Skip to main content
Join Now
Team Avatar
Wisconsin

Wisconsin fans break out in 'Fire Fickell' chant at halftime vs. Maryland

Barkley-Truaxby: Barkley Truax09/20/25BarkleyTruax
Luke Fickell
Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

Wisconsin fans let their head coach know how they feel heading into halftime. Trialing Maryland 20-0 after two quarters, fans inside Camp Randall Stadium chanted ‘Fire Fickell,’ referring to head coach Luke Fickell.

The Badgers are off to a 2-1 start to the season, but were blown out by Alabama during Week 3, and are in jeopardy of their Big Ten opener getting out of hand. It’s clear Wisconsin fans are frustrated, but now they’re calling for change.

Fickell is in the beginning of his third season with the Wisconsin program. He’s compiled a 14-14 record during that span.

If Wisconsin were to go ahead and part ways with Fickell before the end of the 2025 season, it would be costly. They would owe their head coach more than $25 million, according to On3’s Pete Nakos. If that does happen, it would be the second-largest buyout in the history of college football.

If they were to let him go at the end of this season, he would receive $334,736 per month from the school until March 31, 2032. The 2031-32 season is the final year of his contract.

Fickell’s annual salary currently sits at $7.7 million. He signed an extension following the 2024 season, but his buyout did not change. He’ll receive a $100,000 raise each season, which means he’ll make $8.3 million annually by 2031.

If Wisconsin keeps Fickell around, his buyout will drop significantly. After the 2026 season, his buyout drops to $19.2 million after the 2026 season. That trend continues with a $12.8 million buyout after 2027, and then after 2028, 2029 and 2030, his buyout will reach $6.4 million until the final year of his deal.

Fickell was hired by the program in November after a successful stint at Cincinnati. Notably, he was the first and only Group of Five head coach to lead his team to a College Football Playoff appearance in the four-team era. He totaled a 57-18 record with the Bearcats, including a 13-0 start to the 2021 season. However, Cincinnati fell to Alabama in the semifinals

Fickell was hired in November 2022 after Wisconsin fired Paul Chryst. Fickell led Cincinnati to the College Football Playoff and went 57-18 in his six years there. His 2021 Bearcats team went 13-0 before losing to the Alabama Crimson Tide in the semifinals as the first Group of 5 team to reach the CFP. Fickell replaced Paul Chryst.