Change has arrived for the Wisconsin Badgers. On Sunday night, head coach Luke Fickell announced that offensive coordinator Phil Longo was out as offensive coordinator. Longo tried bringing a pass-heavy offense to Madison, but it never got off the ground.
Now, the Badgers are going to play the final two games of the regular season without Longo calling the shots. At the same time, it doesn't look like any other major changes are on the way. Following the Oregon game, plenty of Wisconsin fans were calling for Braedyn Locke to get benched.
Locke has had a ton of trouble this year taking care of the football, including a brutal interception with under two minutes to go to seal the win for Oregon. Fickell made it clear that Locke is still his guy, saying he'll start vs. Nebraska this weekend.
Luke Fickell says Braedyn Locke will remain the starting quarterback on Saturday.
— Bucky’s 5th Quarter (@B5Q) November 18, 2024
"Never a doubt." #Badgers
Braedyn Locke will remain as the Wisconsin starting quarterback for Luke Fickell
Never a doubt," Fickell said via 247Sports. "I don't know what else the idea is. We all have to put some pressure on different people. Braedyn has had a lot on his plate. He has to continue to grow and get better. We're gonna give him an opportunity to do that."
Not long after the 16-13 loss to No. 1 Oregon, social media erupted with people calling for Locke to be benched and for 4-star freshman Mabrey Mettauer to take over as QB1 for the final two games of the campaign. Before he was fired, Longo said Mettauer wasn't quite ready to see action.
Fickell is in no rush to have him play either, as he thinks Locke gives this team its best chance to compete for the final eight quarters of the fall. Locke's next test will be against Nebraska and the hope is he can play turnover-free football, something he hasn't been able to do in the past seven games.
We're stating the obvious when we say Locke has to be better. He has no doubt in his mind he's the right man for the job, but he has to start acting like it. Nebraska will be a tough test for him, but he also has a great opportunity to silence his haters. Fickell is backing him and the fanbase needs to do the same.