Wisconsin formally names Vanderbilt OL coach AJ Blazek to same position with Badgers

Wisconsin named AJ Blazek as the team’s new offensive line coach under Luke Fickell. Blazek was most recently in the same position at Vanderbilt.

In three years, Blazek coached up Vanderbilt’s offensive line, but he has Big Ten ties. He played for Iowa from 1999-2000 and also coached at Rutgers for three seasons (2016-18) as the OL coach.

Blazek released a statement upon his hiring in Madison.

“I can’t wait to get to work with Coach Fickell and his staff in Madison,” Blazek said. “I’ve admired the program from afar for a long time and I’m honored to be leading a unit that has such rich history at Wisconsin.”

Fickell also released a statement upon bringing Blazek onto the Badgers’ staff.

“We’re thankful to have AJ joining our staff,” Fickell said. “He has a track record of success across college football. AJ brings a familiarity of playing in the Big Ten, as well as recruiting experience in traditional Big Ten areas, to our program.”

Blazek made the rounds as a college assistant coach. He has quite the resume if you’re a Wisconsin fan.

“After breaking into the Big Ten in 2016 as the offensive line coach at Rutgers, Blazek made a stop at North Dakota State from 2019-2020 in a stint that included an FCS national title in 2019,” the release read. “Under (his) direction, the Bison offensive line helped NDSU rush for 4,601 yards, a school record. After the COVID-shortened 2020 season in Fargo, N.D., Blazek moved on to Vanderbilt to begin 2021.”

Following his playing days Blazek began his coaching career at his alma mater, the University of Iowa. He coached for four seasons (2001-04), the first year as a student assistant before becoming a graduate assistant coach.

It wasn’t the ideal finish for Wisconsin in 2023, losing to LSU in the ReliaQuest Bowl.

“It doesn’t just happen because you say it’s going to happen,” Fickell said after the game. “‘We’re going to tackle better, we’re going to do this, we’re going to do that.’ In reality, it’s a lot of hot air. It’s why I don’t like to make statements up here. I don’t like to say things that we’re going to do moving forward because ultimately you are what you put on film, whether it’s your culture, whether it’s the things that you want to do.

“We know darn well last year we didn’t finish well. This year, we didn’t finish well. We didn’t start well. There’s a lot of things. It gives us a hell of a lot of things that we’ve got to start work on here Jan. 14 when our guys get back.”

Perhaps Blazek is the latest key to improvement for Wisconsin going into next season.