2026 Wisconsin Season Thread

[bayareabadger]

Yeah, I remember everything said about Chryst at the time, but I expected the team to improve following his firing. It did not. Under Leonhard, maybe, but honestly, maybe not. It's not as though it was a complete turnaround. They won games they would have been expected to win, and lost games they would have been expected to lose--except for the Michigan State game, which they lost. I wonder--which is purely hypothetical, of course--if Chryst would have been capable of righting the ship, because when he was on, he was really on. Those first five years were amazing.

And 2012...interesting. Was Brett's foot already out the door? I recall whispers about drinking too much and carousing with the coeds, which might well have been related to Mrs. Bielema not loving Madison. Backfield with Ball, White, and Gordon. Stave under center. Inexcusable loss to Oregon State at home, then lost to Nebraska, to start 3-2, but with the three wins over garbage teams. The loss to Michigan State at home, mid-season, was also an ugly one, even if in OT. The OT losses to Ohio State at home was excusable; and the OT loss on the road to Penn State wasn't terrible (it wasn't excusable, either; PSU wasn't that good that season). The domination of Nebraska in the Big Ten Championship game was fun, and they put up a pretty good fight in a Rose Bowl they had no business being in. Kind of a strange season, capped with the head coach leaving for Arkansas.

In 2012, it was about the QB and seemingly some hangover from the year prior. Ball had gotten jumped while drunk in the offseason and later said he was a high functioning alcoholic. No QB was good. Line had that messy situation. The OC came in trying to fuse systems and was a tough coworker.

Just a blending of a bunch of issues. But mostly, bad QB, inconsistent line, messy workhorse RB, gonna be a tough road. (Six games under 5 yards per play, three in September, three with the third string QB, one the godawful MSU game)

Also, Stave, then a former walk-on RS freshman, was only seriously playing from the UTEP game through half the MSU game. So mostly handling the garbage. 

[847badgerfan]

Saw this coming. The new AD is not gonna like this.

Wisconsin attendance in football home opener lowest since 1990s

[SFBadger96]

It's gonna be worse next year if they keep Fickell. Honestly, I think a bowl game this year is a toss-up.

E. Michigan: should be a win (2-1).
@ Penn State: L (2-2) (0-1)
MSU: toss up, but call it a win (3-2) (1-1)
@ UCLA: L (3-3) (1-2)
USC: L (3-4) (1-3)
@ Iowa: L (3-5) (1-4)
Rutgers: W (4-5) (2-4)
@ Maryland: toss-up
@ Purdue: W (5-5) (3-4)
Minnesota: toss-up

Those two games could very easily go against the Badgers--so could the MSU game. Right now Maryland looks decent, but it's September, so who knows. Also, How will this team react to being 3-5 with a three-game losing streak? If it's 2-6 because of a loss to MSU, they are cooked.

The good news is a 5-win season should guarantee a coaching change. Six and a bowl game? Should still get him canned. Seven and a bowl game, but uncompetitive against Penn State, USC, and Iowa? Should still get him canned, but probably will not. I'll be surprised if they win more than 7.

Oh, and the opener against Southern Illinois isn't exactly going to pack them in.

[FearlessF]

E. Michigan going to pack them in?

MSU after a loss to PSU?
USC after a loss to UCLA?
Rutgers after a loss to Iowa?

[SFBadger96]

It doesn't look good. 

If that means a change in the head coach, I think that's for the better.