Luke Fickell's emotional state during his press conferences has been mostly frustrated, down, depleted, in the last few weeks. However, on Monday, he had a little bit more pep in his step, or at least a light-hearted way; a big upset win over a ranked team will do that to a coach. One answer in particular stands out as he laughed about firing the punt coach, which is, of course, himself.
It's a bit cheeky and tongue-in-cheek knowing that fans and national media have been calling for his job for weeks. His joking about firing the punt coach comes after Wisconsin had two punts blocked against Washington, even though they pulled off the upset win.
Luke Fickell on how you solve the #Badgers' blocked punt issues:
— Kedrick Stumbris (@KedrickStumbris) November 10, 2025
"You gotta get rid of the punt coach," he says, with a chuckle, "that's me."
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The lighthearted answer shows that Luke Fickell still understands there's a lot of room to grow and that the problems Wisconsin faces are still on his shoulders. He can joke about it, but he knows there's a lot to fix. This is still a three-win team after all.
One upset win over No. 23 Washington doesn't solve all the issues, but it does knock down a big wall that Fickell and his Badgers seemed unable to break through. It had been 13 months since the last Big Ten win, and Fickell had yet to get a ranked win since coming to Wisconsin.
Punting is just one of the issues that have plagued this team all year, with maybe injuries at quarterback being the most. The good news for Fickell is that Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh has given him an extra year to solve these issues. Beating Washington was huge, but the team and Fickell can't be satisfied there, for No. 2 Indiana is looming on Saturday.