Anonymous Big Ten coach on Wisconsin: 'Extra pressure' to score points in 2024

2024 is a big year for offensive coordinator Phil Longo

Wisconsin Badgers offensive Coordinator Phil Longo answers questions during Wisconsin Badgers football media day at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023. / Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal

When Luke Fickell came to Wisconsin, he hired noted offensive guru Phil Longo to call plays on that side of the ball. Last year did not look like the new and improved, explosive offense that fans expected when he was brought in, and some people are beginning to question when it will happen.

In four seasons as offensive coordinator at North Carolina, Longo's offenses averaged 36.1 points. In his one season at Wisconsin, his offense averaged 23.5 points, which ranked 93rd in the country.

An Athlon Sports article from earlier this offseason asked Big Ten coaches to anonymously answer some questions about coaches from around the conference, and they seem like they'd like to see some results in the Big Ten before crowning Longo as an offensive guru.

“The focus here is on offense. It was a hard sell for a program like this to embrace a system like Phil’s, and it ended up being a mismatch because of personnel," one unidentified coach said. "Are they going to make any big changes? I think there’s extra pressure here in Year 2 because they didn’t score points last season, and they got away from an identity that worked so well in this league."

Like most teams in the now-defunct Big Ten West, Wisconsin had made a living out of being a run-first offense with an elite defense. They went away from that last season, and head into this season with arguably their worst RB room in a decade.

Led by returning wide receivers Will Pauling and Bryson Green, Miami (FL) transfer quarterback Tyler Van Dyke will have a talented group of receivers to throw to as Wisconsin looks to become a lethal passing attack.

"They need to put up points to get everyone on board with their new identity — it’s that simple,” another coach told Athlon.

Ultimately, it might be just that simple for the Badgers in 2024. If they put up points and score at a higher rate than they did last season, we might see a substantial turnaround in year two of the Fickell era.