The Wisconsin Badgers are taking on the Ohio State Buckeyes, and before the game even started, there was a restlessness in the air. It came in three forms: empty seats, Ohio State fans filling up much of Camp Randall, and discontent with Luke Fickell. Before the game even started, Fickell was announced, and the fans let him have it.
The game hasn't even started and the fans are there to show it's time for a change in the program.
Crowd boos as Fickell’s name is announced… 😬 Are we going to get more “Fire Fickell” chants today?
— ESPN Madison (@ESPNMadison) October 18, 2025
Will a huge loss to Ohio State be what finally gets Luke Fickell fired?
Related: Wisconsin attendance lowest in years and that may help fix the football program
Since the loss to Maryland, every home game has featured the Camp Randall crowd chanting to "FIRE FICKELL!" Those chants have always come later in the game as the Badgers struggle to score points and stay competitive. Not today, against Ohio State. The fans were letting their discontent show from before the game even started.
Will Wisconsin finally pull the trigger and fire Luke Fickell if the Buckeyes blow out the Badgers? Some think so; however, others never thought it would take this long. If Penn State is firing James Franklin...what does that mean for Wisconsin, and Chris McIntosh, the athletic director, seems content with this nonsense.
The empty seats will help. When it is more expensive to keep Luke Fickell than to fire him, that's when the decision-makers will be forced into the decision to finally let him go. Will the empty seats be enough against Ohio State? It will be a full season of declining attendance from the very beginning.
Luke Fickell has yet to really do anything as the Badgers' head coach, and fans didn't even show up to the season opener like they usually do. Wisconsin athletics needs to do something about it, or it could take years to repair.