While the Badgers continue to sink further on the field after suffering their sixth straight loss on Saturday night, their bigger issue may lie off the field, according to Wisconsin legend Joe Thomas.
Thomas, a Hall of Fame offensive tackle and former Badger, shared his thoughts on the current state of the program with Andrew Bandstra on Wisconsin Huddle. He emphasized that Wisconsin has not done a good enough job keeping in-state talent at home.
"We need to put more energy and effort into recruiting the players in Wisconsin," said Thomas. "If you grew up in the state of Wisconsin as a Badger fan, it just means more. Finding guys that maybe don't look the same on film as guys that you've recruited from other states, often become your best players, your All-Americans, your Jim Leonhards."
Joe Thomas sheds light on Badgers' recruiting issues
Related: The Ballad of Hunter Simmons and the Wisconsin Badgers finally finding the end zone
While head coach Luke Fickell has consistently held top-25 recruiting classes, it hasn't translated to success on the field. While that could be attributed to many reasons, one of them may be because of what Thomas alluded to earlier. In the 2026, class the Badgers have just one commitment from a player from Wisconsin. Over the last three classes, the Badgers have failed to land any of the top three local recruits from each year.
There's no guarantee that things would be any better for Wisconsin now, but it's been odd and even frustrating that Fickell has largely ignored the in-state talent. It was a pillar of the success for Wisconsin for decades, and now it seems that the Badgers almost purposely avoid local prospects. Whether or not that will change remains to be seen, but it's certainly another reason that homegrown fans are calling for a coaching change.