Chris McIntosh 'Really Excited' About Direction of Football Program

The Badgers AD likes where Wisconsin is headed under Luke Fickell.

Wisconsin Badgers Director of Athletics Chris McIntosh will always be tied to Luke Fickell, the coach he hired to lead the football program into its next chapter after parting ways with Paul Chryst.

Year one of the Fickell era ushered in plenty of excitement and also some notable changes. The traditional ground-and-pound, pro-style offense was shelved. Instead, Wisconsin transitioned to an "air raid" system under offensive coordinator Phil Longo, which struggled to establish itself in 2023. Then, on defense, Mike Tressel attempted to blend his defensive scheme with the inherited personnel, to varying degrees of success.

By season's end, Fickell and the Badgers finished 7-6 — with plenty of work to do. 

At Big Ten Media Days, McIntosh was asked during an appearance on The Camp to assess where he felt the football program started upon hiring Fickell and where he feels it's headed going into the second year under this regime.