MADISON, Wis. — Quick: Name the best win Luke Fickell has produced at Wisconsin since the start of last season. A victory last year at rival Minnesota, which finished with a losing record and reached a bowl game on the strength of its academic progress rate? A closer-than-expected triumph in September against South Dakota, a top-five FCS team? A blowout at Rutgers, which hasn’t won a game for more than a month?

Now identify the worst loss. Here are some options: a 20-14 stinker against an Indiana team that had been 2-21 over its previous 23 conference games and fired its coach three weeks later; a 24-10 defeat to Northwestern in which the Badgers trailed by three touchdowns at halftime and were booed off the field by the home fans; a 42-10 loss to Alabama that served as the program’s worst home defeat in 16 years; or Iowa’s 42-10 thrashing of Wisconsin at Kinnick Stadium on Saturday night — the Hawkeyes’ largest margin of victory in the series since 1968.

“That’s the first time that I’ve really felt this,” Fickell told reporters following the game. “Even after the Alabama game, it wasn’t the same thing. This was something, like, kind of your worst nightmare to be overtaken, manhandled and dominated, especially in the second half.”

The point is, there have been more embarrassing losses than good wins in the 22 games since Fickell took over (excluding the Guaranteed Rate Bowl played under the previous staff). And that is a big problem because it shows just how far Wisconsin is from taking the next step as a program. Forget the expectation to win championships, as athletic director Chris McIntosh put it when he fired Paul Chryst more than two years ago. Wisconsin has been middle of the pack at best, with Fickell 12-10 overall since last season and 8-7 in league play.

Wisconsin is 5-4, including 3-3 in the Big Ten this season, with remaining games against No. 1 Oregon, Nebraska and Minnesota. Where does Wisconsin go from here? Here are five thoughts on the program as the Badgers enter their second bye week of the regular season:

1. Wisconsin has a quarterback problem with no clear-cut solution. Braedyn Locke has started six games since Tyler Van Dyke tore the ACL in his right knee against Alabama, and Locke’s limitations significantly contribute to Wisconsin’s struggle to beat quality competition. He has thrown at least one interception in every start this season and has eight interceptions total with one lost fumble.

Locke has been praised for his knowledge of the playbook, but his inability to execute at a high level under pressure has been evident. Both of his interceptions against Iowa came on throws into coverage, and both turnovers led to Iowa touchdowns. According to Pro Football Focus, he has had 15 batted passes at the line of scrimmage in two seasons. His career completion rate is 53.9 percent. His career quarterback rating of 112.4 ranks 22nd out of the 23 Wisconsin quarterbacks who have started at least two games since 1993 (ahead of only Jay Macias’ 106.4).

I don’t know if true freshman backup quarterback Mabrey Mettauer is the answer. Reporters haven’t seen practices since the middle of August, and he was far behind Van Dyke and Locke at the time. I can understand coaches not wanting to put Mettauer in a position to fail, and using him in Wisconsin’s next game against No. 1 Oregon wouldn’t be ideal. But at this point, it may be worth rolling the dice to see whether he can provide a spark.

Mettauer can play in one more game this season to retain his redshirt, but redshirting doesn’t seem as important to a team in the transfer portal era. If Mettauer can add value or take pressure off Locke, Wisconsin should give him a look. At the very least, it would provide coaches a firmer idea of whether Mettauer could challenge for snaps next season because Fickell has said the only way to know about a quarterback is to watch him play in games.

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2. What does Wisconsin do at quarterback long-term? A lot of it has to do with whether Fickell retains offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Phil Longo because there likely would be a transfer portal exodus with his departure. But the Badgers need to be aggressive, which includes doing something Fickell has said he doesn’t want to do — pursue a transfer portal quarterback for a third consecutive offseason.

Van Dyke has another year of eligibility, but his ACL injury complicates a timeline when Wisconsin needs certainty. Cole LaCrue is a redshirt freshman who hasn’t thrown a pass and was recruited by the previous coaching staff. Mettauer has played 16 snaps and thrown one pass. Braedyn’s younger brother, Landyn, is committed in the 2025 class but tore his ACL during his senior season.

Fickell and his staff have shown dedication in their pursuit of upgrading talent at multiple positions. No position is more important for Wisconsin to move forward than at quarterback. Wisconsin has been in contact with four-star 2025 quarterback Carter Smith, who recently decommitted from Michigan. The Badgers hope to host a game day visit for him when Wisconsin plays Oregon. But Wisconsin also hasn’t started a true freshman at quarterback since 1991 and could use a player with at least some experience who is capable of helping the Badgers win games. That’s why exploring the transfer portal for a player with multiple years of eligibility could make sense.

Braedyn Locke has thrown eight touchdowns and eight interceptions this season for Wisconsin. (Jeffrey Becker / Imagn Images)

3. Fickell is only two seasons in at Wisconsin, and he isn’t going anywhere considering the move McIntosh made to hire him in late November 2022. It seems reasonable to believe Fickell will be granted a few more years to try and turn around the program with a roster full of his players, which is something former Badgers players like Joe Thomas and Joe Schobert told me after the USC loss.

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But the same can’t be said for his assistant coaches. Fickell replaced his offensive line coach after one season because he didn’t like the direction it was headed under Jack Bicknell Jr. The biggest question to emerge this season is whether Fickell will move on from Longo, who put up big numbers at previous schools but hasn’t done the same at Wisconsin. Longo has been hampered, in part, by starting a backup quarterback for nine of 22 games. But he also handpicked that backup out of the transfer portal. And even when Tanner Mordecai or Van Dyke played, the offense rarely clicked.

Reporters have been left to try and read between the lines of what Fickell says he wants for the offense and whether that aligns with what Longo wants. But so far, the marriage isn’t working. In the four biggest games of the season, Wisconsin has been outscored 150-54. Wisconsin averaged 23.5 points per game last season, its lowest output in 19 years, and is at 25.1 points per game this season, hardly the step necessary step forward. Wisconsin’s final three regular-season opponents all rank in the top 25 nationally in scoring defense and in the top 20 in total defense.

Longo has one year left on a three-year deal that pays him $1.25 million annually. If Fickell chooses to take a new path, finding the right offensive approach will be paramount.

4. Plenty of time has been spent over the past two seasons on the lack of meaningful progress on offense. But what about the defense and whether defensive coordinator Mike Tressel is the right answer? Iowa ran for 329 yards against Wisconsin, the most the Badgers have surrendered since the 2012 Rose Bowl against Oregon and the most in a Big Ten game since 2005 against Minnesota. Wisconsin primarily played in a nickel defense even though Iowa wasn’t much of a threat to pass. Iowa ran the ball 54 times and passed 10 times.

Tressel said when he arrived that he planned to “mesh the elite,” between what worked for Jim Leonhard at Wisconsin and for Tressel while at Cincinnati. Whatever meshing has transpired, it’s hard to see what has been elite. Wisconsin ranks sixth nationally in pass defense because it has played several poor passing offenses. But the best quarterbacks the Badgers have faced — Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, USC’s Miller Moss and Penn State’s Drew Allar (for a half) — completed 56 of 80 passes (70 percent) for 652 yards with seven touchdowns and one interception. Wisconsin’s run defense, meanwhile, ranks 92nd (164.6 yards per game).

Wisconsin doesn’t have the type of All-America linebackers that have led the way in previous seasons. Tressel and the staff worked to find more athleticism at the position through the portal, and it has not generated better results. It can be tough to determine how much lack of success stems from scheme or talent, but there is plenty of blame to go around.

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5. Fickell told reporters after the Iowa game that “we all know what we signed up for,” which was an expectation to play the best football possible. Then, he stated the obvious: “Right now, that’s not the case.”

Fickell had a tougher task than he could have imagined in taking over a program on the downswing. Were the changes he tried to implement too drastic? Does his messaging ring hollow? Does Wisconsin simply not have the personnel capable of consistently contending? This offseason figures to be the most critical of Fickell’s time at Wisconsin.

The problem is it’s hard to see the path getting better in the short term. The schedule next season is tougher with road games against Alabama, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota and Oregon, as well as home games against Iowa and Ohio State. Those teams this season are a combined 53-17. Wisconsin can’t hide in the Big Ten West anymore and needs to win to prevent fan apathy from setting in.

Maybe NIL and a revenue-sharing model in which schools can directly pay athletes $22 million across all sports will help. But Wisconsin is battling plenty of other schools for the same players. The Badgers still need to develop players over time, which was a staple under past regimes but is more challenging than ever in the current college football landscape.

It’s difficult not to look big picture and wonder where this program is headed. Are the Badgers diving deep into an abyss similar to Nebraska, searching in vain for relevancy that will take decades to find? Fickell is frustrated with the results. It’s up to him to find answers he doesn’t have right now.

“There’s going to be a lot of guys, myself included first and foremost, that are going to have a self-check,” Fickell said after the Iowa game, “and look in the mirror, and really kind of self-evaluate what they’re willing to do moving forward.”

(Top photo: Jeffrey Becker / Imagn Images)

MADISON, Wis. – Forced to overhaul a roster pillaged by the transfer portal, Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard felt good about the additions, the developments, and the chemistry cultivated over the weeks of conditioning and practices. He was also blunt leading into college basketball’s opening night in that he was still learning about the group’s makeup.

He learned a big lesson in game number one: his group is resilient.

On a night where plenty of things were askew on both ends of the floor, the Badgers managed to erase an early 16-point deficit and find their gear in the second half to earn a runaway 85-61 victory over Holy Cross.

Senior John Tonje impressed in his Wisconsin debut, scoring 23 points to lead the program to a ninth straight win in the home opener. John Blackwell added 16 points, five coming on a 15-0 run that gave UW the lead for good early in the second half. Nolan Winter scored 15 points in the second half in his first collegiate start.

Guard Gabe Warren had 23 for Holy Cross, 13 of which came in the opening 5:39 when he and his teammates made nine of 10 shots and smacked Wisconsin with a 21-3 run.

The fact the Badgers wiped the shock off their faces to trail by one at halftime was a testament to shunning the perimeter and attacking the post. After the opening eight minutes, UW had only attempted two shots inside the arc before running off a string of seven shots around the rim.

The results provided expected results against an undersized team. Multiple players found production at the rim, which generated more open looks on the perimeter. Tonje’s two open three-pointers punctuated an 18-2 run, broke a string of nine perimeter misses, and knotted the game at 25.

UW didn’t let the Crusaders hang around for long. The Badgers made seven of their first nine shots out of the locker room and tightened things up defensively, outshooting the Crusaders 56.7 percent to 33.3 in the second half.

The Badgers also got some bounces going their way, like Carter Gilmore turning a bobbled layup into a three-point play or Winter’s three-pointer that deadened off the back iron before falling in to push the lead to 18.

What it means: In one of the more sparsely attended home openers in the Kohl Center history, the lack of fan support was almost as jarring as the Badgers falling behind by 16 to the projected ninth-place team in the Patriot League. UW was able to get things corrected on the court but needs to find a way to get the fans back and engaged.

Star of the game: Tonje was active on all three levels, going 3-for-5 from two, 3-for-6 from three, and 8-for-8 from the line. The graduate senior also helped erase his mistakes. After committing a turnover on a poor post-entry pass, Tonje hustled back and drew the charge.

Stat of the game: After going 3-for-15 from the perimeter in the first half, Wisconsin went 8-for-16 in the second half from six different players scoring points.

Reason to be Concerned: Steven Crowl made his first shot of the game and then disappeared offensively for most of the game. He finished with seven points and a game-high eight rebounds but was just 2-for-5 in the low post. With the amount of scoring UW needs to replace, having Crowl fade into the background in games where he has a decisive size advantage is concerning.

Don’t overlook: Kamari McGee showed his value to the roster won’t always be in scoring. Joining Gilmore as the first substitutes off the bench, McGee had seven points on six shots, four assists and a steal to one turnover and saw UW outscored Holy Cross by 35 points when he was on the floor.

What’s next: Choosing not to play on college basketball’s opening night, Montana State will begin its 2024-25 season in Madison on Thursday night. The three-time defending Big Sky champion, the Bobcats were the preseason pick to win the league. Montana State will be one of the older teams in the country with seven seniors and graduate students in the projected rotation, plus five juniors. Tip is set for 7 p.m. on BTN+.

The most anticipated and consequential national election in our lifetime is now finally upon us and the eyes of the nation are on Wisconsin – one of the most closely contested battleground states in the nation. Here is some important guidance to assist you so that your vote and voice are included in these critical state and national decisions.

If you haven’t yet cast your vote via absentee ballot, then you must prepare now for how you will vote in-person at your polling place tomorrow.

✅Mail-in Absentee Ballot Return

IF you still have an absentee ballot that was mailed to you and you have not returned it yet, be sure to personally hand return your completed ballot TODAY. Absolutely Do NOT mail it! All ballots need to be received no later than 8:00 PM tomorrow (Tuesday) on Election Day. Your clerk and myvote.wi.gov will have information about where you can take your ballot.

Don’t forget: The ballot envelope needs a witness signature and the complete address of the witness, filled out by the witness.

REMINDER: Voters with a disability who need assistance may have someone return their absentee ballot.

You can track your ballot through the official ballot tracker on MyVote. Don’t see that your ballot was received? Contact your clerk for further information.

✅In-Person Voting at your Polling Location on Election Day

If you are planning to vote in person at the polls, read the information below so you are prepared when you show up to vote at your polling location. Polls are open from 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM on Tuesday, November 5th.

Polling Location

Polling places can change from election to election. To find out where to go to cast your ballot, visit the Find My Polling Place page on the MyVote Wisconsin website and type in your address.

Registration

You can register to vote on Election Day at your polling location. Being registered to vote means being registered at your current address. You need to have lived at your current address for at least 28 days prior to Election Day in order to register to vote in that election district or ward. You’ll need to bring a proof of residence document to complete your registration (this document can be shown electronically – like on your phone or tablet).

Photo ID

You are required to show a specified form of photo ID before you vote. If you have a Wisconsin driver’s license or a Wisconsin Department of Transportation-issued ID card, then you’re all set. Selected other forms of ID work too, and it’s very important to check the official list of acceptable IDs at Bring It to The Ballot to make sure you have what you need.

What if you don’t have an acceptable ID to vote tomorrow? You can ask for AND vote with a provisional ballot. But, for your ballot to be counted, you MUST either come back to your polling place with an acceptable form of ID before it closes at 8:00 PM on Election Day OR bring your ID to your municipal clerk’s office by 4:00 PM the Friday after the election (Friday, November 8th). If you don’t have an acceptable ID for voting and need help getting one, call or text the VoteRiders helpline 866-ID-2-VOTE for assistance.

Need a ride to the polls

Our friends with the WI Disability Vote Coalition have compiled information about how you can secure a ride to go vote on Election Day (November 5). Most services are free, and include accessible transportation options as well. Some require you to schedule the ride in advance. You can find this useful resource on the Disability Vote Coalition’s website.

✅Your Ballot

You will find federal and state election contests on your ballot. This will include the United States President, U.S. Senator, U.S. House of Representatives, Wisconsin State Legislative offices, and others. (Find out what is on your ballot at MyVote). These offices and the people who serve in these roles have a direct impact on your life.

Get to know who wants to represent you and which candidate best represents your values before you vote. Find candidate and ballot information from the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin at Vote411.

There is a Statewide Constitutional Amendment Referenda on your ballot: There is one statewide referendum question on the ballot on November 5th. Common Cause urges voters to resoundingly reject the amendment with a ‘NO’ vote. This release from Common Cause Wisconsin explains why this constitutional amendment should be defeated.

✅College Students voting in Wisconsin

Are you a college student voting in Wisconsin? Or do you know a student who wants to vote in Wisconsin? Here is important information from the Common Cause Wisconsin website to share: Three Things College Students Need to Do To Vote in Wisconsin

✅Have questions or need some assistance? Help is just a call, text, or email away.

If you experience problems at the polls or have questions, there is help readily available to you. Call or text Election Protection at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) for assistance and support from nonpartisan election protection volunteers with any questions you have or to report any problems.

Voters with disabilities have the right to have ready access to any polling place. This includes the right to use an accessible voting machine, getting assistance marking and returning an absentee ballot, and voting curbside at a polling location. Call the Disability Rights Wisconsin Voter Hotline for assistance: 1-844-347-8683. Or email: info@disabilityvote.org. Additional online resources are also at the Wisconsin Disability Vote Coalition website.

Call or text the WI Voter Helpline at 608-285-2141 and you will be connected to a nonpartisan person who can help answer all your questions. You can also request services such as getting assistance at the DMV to get an ID to vote or having someone witness your absentee ballot.

Please vote tomorrow (or that you have voted earlier) so that your voice will be heard, and your vote will be counted! Encourage anyone and everyone you know who is eligible to vote in Wisconsin to do so. That includes citizens who reside in Wisconsin (for at least 28 days). Urge them to register to vote at their polling place tomorrow (and to bring documented proof of residency and one of the required forms of photo ID).

Remember, to count every vote takes time. Be patient about results. And know all returns are unofficial until the canvass and certification of the votes.

Every single vote does and will matter and could determine the direction our state, and the nation will go in the months, years and decades ahead. Our lives and our future are at stake, and your vote will determine the outcome.