The Luke Fickell era is desperately needing to come to a close, and the beatdown by the Iowa Hawkeyes for the second year in a row proved it. There are just no answers, and instead of the Wisconsin Badgers looking like a team that is improving, they actually look like a team that is getting worse. Each week, the Badgers stoop to a new low. There needs to be a plan, but the man in charge has no answers.
In the post-game press conference, Fickell was as discouraged and beaten down as you'll ever see him. He was clearly at a loss for words and doesn't know how to get things back on track. He started the whole experience off with, "That's as low as it can be, I apologize...I'm dumbfounded in a lot of ways."
Luke Fickell is at a loss after getting whooped by Iowa again
He goes on to say that he's been working on preparing them for this game since January, and "we were not." He admits this is his job, and he isn't doing a good job at it. While he does go on trying to defend the team, that it was the slow start and getting themselves in a big hole, which set them up to fail. There were clearly no answers the entire game.
Shoot, there were no answers before the game. 42 pushups didn't work, allowing one of his players to antagonize the Hawkeyes on their way onto the field, and getting penalized for it showed a lack of discipline. This team is a mess, and Luke Fickell is to blame, and he knows it.
"This is no place that I have ever been. I don't know where else there is to go...I'm crushed, I'm disappointed in myself and in our team...but we've got to keep swinging. "Luke Fickell
It's hard to see how he survives this, even with a big buyout. The program hasn't been in this big of a hole for decades. They've actually never in the history of the rivalry lost to Iowa like they did today. It's an embarrassment, and if Jennifer Mnookin, Chris McIntosh, or any of the regents have any respect for this program, it's time to cut ship with Luke Fickell; he doesn't have the answers, and he even admits it.