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What keeping Luke Fickell means for the future of Wisconsin Badgers football

Wisconsin Badgers athletic director Chris McIntosh is all-in on sticking with Luke Fickell as head coach, for better or worse.
Cam Wilhorn|
Wisconsin head football coach Luke Fickell, right, is shown with athletic director Chris McIntosh at a news conference November 28, 2022 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison. He was previously head coach for six seasons at Cincinnati.
Wisconsin head football coach Luke Fickell, right, is shown with athletic director Chris McIntosh at a news conference November 28, 2022 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison. He was previously head coach for six seasons at Cincinnati. | Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

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Wisconsin Badgers

Wisconsin Badgers Athletic Director Chris McIntosh made official what had grown increasingly likely over the past handful of weeks: Luke Fickell will be back in 2026.

McIntosh had previously offered two votes of confidence, and players even expressed their belief that Fickell wasn't going anywhere. But, as ugly losses continued to pile up, many wondered if McIntosh would be forced to pull the trigger.

He wasn't.

Instead, with the Badgers 2-5 and riding an 11-game losing streak to Power 4 opponents, Fickell received confirmation of his job security, and even more, he was promised more financial resources.

So, what does it mean?

McIntosh won't be making another HC hire

McIntosh has received his fair share of scrutiny since being named Wisconsin's AD in 2021. And, in what can only be described as poetic, McIntosh's first head coach hire may be the cause of his firing.

Backing a football coach with a 14-19 cumulative record that has led the program to fewer wins in each of his three seasons at the helm is enough to possibly link their fates. Pledging the flailing coach more money all but guarantees they're a package deal.

If Fickell can't turn it around, McIntosh would likely follow him out the door. That adds even more weight to an already consequential decision.

2026 is a make-or-break year

If it wasn't obvious, 2026 will be a pivotal season for the Badgers football program. Either Fickell and Wisconsin get back on track, or they flounder and the Badgers start over.

Up to this point, there hasn't been many reasons for optimism, but the 2026 schedule is leaps and bounds easier than the 2025 slate.

Wisconsin will dodge matchups with Ohio State, Oregon, Indiana and Michigan. Their non-conference slate includes games against Notre Dame, Western Illinois and Pittsburgh.

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USC, Penn State and Iowa are the Badgers toughest conference games.

Seven or eight wins seems like a legitimate possibility if the Badgers can keep a starting quarterback healthy and rectify their offensive line issues, while continuing to develop their impressive young talent.

If Fickell, with even more financial backing, can't push for eight wins with a light schedule, there will be no excuses left.

A Luke Fickell failure could set the program back several years

At its peak, Wisconsin football was a perennial Big Ten Championship contender -- albeit in the Big Ten West -- with an impressive in-state pipeline for offensive linemen and an identity of developing elite running backs and linebackers.

That's no longer the case. Wisconsin hasn't finished the season in the AP Poll since 2019 after doing so in 12 of the previous 15 campaigns. If 2026 is a down year, which would be the case if Fickell is fired, the Badgers could be riding a three-year bowl drought.

A program that may be viewed as past its prime that failed to compete even in the NIL era even with significant financial backing from the university, Wisconsin's head coaching vacancy may not have the same appeal it had before Fickell came to Madison.

Scott Dochterman of The Athletic ranked all 18 of the Big Ten's coaching jobs. Wisconsin came in 10th on the list, which is in the bottom half of the conference.

If Fickell can't pull the program out of the hole he put it in, the Badgers could be in for a long rebuild.

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Cam Wilhorn
CAM WILHORN

Cam Wilhorn is a University of Wisconsin School of Journalism Graduate and Wisconsin native. He's been covering Wisconsin sports since 2023 for outlets like BadgerBlitz.com, Badger of Honor and The Badger Herald.

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