Notes: Wisconsin Refocuses Following the Bye Week, but a Brutal October Awaits

MADISON, Wis. — Coming off their most disappointing performance of the Luke Fickell era, a 27-10 home loss at Maryland on Sept. 20, things only get more difficult for Wisconsin from here. Licking thier wounds and refocusing after the bye week, the Badgers won’t get much of a chance to catch their breath, traveling to No. 20 Michigan (3-1, 1-0) on Saturday.

The team did practice throughout the bye week, but for Fickell, who is 0-7 against ranked opponents as UW’s head coach, he used the week off for some self-reflection. In his two-plus seasons, the Badgers have shown very few flashes of returning to the program they once were. None of those have come in 2025, where UW has either struggled mightily and/or been blown out in all four contests.

For Fickell, he’s like what his team has brought to the practice field and gone into games with confidence. Now, how does he get it to translate when the stands are full and the lights come on?

“The simple excuse is, ‘Hey, we gotta get some guys healthy,'” Fickell told reporters following Monday’s press conference. “But I think it’s all in all, figuring out how this thing works together. I’ll be honest with you, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday in practice, you feel like we’re getting better. The performance we’ve had on Saturday the last couple weeks has just not been that. Getting and taking that transition from what we’ve done all week and what they prepared to do, and then be able to do it on Saturday is kind of the hurdle of where we’re at.

“A lot of things have to fall in line, but we’ve gotta make some things happen. You can’t just sit back and say, ‘Something good has got to happen.’ You know what? You’ve gotta make something happen.

Following Michigan, Wisconsin takes on Iowa, No. 1 Ohio State, and No. 2 Oregon in succession. What’s FIckell looking for in a stretch where the Badgers very well could go 0-4?

“It’s consistency, and I hammered away at the coaches this morning. Our ability to stay consistent in what we’re doing. We can’t get out of character. There’s an honesty piece behind this thing, but there’s also a consistency. There’s only one way to get better, and that’s being consistent.

“Regardless of what our opponents look like, and you’re right, this is a stretch, and every single one of them will bring a different challenge…So, our ability to maintain and sustain some consistency as we continue to push and grow is going to be every bit as important as anything else.”

Zachman Ruled Out For Michigan

Senior safety Preston Zachman has already been ruled out for Saturday’s matchup. Zachman missed the week four loss to Maryland as well, with an undisclosed injury.

“Zachman will be out,” said Fickell. “He’s not a guy we’ll get back just yet.”

Wisconsin also has three other starters who are currently questionable for Michigan. Fickell had no updates on quarterback Billy Edwards, running back Dilin Jones, and center Jake Renfro.

“The other guys, we don’t know,” Fickell continued. “We’ll go out there today and see where we are. Most of those guys did not do much last week. Dilin did a little bit. I think he ran pretty well in non-contact situations. But, we hope to get all those guys back. Early this week, we have to be smart, but the preparation for us today, hopefully we’ll have those guys is where we are right now.”

Damned If You, Damned If You Don’t

Wisconsin has a tall task with or without Edwards, but the Badgers likely can’t pull off an upset of this magnitude with their starting quarterback. Edwards (knee) returned against Maryland after missing the two previous games, but played just seven snaps until he had to leave the game. Admittedly, Fickell said the Maryland transfer probably shouldn’t have played. But the other side of the coin, UW can’t win football games without him.

“I said to you guys several times, we have to save him from himself. In some ways, I didn’t save him from himself with that game, wanting to play, expecting to play, preparing to play. The truth of the matter is, he probably wasn’t in a position where he was ready to play,” Fickell acknowledged. “That’s where we gotta do a better job.”

Heinzen to Center?

Wisconsin continues to tinker with its offensive line, which has been a mess this season while battling injuries and youth. With Renfro potentially out for the second consecutive gam, the Badgers are considering moving senior Davis Heinzen to center. Heinzen opened the season as the starting left tackle, but had an abysmal debut versus Miami (OH).

“We’ve made some changes around. I think Davis has played some center this past week,” Fickell explained. “He did a pretty good job of that. Just trying to get some guys healthy. Is Jake ready to go? Is Kerry Kodanko ready? If they are, we have an opportunity to be able to move some of those guys around, use some of those older guys.

“That mixture of guys playing with each other at the same time, where we’ve been fortunate enough to do for those guys to build a camaraderie, knowing what each other are doing, even when it’s not said, has been the Achilles heel right now.

“There could be some changes based on, you know, the health of these guys, as we get into this week. It’s another one of those things…not knowing in your preparation, who will you have as you get towards Saturday.”