Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell was placed at No. 6 in On3’s Big Ten head coach pressure rankings ahead of the 2024 season.
On3’s national college football columnist Jesse Simonton placed Fickell behind only Ohio State’s Ryan Day, USC’s Lincoln Riley, Penn State’s James Franklin, Minnesota’s P.J. Fleck and Michigan first-year head coach Sherrone Moore.
Fickell’s spot on this list is due thanks to his previous success as head coach of the Cincinnati Bearcats. That past performance largely led to Wisconsin’s sky-high expectations entering his first season in 2023. The program’s disappointing 7-6 2023 season, then, is leading to increased pressure entering 2025.
2024 Big Ten Head Coach Pressure Rankings via@JesseReSimonton🔥https://t.co/SRmFGgnNjj pic.twitter.com/DKLMTKH6YW
— On3 (@On3sports) July 2, 2024
Fickell became the Badgers’ 31st head coach in program history on Nov. 27, 2022. He will enter his second full season at the helm this fall.
In June, On3 considered Wisconsin’s 2024 win total of 6.5 ‘just right.’ For reference, only Northwestern, Illinois, Michigan State, Indiana, Purdue, Minnesota and UCLA are projected to lose more games this season.
As Wisconsin fans know, the Badgers will square off against the likes of Alabama, Oregon, Penn State, USC, Iowa and Nebraska in 2024, the 24th-toughest in the nation according to ESPN FPI.
Fickell, however, knows how to win.
Before becoming UW’s leader, the Ohio native led Cincinnati to consecutive 11-win campaigns from 2018-2019, an undefeated regular season in 2020 and College Football Playoff Semifinal appearance in 2021.
With that type of pedigree, Fickell will look to re-establish Wisconsin as a true conference powerhouse over the next few seasons.