Wisconsin Sticks By Luke Fickell, Will Keep Him as Head Coach for 2026 Season

Wisconsin will not be joining the already crowded coaching carousel this offseason. 

Luke Fickell will remain Wisconsin’s football head 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 as it’s struggling with him in his third season at the helm. The Badgers are 2-6 in 2025 and have yet to win a conference game as they’re 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. Fickell’s 15-19 so far in his Wisconsin tenure.

The first three years of Fickell’s tenure in Madison have marked a notable step back from where Wisconsin 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 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.”

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, including 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 Athletic Conference contender and eventually a College Football Playoff team. He went 57-18 in his six seasons at Cincinnati. 

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