Report: Wisconsin to hire Cincinnati HC Luke Fickell

Pete Thamel of ESPN reports that Wisconsin is actively pursuing Cincinnati's Luke Fickell to take over as head coach.

After weeks of momentum building for Jim Leonhard to potentially take over as head coach at Wisconsin, there is a new twist in the coaching search per Pete Thamel of ESPN.

Following a disastrous loss to Minnesota, Thamel reports that Wisconsin brass has narrowed in on Cincinnati head coach Luke Fickell to be the next head coach in Madison.

A native of Columbus, Ohio, Fickell rose up in the coaching ranks as an assistant coach at Ohio State from 2002 to 2016 and has led the Cincinnati Bearcats since 2017. 

Cincinnati head coach Luke Fickell preparing to run out of the tunnel with the Cincinnati Bearcats. 

Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

At Cincinnati, Fickell has become one of the most highly-sought after coaches in college football, helping lead the Bearcats to the College Football Playoff in 2021 and back-to-back AAC Conference Titles. Since 2018, Fickell has a 53-10 record as head coach. 

With the Wisconsin board of regents set to meet later on Sunday, a formal announcement could be made later today. 

The news of Fickell emerging as the next head coach comes just days after there was growing sentiment that Jim Leonhard would take over. Leonhard told reporters in postgame availability that he and athletic director Chris McIntosh "were able to sit down earlier this week and had a great conversation. I think that's between us, what was said, hopefully, there are decisions that are made soon for the best interest of this university."

Fickell has turned down several coaching positions over the past few seasons, but from all accounts, this is a home-run hire for UW, but one that seemingly is coming from out of nowhere. Fickell is widely regarded as a tremendous talent evaluator and an excellent recruiter. 

A former defensive coordinator, Fickell is 49 years old, and will be the 31st head coach in Wisconsin program history. 

Related links:

• Recruiting visitor list for Wisconsin versus Minnesota
• Wisconsin punter Andy Vujnovich selected to the 2023 Hula Bowl
• Wisconsin football updated bowl projections

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