Luke Fickell sends tone-deaf message to Wisconsin fans who want him fired

Luke Fickell has the hottest seat in all of college football. Now that some of the other coaches that also had hot seats got fired earlier this week, i.e., Trent Dilfer, he's sitting on the throne of scorched rear. Wisconsin fans are frustrated, and they are voicing their frustration. Fickell says he gets it, but they have to get over it for the players' sake. Talk about a tone-deaf reply.

Let's be fair to Luke Fickell, so here is the video, and the full quote is below it. He is responding to a question about what he would tell frustrated fans:

Luke Fickell tells fans to be mad at him not the Wisconsin football players

"I know it's frustrating. I know it's disappointing, I don't blame you. But the truth of the matter is, Saturday is Saturday. We need our guys' best effort, we need our coaches' best effort, and we need the people's (fans) best effort, too. Regardless of whether they are frustrated or not, there's got to be a belief in the things that they're doing. They can be mad at me, that's fine, don't be mad at those kids. Those kids need them; they need to feel that support, they need to see that support. They know what the challenge looks like; it's got to be a challenge to all of us. "

Luke Fickell

What Luke Fickell doesn't understand in this statement is that fans aren't mad at the players. He seems to be the only one blaming the players for effort, leadership, or whatever. The boos are pretty directed at him, Chris McIntosh, and lately, at UW Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin.

You also don't get to tell fans how to feel. Sorry, fans don't have options to change the direction of a program except vocally and/or not attending games at all. There isn't a vote taken in the stands on whether or not Fickell gets to keep his job. The only outlet fans have is vocal frustration, empty seats, and apathy.

Fickell tried to make it about the players, but it's not; it's about a program. The players will come and go, but the fans don't. The alumni don't, the former players don't. Thus, frustration is allowed, necessary, and even pointed. The wild part about this quote is that it doesn't seem that the coaches or players are actually giving it their best effort, so why should the fans?