Former Wisconsin Football Star Slams Program With Brutally Blunt Tweet
Former Wisconsin football star Vince Biegel thinks the Badgers are in a "dark" place.
Wisconsin's football program needs to be a case study of how a program implodes. There was a time spanning decades when the Badgers regularly won 10+ games and appeared in major bowl games.
It feels like that was in a different lifetime at this point. The Badgers' last solid season was in 2019, which ended with a Rose Bowl appearance.
Things have fallen off a cliff since then. Former coach Paul Chryst was fired in 2022, Luke Fickell was hired to inject life into the program and, so far, he's been a massive disappointment. Fickell is just 13-13 in Madison, and is coming off a 5-7 season that ended Wisconsin's 22-season bowl streak.
Wisconsin's football program has fallen off in a huge way over the past several years. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images)
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Former Wisconsin star calls out the state of Wisconsin football.
Fans are incredibly frustrated and upset with the state of the program, and they're not alone. Former star linebacker Vince Biegel - a three-time All-Big Ten player - took to X a few days ago to vent his frustration with the fact the over/under win total for Wisconsin this upcoming season is just 5.5.
"Going into the season the #Wisconsin Badgers over/under is 5.5 wins. With UNDER being the heavy favorite. How has the new standard and expectation become a 5 win season? These are dark times for #Badger fans. No words," the former NFL linebacker tweeted.
Biegel's tweet - which is 100 percent justified - was met with a variety of different reactions.
It might be a tough pill to swallow for some fans, but Biegel isn't wrong. In fact, he should be applauded for having the guts to call out the school that helped him make the NFL.
Wisconsin went 49-19 during his five years in Madison. That breaks down to an average record of 9.8-3.8 during his time with the Badgers. Remove the 8-6 season during his first season with only two appearances, and the record comes down to 41-13 over four years.
What would Wisconsin fans give to get back to that? The answer is just about anything. Instead, it appears Fickell's program is in for another brutally tough season.
The schedule includes games against Alabama, Michigan, Iowa, Ohio State, Oregon, Washington, Indiana, Illinois and Minnesota.
Fickell's seat might be a lot warmer than it already is in six months.
Will Wisconsin fire Luke Fickell? (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)
Is there time to turn the ship around for the Badgers and the team's head coach? Without a doubt, but Fickell is on the shortest of runways. It's time to win or get out. It's truly that simple, and the fact one of the program's most recognizable alumni is saying it really speaks to the severity of the situation. Let me know what you think at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.