Wisconsin football: Luke Fickell's weekly press conference recap (12/13)

An overview of what Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell had to say about the transfer portal and the Badgers upcoming bowl game.

Luke Fickell has had a busy first few weeks on the job since taking over as head coach of the Wisconsin Badgers football team. 

With recruiting, the transfer portal, and bowl prep all happening concurrently, Fickell has also been working tirelessly to earn the respect and trust of the current roster, while rounding out his coaching staff. 

On Tuesday, Fickell had the chance to meet with local media members for his second press conference as head coach of the Badgers. Here is a recap of what he had to say:

Fickell began his press conference by sharing his condolences to the family of Mike Leach and the Mississippi State football program, as well as congratulating the volleyball program for a phenomenal season. 

He went on to say that "the last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind for me," but that the current players and coaches have handled the transition well and it is a unique experience. Fickell noted that the upcoming bowl game against Oklahoma State is "most important" right now, as it is just two weeks away. 

When asked about balancing bowl preparation and the future, Fickell had this to say about what it has been like the past couple of weeks:

"There's no book on it, there's no good thing, there's no timetable. So come in early in the morning and by 10:30 at night you look around and say, well I don't know if I ate today, but I think it's about time to find a way to get back and get a nap, and then come back and do it again." 

Fickell was later asked about personnel for the bowl game, specifically at quarterback, offensive line, and in the secondary. He stated that "it's pretty fluid" for now, but that the next three or four practices will help determine whose going to play, but acknowledged that with several players leaving for the NFL, it presents "another chance for somebody else to step up."

Fickell says they don’t know who will start at QB in the bowl game. Said it will not be his decision to make. Chase Wolf was not at practice today because his grandfather died and went home to be with family.

— Zach Heilprin (@ZachHeilprin) December 13, 2022

Shifting to recruiting, Fickell had this to say about the number of scholarship players he is looking to bring in for Early Signing Day and his philosophy with recruiting:

"Well, we want to do our due diligence and that's where we've spent a lot of time especially, we went right at the guys that they [Wisconsin] already had committed, or were committed, because they know what fits this program, they know what fits this culture, and that has a lot to do with what we want to do in the future as well. But there is a balance. There's a balance of guys we knew a lot about, whether they were committed to us in the past or guys that we were recruiting that maybe we didn't have an opportunity to get just based on where we were, but let's not just hastily say we've got to fill up this class, we've got to get to 20 or 22 players to sign to just bring them in. I think that we've got to be really smart with what we're doing, we've got to take the ones that we know are going to be a good fit."

Fickell would go on to say that there would be additional opportunities after the early period, with the normal National Signing Day in February and the transfer portal, but he reiterated that the transfer portal "is not the way we want to continue to build the program." He discussed that he envisions his staff "take high school kids and develop them over a four or five-year period" with select transfers in situations where "you've got to fill the gaps." 

Fickell says when he’s leaving this press conference he’s hitting the road to meet with 5 or 6 recruits in the next day or so.

— Zach Heilprin (@ZachHeilprin) December 13, 2022

In terms of coaching for the bowl game, Fickell is the acting head coach for the game, but he is entrusting the current staff with a lot of the coaching, and instead taking more of a figurehead approach by simply helping with practice tempo and collaborating with Jim Leonhard on scheduling. 

Fickell is attempting to maintain the approach that the staff had all season long for bowl prep, before ultimately implementing his changes afterward. Fickell noted that the current staff is running things, but that he is "just out there to get to know these guys and keep everything rolling, and smooth" so that he can build relationships for the spring. 

The next questions centered around Fickell's conversations with Michae Furtney and Markus Allen, a pair of players who recently decided to come back after previously entering the transfer portal. On the topic, Fickell said, "we wanted to keep everybody here," and that his staff did not let up on trying to bring them back, understanding that some players make decisions quickly without thinking everything through. He would go on to add that "we are fortunate enough right now to have a couple of those guys that want to come back and be a part of this. That just shows you want the culture is here."

#Badgers coach Luke Fickell can be slippery. Jokingly unwilling to say who will coach OL in bowl game.

— Jeff Potrykus (@jaypo1961) December 13, 2022

In terms of bowl prep, Fickell stated that the team is still undecided on who will start the bowl game at quarterback, but right now the focus is on fundamentals and improvement. Next week will be more about Oklahoma State and game preparation. 

Back to another recruiting question, Fickell is very happy with how "the mesh has happened" between his recruiting staff from Cincinnati and the existing infrastructure in place with Mickey Turner and the rest of the group. He did not close the door on some of the current Wisconsin recruiting staff being retained for 2023 with the group he brought with him. He mentioned that the merging has "worked really, really well together."

Fickell told reporters that he has zero worries associated with fielding a competitive team in the bowl game and that the Guaranteed Rate Bowl will be an important opportunity for a lot of players. Fickell stated that he believes "this is kind of the future of some bowl games," where it allows the staff a "great vision for what your team's going to look like the following year, just by nature."

Luke Fickell was asked about what he's looking for when recruiting QBs:

"I’ve always wanted a guy that can move. It doesn’t mean he’s got to be a running quarterback but if you can’t extend things, if you can’t make things happen with your athleticism, I think it limits you."

— Zach Heilprin (@ZachHeilprin) December 13, 2022

Fickell said during the bowl trip he hopes to spend a lot of time around parents to better get to know them and also build a relationship with the families to better understand each player and how to motivate them. 

Later on, Fickell reiterated that the objective over the next two weeks is to win the bowl game, and that he will converse with Bobby Engram and Jim Leonhard to orchestrate a plan for the game. 

You can watch the entire press conference below. 

Related links:

• 2023 tight end Tucker Ashcraft commits to Wisconsin
• Jonas Duclona commits to Wisconsin in the 2023 class
• Senior offensive lineman Michael Furtney returning to the Badgers

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