Although the Wisconsin Badgers are well in command versus Western Illinois, it’s become abundantly clear that the tide has once again turned against head coach Luke Fickell – and deservedly so. Although the score may suggest that Wisconsin has held its weight against the inferior opponent, the actual product on the field suggests otherwise.
The Badgers opened the game looking as if this was going to be a good old-fashioned start-to-end stomping – one that Wisconsin fans haven’t really seen in the Fickell era. A 72-yard touchdown on the opening play from running back Abu Sama, followed by a punt block TD and a scoring drive, made it seem as if Wisconsin was gearing up for a stompdown.
However, after those first few drive jitters settled up, the Badgers couldn’t really gain any momentum, something many fans attributed to Fickell’s poor schematics. The run attack that saw Sama log 100 yards on just two carries felt completely stale, as the Iowa State transfer barely even touched the ball for the rest of the half.
Luke Fickell continues to be embarrassment fir Wisconsin
— Lance P (@LancePiep) September 13, 2026
On top of that, the passing attack felt like it wasn’t working, as some simplistic schemes and lack of downfield aggression put the Wisconsin offense into a box that Western Illinois was able to contain. The defense, too, fell flat, allowing multiple scoring drives against a team that should have no business marching down the field on them – another issue that falls right into the lap of Fickell.
Continued Distrust
Naturally, as the game built on, so did the disdain from the fan base, with many seemingly reaching their boiling point with their head coach. It was well known entering the year that Fickell was firmly on the hot seat, and it doesn’t seem as if he has done himself any favors in rewriting that narrative.
4th and 6, you can either kick a 51 yard field goal or you can go for it.
— Wisconsin Family (@Wisconsin_fam) September 13, 2026
What do you think Luke Fickell did? Against Western Illinois.
Two games is an insufficient sample to base anything off of, but for Wisconsin fans who were promised change, a familiar start of disappointment is nothing shy of a massive letdown. Fickell will still have plenty of chances over the next couple of weeks at least to prove that he should be around for the long term, but as of now, there is no guarantee.
More than likely, if he wants to keep his job, it will have to be a convincing win against Eastern Michigan, followed by a hot start to conference play. Odds are, if it’s another shallow win against an inferior Eastern Michigan squad, followed by a couple of losses to kick off conference play, then fans and the higher-ups won’t be willing to keep the Fickell experiment going.
It’s not the end quite yet, but doom has seemingly set itself up for the future of Fickell in Madison.
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