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Luke Fickell recruiting more in-state talent for Wisconsin Badgers 2027 class than previous years

The Wisconsin Badgers have already offered more scholarships to in-state players for 2027 than they have for previous recruiting classes. A jump in talent level looks like a driving factor.
Lorin Cox|
Nov 8, 2025; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell during the game against the Washington Huskies at Camp Randall Stadium.
Nov 8, 2025; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell during the game against the Washington Huskies at Camp Randall Stadium. | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

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Wisconsin Badgers

Luke Fickell has been criticized plenty for the perception that his Badgers' staff doesn't recruit enough within the state of Wisconsin.

So far, they're stepping it up for the class of 2027.

On Wednesday, the program landed its first commitment for that year, coming from in-state offensive lineman Chris McIntosh from Verona.

He was one of eight players Wisconsin has offered scholarships to so far for 2027.

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For the upcoming class of 2026, the Badgers have offered only five in-state recruits so far, with only one committed to the program: Appleton North linebacker Ben Wenzel.

Dating back to 2025, Wisconsin made offers to nine in-state recruits and landed five of them.

Fickell has already nearly matched that offer number for 2027, and those players still have another full season of high school football left.

It's virtually guaranteed that Wisconsin will continue to offer more in-state recruits for 2027 and bring that number to a new high.

This is clearly a greater emphasis on in-state recruiting from the Badgers coaching staff.

Related: Minnesota, Indiana landing more 2026 Wisconsin high school football recruits than Badgers so far

The bigger question is whether that is a response to the criticism they have received or more about the state producing a more talented class for 2027 than it has in other recent seasons.

The state of Wisconsin has seven recruits currently rated by Rivals for the 2027 class. Three of them are listed as four-star recruits.

In the 2026 class, no in-state player has received a four-star rating by any of the major recruiting outlets.

In 2025, there were just two: Green Bay tight end James Flanigan (Notre Dame commit) and Verona cornerback Tre Poteat (Tennessee commit).

Perhaps, part of why Fickell's staff recruited fewer in-state player the last few years was in part a reflection of the in-state talent dropping off.

That doesn't look to be the case for 2027, and the Badgers are reacting accordingly.

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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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