Luke Fickell will not be joining the already massively crowded coaching carousel this offseason. Instead, he will remain Wisconsin‘s head football coach for the 2026 season, athletic director Chris McIntosh told ESPN on Thursday.
“Chancellor [Jennifer] Mnookin and I are aligned on significantly elevating investment in our program to compete at the highest level,” McIntosh said in a statement to ESPN. “We are willing to make an investment in infrastructure and staff. As important is our ability to retain and recruit players in a revenue share and NIL era.”
Wisconsin’s decision to stick with Fickell comes amid huge struggles in his third season at the helm. The Badgers (2-6) have yet to win a conference game and are one loss away from missing a bowl game for a second straight season.
While the 2025 campaign has been Wisconsin’s worst in the Fickell era, the first two years weren’t good either. Wisconsin went 7-6 with Fickell in 2023 before dropping to 5-7 in 2024. He is 15-19 so far in his Wisconsin tenure.
The first three years of Fickell’s tenure in Wisconsin have marked a notable step back from where the Badgers had been for much of the previous two-plus decades. Wisconsin’s four coaches prior to Fickell had all either led the Badgers to a Big Ten title or an appearance in the Big Ten Championship Game.
However, McIntosh believes that Wisconsin’s shortcomings this season — and in the Fickell era altogether — are more due to the program’s resources than the coach.
“If Wisconsin is going to be as competitive as we expect, the support has to be as competitive,” McIntosh told ESPN. “There’s no getting around it. Our people, our fans are passionate about Wisconsin football. I’d have it no other way. A successful football program is important to university, the state and our lettermen.
“This season has caused us all to have to look from within,” McIntosh added. “Luke has had to do that. I’ve had to do that. He has a willingness to be better. So do I, and so does Wisconsin from an institutional perspective.”
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Fickell has six seasons remaining on his deal with Wisconsin after receiving a one-year extension last offseason. Not only would Wisconsin owe Fickell a $25 million buyout if it were to fire him this offseason, but it also would’ve competed with several other top programs for head coaches this offseason, like LSU, Penn State, Florida and Auburn.
Wisconsin hired Fickell after the 2022 season, when it fired Paul Chryst. Fickell was previously Cincinnati‘s head coach, turning the program into an American Conference contender and eventually a College Football Playoff team. He went 57-18 in his six seasons with the Bearcats.
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