Luke Fickell says surprising Wisconsin Badgers football QB 'in the mix' to start

He would become the fourth Wisconsin football quarterback to make a start under center this season for the Wisconsin Badgers

Oct 18, 2025; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell during walks onto the field prior to the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Camp Randall Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

Having lost six consecutive games and eleven in a row to power conference opponents, Wisconsin football is looking for a change. According to head coach Luke Fickell, that change could come from a new starting quarterback for the Wisconsin Badgers.

Preferred starter Billy Edwards Jr. suffered a lower-body injury in the first half of UW's season-opener against the Miami (OH) Redhawks. He attempted a return against his former team, the Maryland Terrapins, but went back to the sideline, appearing to aggravate his initial injury, before completing two offensive drives.

Edwards was initially replaced by San Diego State Aztecs transfer Danny O'Neil. The sophomore played the majority of four games, leading Wisconsin to victory against Miami and the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders. He could not, however, help the Badgers come out ahead against a pair of power conference foes, Maryland and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

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Then came Hunter Simmons, the Southern Illinois Salukis transfer who played nearly every snap at quarterback for Wisconsin during an 0-4 October. With UW, the redshirt senior has completed exactly 50% of his passes, along with two touchdowns and five interceptions.

With the first three options either injured or ineffective, Fickell is considering a move to his fourth option.

Wisconsin Badgers football freshman quarterback Carter Smith 'in the mix' to start vs Washington Huskies

Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Hunter Simmons (15) with a hand off to Wisconsin Badgers running back Dilin Jones (7) during the first half of the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes on Saturday October 11, 2025 at Camp Randall in Madison, Wisconsin. | Jovanny Hernandez / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

During Fickell's weekly press conference, the third-year head coach of the Badgers indicated he has not made a final decision on who will start at quarterback this Saturday in a Big Ten conference matchup with the Washington Huskies, saying, "there's a lot of variables still to what we're doing at that position in particular."

He later added that true freshman Carter Smith is "in the mix."

"After a bye week, we got him out there, got some more opportunities for him," Fickell said. "And then that's one of those things we'll just have to see. So, there's a lot of chances for a lot of guys, but Carter is definitiely one of them."

Wisconsin's bye may have come at an opportune time for the former consensus four-star recruit. After making the travel roster for the first time against the Oregon Ducks, Smith saw some increased playing time in practice.

"At a bye week, you get some opportunities to rep younger guys in particular; he was one of them," Fickell said of the Florida native. Adding that on a bye week with some moving pieces, Smith "got more reps" than he would in a typical week of practice.

Luke Fickell says true freshman QB Carter Smith is "in the mix" to start against Washington, adding "it's not far-fetched to think that there isn't going to be a role and an opportunity for him, if it's not this week, here in the near future."

— Kedrick Stumbris (@KedrickStumbris) November 3, 2025

After initially committing to the Michigan Wolverines, Smith committed to Wisconsin late in the recruiting cycle, to much fanfare. With two senior quarterbacks above him on the depth chart in Edwards and Simmons, he could be the Badgers' quarterback of the future, but perhaps the future is now in Madison.

Related: Wisconsin Badgers considering another quarterback change after loss to Oregon Ducks

"If you need him, you'll find out a lot more about, uh, you know, what you really have for the future and moving forward," Fickell said. "Otherwise, you're going to spend a lot of time trying to figure out what you have for the future based on preparation, based on maturity of how he handles things, but, um it's not far-fetched to think that there isn't going to be a role and an opportunity for him, if it's not this week, here in the near future."

Regardless of the future, Smith's development, or preserving the young QB's redshirt by only playing him in the final four games of the season, Fickell's decision of who will start at the position "still comes down to what gives us the best chance to win football games, to move the football, to score points."

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