We end off with Luke Fickell. The 51-year-old is entering his third season as head coach of the Wisconsin Badgers. Two years ago, Fickell was hired to replace Paul Chryst as the leader of the Badgers. He got the job by impressing the entire nation while he was at Cincinnati. He helped continue the Bearcats winning ways and help lead them to the Cotton Bowl in 2021.
Because of that, he was expected to help get Wisconsin back to the respected Big Ten program they had been since the start of the Barry Alvarez era. At first, things were okay. A 7-6 record and a loss in the ReliaQuest Bowl isn't ideal for Wisconsin. However, for a coach in his first year, it's solid. Unfortunately, they weren't able to build on that during the 2024 season.
Last year, the Badgers missed the bowl season and finished 5-7. After a 5-2 start, Fickell's team crumbled during the second half of the year. The Badgers ended the 2024 campaign losing their final five contest, some of those being blowouts. For 2025, the coaching staff was able to get several key transfers who could start right away.
While Wisconsin isn't on the same level as Penn State, Ohio State, and Michigan, they still expect to be in the hunt year after year. So far, that hasn't happened under Fickell. While this might be a bit of a stretch to include him here, it wouldn't be surprising to hear his job security being questioned if the Badgers' struggle during this upcoming season.