knew about the physical tools (he ran a blazing 10.97 100-meter in high school), but his arm appears to be impressively polished and coaches rave about his maturity. The fact that he's earning reps with the twos, when his fellow quarterbacks Deuce Adams and Carter Smith have already started Power Four games, speaks volumes to where he's at.

“To be honest with you, I’m not into wasting reps. If you’re getting those reps with the twos, it’s for a reason. Everybody knows where they stand. The kid came in and put himself in position to do that," Guiton added.

Hopkins is unquestionably the most promising freshman Fickell has had yet.

Deuce Adams

Adams has played a little ball here and there in his first two years at Louisville. Last fall, he got a Week 13 start against SMU. While his numbers (12-of-17 passing, 94 yards, 14 rushing yards) don't look great, he still managed to display some of his more intriguing traits including his live arm and athleticism in the open field.

“What stands out to me is the calmness he plays with. He’s played some big-time ball, might not have had a million snaps yet. But you can just see the calmness in a third-year college football quarterback," Guiton said. "He’s throws a natural football and has the athleticism as well to match up with the rest of the room."

Guiton did mention that he'd like to see Adams develop as a leader a little more, but that's not the biggest concern at the moment given that he isn't a starter. If Adams is the backup, he'll be the most physicially gifted backup Fickell has had in Madison (that obviously applies to if he's QB3 as well).

Carter Smith

Smith was thrust into action last season for the Badgers and played in four games, tossing for 201 yards, two touchdowns and one interception while rushing fro 87 yards and a score. He helped lead Wisconsin to wins over Washington and Illinois, but was also extremely limited as a passer. He appears to have been surpassed by Joseph, Adams and Hopkins, and Danny O'Neil still has yet to take a snap this spring as he works back from injury.

“He’s a guy that I really really appreciate. At the end of the season, I sat him down, had a real conversation with him. Just about, hey, the type of guys I was gonna bring in, and look, you gotta go compete. We were really honest with each other early in spring. It might not have went his way. It might not have went well. But at the end of the day, it’s not over. It’s all about you being able to compete," Guiton said.

Smith looks destined to be a reserve gunslinger in 2026. But even so, he remains a young, former blue-chip recruit with plenty of physical tools; he's easily the most promising reserve quarterback Fickell has had as well.

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