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Reports: Luke Fickell fires Wisconsin OL coach, replacing him with respected SEC coach

Luke Fickell is reportedly making a change to his Wisconsin Badgers coaching staff, firing his offensive line coach and replacing him with an SEC coach that brings a strong reputation.
Lorin Cox|
Wisconsin offensive line coach AJ Blazek was reportedly let go Wednesday and replaced with former Arkansas OL coach Eric Mateos
Wisconsin offensive line coach AJ Blazek was reportedly let go Wednesday and replaced with former Arkansas OL coach Eric Mateos | Mark Stewart / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

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Wisconsin Badgers

Luke Fickell is reportedly making a change to his Wisconsin Badgers coaching staff.

As first reported by 247 Sports, Wisconsin fired offensive line coach A.J. Blazek on Wednesday morning and is planning to replace him with former Arkansas OL coach Eric Mateos.

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Blazek had been the Badgers' offensive line coach for the last two seasons, but the group struggled with injuries and inconsistency that contributed to overall offensive struggles.

Left tackle Kevin Haywood suffered a season-ending injury last spring, leading the team to add Davis Heinzen in the transfer portal and start him at left tackle in Week 1. He lasted only one game before being benched and eventually moved to backup center, while right tackle Riley Mahlman flipped to the left tackle position.

The lineup also saw frequent changes at right tackle and right guard with young players rotating in with veterans.

The Badgers also saw two offensive line recruits decommit late in the process, though Blazek was able to successfully flip four-star Brady Bekkenhuis to Wisconsin from Boston College.

Related: Will Luke Fickell make more coaching staff changes after Badgers' disappointing season?

Mateos comes in as Fickell's third offensive line coach in four seasons, but he has past connections with offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes.

The two coached together during previous stops at Baylor and BYU.

Mateos' offensive lines at Arkansas had a strong reputation, and some Razorback fans were surprised when he was not retained on their staff.

He'll be under plenty of pressure to improve the Badgers' offensive line and get them back to the level of expectations that come with playing the position at Wisconsin.

His first challenge will be recruiting in the transfer portal, as the team looks to replace graduating center Jake Renfro and Mahlman. Left guard Joe Brunner is also undecided whether he will return to school or enter the NFL Draft.

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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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