What is Luke Fickell most excited for about Year 4 at Wisconsin?

MADISON, WISCONSIN - NOVEMBER 08: Head coach Luke Fickell of the Wisconsin Badgers before the game against the Washington Huskies at Camp Randall Stadium on November 08, 2025 in Madison, Wisconsin. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images) | Getty Images It’s safe to say the Wisconsin Badgers haven’t had the best three years to start the Luke Fickell era. The Badgers have gone 17-21, including 10-17 in the Big Ten.

They saw a 22-year bowl streak snapped. And the program had its worst year they had since 1990. But the outlook is trending up for the Badgers ahead of the 2026 season, as they got a bump in resources to use in the transfer portal, which resulted in a transfer class that had 33 additions.

That, paired with an easier schedule on paper, has the Badgers primed for a big bounce-back season this year, as Fickell looks to right the ship after signing a seven-year contract back in 2022. It’s certainly a crucial year for the Badgers head coach, who has much to prove, perhaps more than any coach in the country. So, what is he most looking forward to in 2026?

“There’s a lot of things that we haven’t done,” Fickell said with a smile as he kicked off spring ball less than two weeks ago. “And I kind of said to the guys the other day, walked into the locker room, and there’s a lot of construction going on here. And I saw the locker room is basically gutted, you know, and our guys are in the south end zone in the visiting locker room.