Wisconsin's Preseason AP Ranking Is Proof Of The Luke Fickell Effect In Action
Luke Fickell hasn't coached a regular season game with the Wisconsin Badgers, but the preseason AP Top 25 poll shows the hype is real.
Let's take a little walk back into history. The Badgers had a horrible 2022 season and ended the regular season with a 6-6 record. A win against Oklahoma State carried Wisconsin to a 7-6 record.
It was a rollercoaster of a year. The team looked awful for most of the season, Graham Mertz (now at Florida) failed to find any consistency, Paul Chryst was fired after five games, Jim Leonhard showed promise but the program ultimately chose to hire Luke Fickell.
Will Luke Fickell be a success with the Wisconsin Badgers? (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
One of Fickell's first orders of business was to make serious roster changes, overhaul the offense and build an entirely new culture.
It's been a dramatic change and week one hasn't even happened yet. There's no reason for fans to expect things to go well from the jump. Of course, Wisconsin fans think an 11-1 season isn't just reasonable, but expected. It's a bit comical, but the idea a team that went .500 in the regular season last year is going to be booming with a new coach just doesn't make sense.
Yet, the AP voters appear to feel that way.
Luke Fickell faces huge expectations in Madison. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
Wisconsin cracks the top 20 in the preseason AP Poll.
The first AP poll of the season dropped for fans Monday, and Wisconsin checked in at 19. Again, the Badgers were 6-6 during the 2022 regular season, despite having a pretty reasonable schedule.
A little more than eight months since the team's bowl game and the Badgers are now a top-20 team in America. There's only one reason why:
Luke Fickell.
Luke Fickell and the Wisconsin Badgers are ranked 19th in the first AP Poll. (Photo by Jeffrey Brown/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Voters believing Wisconsin will go from being the definition of average (the Badgers were honestly worse than that) to a top team in America has little to do with what's on the roster.
Yes, the addition of Tanner Mordecai, some new receivers and pieces on defense is nice, but voters are voting based on that. They're voting for Luke Fickell.
The voters believe in Luke Fickell.
Putting Wisconsin so high after such a disastrous 2022 season is a direct vote of confidence in Luke Fickell. Nothing more. Nothing less.
People believe Luke Fickell is such an elite coach that he can pull off a miraculous turnaround job over the course of a single spring and summer.
Will Tanner Mordecai be a successful QB for the Wisconsin Badgers? (Credit: Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK)
It's ambitious and bold. Fans are sold. Voters are sold. However, let's stay living in the world of reality. Until the Wisconsin Badgers go out and earn some wins, the preseason ranking is meaningless and probably unjustified on paper. However, as a Wisconsin man, I do also have complete confidence in Luke Fickell to bring the program home. Fans across the country will find out soon enough.