Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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40 PRESEASON 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED GAME PREVIEW: WISCONSIN bined for 30 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 4.5 tack- les for loss and a fumble recovery in the Washington game alone. Beyond the numbers, though, they injected some much-needed life into Fickell's program. "Some of our youth stepped up and played well, and it meshed with some of the veterans," Fickell told The Athletic. "We've had great kids, a good culture. But we needed more of a chip on our shoulder. Now we have some edge to our leadership, some possible alphas." Thanks to the transfer portal, the Badgers added several more alphas throughout the offseason. No addition was more significant than former Old Dominion quarter- back Colton Joseph, a dual-threat sig- nal-caller whose athleticism and arm strength make him an explosive play waiting to happen. Two starting offen- sive linemen and a tough running back in Iowa State's Abu Sama III were brought in to fix the run game, which finished 127th nationally in yards per carry last season. Veteran defensive backs Javan Robinson (Arizona State) and Marvin Burks Jr. (Missouri) will look to engineer a bounce-back season in the secondary. "I know this: There's a different vibe within our program, and I think it has so much to do with leadership," Fickell said. "How good are we? Where will we be? We've got a lot of new faces that have come in here, but the great thing is they've come in to be a part of us." But at this point in Fickell's tenure, Wis- consin fans need to see his words backed up with actions. Badgernotes.com's Dil- lon Graff put it best: "If Fickell's first three seasons in Madison have taught us any- thing, it's that Wisconsin's leadership has consistently sounded a hell of a lot stron- ger in July than it has looked in October and November." Until the current regime proves otherwise, talk is cheap. Fickell and company fully understand that with- out results, their days are numbered. Producing them starts with an effort against the Irish that makes Badger faithful think, "You know what? There might be something here." "I wanted the guys to understand that, too. My chips are pushed to the middle," Fickell told The Athletic. "We've got to burn the ships, burn the excuses, any- thing that's going to hold us back. The only option is to push forward." ✦ 1. Diverging Paths Of Fickell And Freeman Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman and Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell know each other well. When Freeman played linebacker at Ohio State (2004-08), Fickell was his position coach for the Buckeyes. Then when Fickell became the head coach at Cincinnati prior to the 2017 season, he hired Free- man as his defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. Freeman remained on Fickell's staff until he was hired as Notre Dame's defensive coordinator in 2021. That certainly changed the trajectory of Free- man's career, and it may have impacted the decision Fickell faced following the 2021 season, too. When head coach Brian Kelly suddenly departed to LSU in November, Notre Dame opted to expedite its coaching search and promote Freeman to head coach rather than wait out other options who were still coaching. One of those options could have been Fickell, who stuck with Cincinnati to coach in the 2021 College Football Playoff before eventually leaving to take the Wisconsin job after the 2022 season. Notre Dame and Wisconsin have proceeded in opposite directions since then. While Freeman has become one of the hottest names in coaching, Fickell is sitting on one of the hottest seats in the country after a 4-8 season that included back-to-back shutout losses for the first time at Wisconsin since 1977. Fickell could really use an upset victory over Notre Dame to jumpstart the 2026 season. Meanwhile, Freeman just wants to avoid a slow September on a run toward the College Football Playoff. 2. Finally A Quarterback Answer? Injuries ravaged Wisconsin's starting quarterback position in the past two seasons. Miami transfer Tyler Van Dyke started the first three games in 2024 before suffering a season-ending injury. Billy Edwards Jr. didn't make it out of September of the 2025 season before suffering a season-ending injury, which resulted in the Badgers starting four different quarterbacks last season. Wisconsin brought in Old Dominion transfer Colton Joseph this offseason to help solve its quarterback woes. Joseph, the 2025 Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year, started 20 games the past two seasons at Old Dominion, threw for 4,251 yards, 32 touchdowns and 15 interceptions with a 59.8 percent completion rate, and rushed 272 times for 1,654 yards and 24 touchdowns. Perhaps that much rushing at Wisconsin could leave Joseph susceptible to injury. The Badgers hope it doesn't while working to improve around him. They have plenty of question marks on the offensive line and at wide receiver. 3. Proven Production At Linebacker No position on Wisconsin's roster may have a brighter outlook heading into the season than linebacker. The Badgers lost linebacker Christian Alliegro to Ohio State via the transfer portal, but a pair of sophomores — Mason Posa and Cooper Catalano — returned after breakout freshman seasons. Posa led the Badgers with 61 tackles, and Catalano finished second with 56. The duo combined for 8.5 tackles for loss, 6 sacks and 4 passes broken up. They're expected to take on bigger roles this season and could wreck the game plans of opposing coordinators. — Tyler James Colton Joseph transferred to Wisconsin from Old Dominion, where he was tabbed as the 2025 Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year after compiling 3,631 yards of total offense and 34 touchdowns. PHOTO COURTESY WISCONSIN ATHLETICS THREE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT WISCONSIN