What we heard from Luke Fickell after Wisconsin football's first fall camp practice
Luke Fickell discussed Wisconsin’s search for an identity, Colton Joseph’s first practice and where increased competition is showing up.
The University of Wisconsin football program officially opened fall camp Thursday afternoon with its first practice inside Camp Randall Stadium.
For Luke Fickell, even the surroundings were different.
Wisconsin traditionally spends much of fall camp at UW-Platteville, while Fickell’s Cincinnati teams also left campus during this portion of the calendar. This time, the Badgers are staying home, beginning a three-week stretch that will determine whether an offseason filled with optimism has produced anything tangible.
Fickell liked the competitiveness he saw on Day 1, including some of the moments where things became a little too competitive. But with Wisconsin preparing for a pivotal fourth season under his leadership, the more interesting comments were about what he’s looking to learn between now and the season opener against Notre Dame.
Here are the three things that stood out most to me.
Wisconsin’s identity has to become visible on film
We’ve heard plenty about identity throughout Fickell’s tenure. On Thursday, he offered perhaps the simplest explanation yet for how Wisconsin will know whether it has actually found one.
“The identity is not what you put on the wall,” Fickell said. “Internally, we know what we want to be. It’s been very clear. It’s been very clear to our players.
“The players have been very clear in their leadership and their standards of what they want to be and how they want to go about their business. Now our whole objective is we’ve got to put that stuff on film.”
That’s ultimately where this program is.
Wisconsin has spent three offseasons talking about toughness, leadership, complementary football and becoming “tough, nasty and disciplined.” The problem hasn’t necessarily been identifying what it wants to become. It’s been consistently looking like that team once the season begins or adversity hits.
Fickell acknowledged as much when discussing last year’s identity, saying what Wisconsin believed it was ultimately wasn’t conducive to winning enough football games.
Offensively, he made it clear that changing that starts up front.
“We’ve got to get really good at the little things,” Fickell explained. “It’s going to start up front, and that’s got to be where it is. I’m happy for that. I think that there’s a group up there. We’ve got to develop some more depth. But it’s all going to come down to what the identity of that front can really, truly put on film. It starts at center, and it works its way out.”
That aligns perfectly with everything Jeff Grimes has said about restoring Wisconsin’s ability to run the football after the Badgers ranked just 116th nationally in rushing offense and 135th in total offense last season.
The slogan isn’t important anymore. What Wisconsin puts on film is.
Colton Joseph impressed Fickell with his discipline
Everyone knows what Old Dominion transfer Colton Joseph can do athletically.
He threw for 2,624 yards, rushed for another 1,007 and accounted for 34 touchdowns last season. His dual-threat ability is a major reason Wisconsin believes its offensive ceiling has changed.
But after Joseph’s first fall camp practice, Fickell wasn’t talking about highlight-reel throws or long runs. He was impressed by his restraint.
“What I was most impressed with him today is taking what was there, being really disciplined in some of the things he was doing,” Fickell said. “And if that means dropping the ball off, if that means taking the short route.”
Fickell conceded there may have been some early jitters, which is understandable for the first day of camp. What mattered was Joseph settled in rather than trying to justify the hype with every throw.
That’s an encouraging sign.
Wisconsin needs Joseph’s explosiveness, but it also needs him healthy and capable of operating Grimes’ offense without believing every snap requires something spectacular.
Behind him, Fickell confirmed Louisville transfer Deuce Adams and true freshman Ryan Hopkins will split opportunities as Wisconsin sorts out its backup competition.
For the first time in a while, Fickell believes the quarterback room has legitimate depth.
“That group, there’s definitely a different feel,” Fickell said.
Joseph remains the player who will determine how high the offense can climb. Based on Fickell’s assessment after the first practice, Wisconsin believes he’s prepared for that responsibility.
Increased depth is creating the competition Fickell wanted
The most obvious difference between this roster and some of Fickell’s previous teams may simply be the number of legitimate options Wisconsin has at several positions.
Cornerback might be the best example.
“I think throughout the entire group, there’s a completely different skill set,” Fickell said. “We’ve got size. We’ve got length. We’ve got speed.”
Fickell specifically praised Arizona State transfer Javan Robinson and Jai’mier Scott, but his larger point was about what happens when enough capable players are competing for the same jobs.
“When you put a lot more guys in a room, you put a lot more guys in there with the will and the passion to play the game, boy, it creates that natural competition and competitive spirit that sometimes it’s really hard for, as a coach, to generate,” Fickell said.
That’s something worth keeping tabs on beyond the cornerback room.
Wisconsin believes increased financial resources helped it build a deeper roster. Fickell also talked about competition at quarterback, edge rusher and running back, where he made clear that touches won’t simply be distributed to keep everyone happy.
“We’re not going to go into Game 1 giving everybody opportunities,” Fickell said. “That’s just not the way the game is played.”
Good.
Because one of the biggest questions entering camp isn’t whether Wisconsin has more options. It clearly does.
Now the Badgers need those options to create separation, raise the level of competition and eventually produce a better football team. The coaches feel that Day 1 offered reasons for optimism. The next 20-some practices will determine how much of it actually means something.
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