It has been weeks since the Wisconsin Badgers last scored a point. Yes, you read that right. Weeks! After getting shut out at home last week to the rival Iowa Hawkeyes 37-0, Wisconsin backed that up with another dismal performance, falling 34-0 at home to the Ohio State Buckeyes. Even though Ohio State is the No. 1 team in the country, this is Luke Fickell's alma mater. He cannot coach another day.
Fickell's decision to take all of those timeouts with him into the postgame press conference after the road loss to Michigan a few weeks back has backfired on him in the worst way possible. His decision to go with third-string quarterback Hunter Simmons over a more-than-capable Danny O'Neil while Billy Edwards Jr. continues to be on the mend was a fireable offense in the moment that it occurred.
It got so bad vs. the Buckeyes that Fickell, or whomever is running this thing into the ground, benched Simmons in favor of O'Neil. It was not until O'Neil entered the game that the Badgers offense started to find some rhythm. He may have an incredibly low ceiling, but O'Neil was always the team's best option under center, especially after Edwards proved to be as durable as a piece of tissue paper...
This should be the last day Fickell is the head coach of this program, but he may get one more game.
Wisconsin is taking college offense back a full century under Luke Fickell
This is not some woebegone Group of Five team. This is Wisconsin! Recruiting has not been easy for Fickell and his staff ever since they came to Madison three years ago. That being said, this is a program rich in tradition. Where is the pride? Where is the effort? Where is the accountability? No team is worse in the Power Four than this sorry group. Is Wisconsin going to score vs. Oregon now?
Overall, it is going to take a complete overhaul to fix this thing. With James Franklin now available, he becomes arguably the best candidate for the job. He may have never been able to beat the biggest and baddest of teams in the country when he was at Penn State, but he could return the Badgers to some level of glory Fickell undeniably cannot. It cannot continue much longer. What are we watching?
Ultimately, the great boosters who prop up Wisconsin athletics need to come together and rub more than a few coins together. This is so beyond embarrassing! Northwestern is one game away from achieving bowl eligibility. We still have another week or so left in October. UCLA is capable of winning games with an interim head coach after an 0-4 start. All Wisconsin can do under Fickell is stall out.
So let's see if Jeff Grimes is willing to run the Wildcat, the Triple-Option or the Wing T next weekend!