What Phil Steele Got Right, Wrong About Wisconsin Football Ahead of 2026

Add Steele to the list of national media sleeping on the Badgers.

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell. | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Phil Steele is the undisputed king of the college football preseason preview magazine, whether you tend to agree with him or not.

The college football guru speaks to nearly all 138 FBS head coaches as he compiles his meticulously detailed preview. That usually results in some pretty informed takes as he maps out the college football landscape in the preseason.

Still, there's always some things that go by the wayside when tasked with providing a comprehensive preview for nearly 140 teams. For instance, we've already examined some discrepancies in Steele's projected Wisconsin depth chart.

We've also taken a gander at some of his broader takes on the Badgers ahead of 2026. In a vacuum, Steele expects Wisconsin to improve, but he also isn't too high on them in the context of the stacked Big Ten. Let's take a look at how Steele sees Wisconsin in the Big Ten, and what he has right and wrong about the Badgers ahead of Luke Fickell's fourth season at the helm.

Wisconsin projected No. 12 in the Big Ten

Bucky Badger crowds surfs after fans stormed the field after the Wisconsin Illinois football game. | Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Verdict: Steele is wrong.

Wisconsin is firmly in the bottom third of the conference in Steele's projected order of finish for the Big Ten. It's ranked above Northwestern, UCLA, Maryland, Rutgers, Michigan State and Purdue, in that order. Still, the Badgers are behind teams such as Minnesota, Illinois and Nebraska.

I don't expect the Badgers to rattle off eight, nine wins and/or compete for a College Football Playoff Berth. But I do expect them to finish better than 3-6 in the conference, which is how last season's 12th-place finisher (Penn State) performed.

Badgers have one all-conference selection on offense

Wisconsin Badgers offensive lineman Kevin Heywood. | Mark Hoffman/USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

The Verdict: Steele is right.

Wisconsin's lone offensive all-conference selection according to Steele is tackle Kevin Heywood, who earns fourth-team honors. Heywood could very feasibly out-perform that projection and earn a spot on the third, second or even potentially first-team all-conference squad — he's that talented. But otherwise, I tend to agree with Steele that he's Wisconsin's lone all-conference player on offense.

I believe Colton Joseph is going to be the best quarterback the Badgers have deployed in years, but is he good enough to make an all-conference team? With how loaded the Big Ten is at gunslinger (Washington's Demond Williams is the fourth-team all-conference QB), it's a tall order for Joseph, or anyone else for that matter, to crack an all-conference team.

The same logic goes for a player like tailback Abu Sama, who I believe will have a very strong 2026 season but won't be quite productive enough to crack an all-conference team in the loaded Big Ten. A sleeper for all-conference recognition on the Badgers' offense? Tight end Jacob Harris.

Badgers have three all-conference selections on defense

Wisconsin linebacker Mason Posa. | Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Verdict: Steele is wrong.

I believe Wisconsin's defense is as strong as it's been under Fickell and is primed to produce a handful of all-conference players. Steele lists linebacker Mason Posa (second-team) as well as linebacker Cooper Catalano (fourth-team) and safety Matthew Jung (fourth-team).

Posa and Catalano should be locks for this list. Jung is interesting; Steele is quite high on the senior safety, but Missouri transfer and penciled in starter at safety Marvin Burks Jr. looks to have more upside.

I'd look for a cornerback to land on this list. Grizzled veteran Javan Robinson, extremely gifted nickel-back Bryce West or dripping-with-potential redshirt freshman Jai'mier Scott could each feasibly land on this list when all is said and done in 2026.

Wisconsin's individual units rank low overall

Wisconsin OL Coach Eric Mateos. | Christian Borman.

The Verdict: Steele is right about some, wrong about others.

Here's how Steele ranks Wisconsin's units against the rest of the Big Ten:

Position	Big Ten Rank
Quarterbacks	No. 9
Running Backs	No. 13
Pass Catchers	No. 15
Offensive Line	No. 15
Defensive Line	No. 8
Linebackers	No. 1
Defensive Backs	No. 14
Special Teams	No. 11

You love to see the linebackers at No. 1, and with the duo of Posa and Catalano, that shouldn't be hyperbole. This could be the best linebacker room in the country, never mind the Big Ten.

Pass-catchers at No. 15 feels about right; this wide receiver room is one of the biggest concerns on the team. Quarterbacks and defensive line also feels aptly ranked. But there's a few positions that I believe deserve to be higher.

New offensive line coach Eric Mateos should have that unit better than 15th-best in the Big Ten. I'd also expect the secondary, especially under the direction of new cornerbacks coach Robert Steeples, to perform better than 14th-best, as they're longer and more athletic than they've ever been under Fickell.