Luke Fickell in year four seems to be returning to the roots of Wisconsin football. He went from being a cute play-calling coach who wanted to run a spread, with mediocre linemen, quick outs with quarterbacks, and a light and fast defense. Then the Big Ten showed him that it truly won't work week after week. Last year, he changed the emphasis on the defense to big boys in the trenches. Now he's bringing in top-notch offensive linemen and an offensive line coach. It seems as if he truly understands Wisconsin football.
It gets even better. The latest football roster page was updated this week, and Wisconsin quietly added the fullback position back to the roster. There are now two players listed as fullbacks. It's a position that has never existed under Luke Fickell, and Wisconsin hasn't seen it since 2022. Fickell and offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes have added the wrinkle back, indicating a return to a run-first offense.
Wisconsin has fullbacks in the NFL and was seen as a school that produced top fullback talent. It then disappeared under Fickell; now it's back. Wisconsin's roster lists two players as fullbacks: Wisconsin's roster lists two players as fullbacks: Tyler Jansey, a redshirt junior, and McCoy Smith, a true freshman from Waunakee, Wisconsin.
Wisconsin now has two players on the roster listed as fullbacks as the position fully returns
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Jansey was a 4-star linebacker recruit from Batavia, Illinois. He's been buried on the depth chart but remained loyal to Wisconsin. He's appeared for the Badgers for three straight seasons but almost entirely as a special teams player. This is a big position change, as once again he was looking at being only a special teams contributor. Now he's poised to be a starting fullback for the Badgers.
Smith is a preferred walk-on, a local star who dreamed of being on the Wisconsin Badgers. He played linebacker throughout high school, but according to BadgerNotes, "Smith was approached by Wisconsin tight ends coach Nate Letton ahead of the Badgers’ summer camp with an unusual request: to sign up as a fullback."
Smith jumped at the opportunity and is now going to be one of two players on the roster at a position Wisconsin hasn't seen since 2022. He told BadgerNotes, "I am fully embracing the challenge and change. I love the fullback position and can’t wait to play it.”
However, the Badgers had yet to list the fullback position on the roster until recently, and rumors had swirled, and even coaches had talked about the fullback being back. However, until Jansey and Smith were listed on the roster page as full-time fullbacks, it didn't feel real.
What it means for the Badgers' offense is that there will be packages as part of the playcalling that intentionally include "try to stop this" runs. There will also be wrinkles that allow the fullback to slide into protections and even could be lead runners for Colton Joseph on designed quarterback runs. This is all great news, and while it won't be quite the same as it was in the old days, the fullback being back is incredibly important as Fickell leans fully into Wisconsin football.
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