Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell has seemingly turned around the Badgers Football program in his first few months on the job. While Wisconsin hasn’t played a single game yet with Fickell as the head coach, however, the excitement around what he has brought to Madison is undeniable. There is one issue, however, the Badgers will need to work through over the next season. The number of scholarships they currently have on the team is over the NCAA limit.
Luke Fickell Comments On Scholarship Situation In Madison
Per the Wisconsin State Journal:
The Badgers are set to have 91 scholarship players next fall when the rest of the 2023 recruiting class arrives on campus, putting them six over the NCAA limit of 85. However, Fickell isn’t worried about a potential scholarship crunch.
“You always kind of assume there’s gonna be natural attrition,” Fickell said Tuesday. “You don’t know how much, you don’t know what, you don’t know where, but you’re aware. There’ll be some things that we’ll probably have to make some decisions on. Some guys have been injured, and will they be able to come back? Things like that.”
There are eight scholarship recruits expected to join the Badgers this summer, per BadgerExtra reporting, so the program won’t cross the 85 scholarship threshold this semester. The transfer portal will open again from May 1-15, which could factor into the attrition Fickell expects.
“The game hasn’t changed, the game’s evolved,” Fickell said. “What’s different now, I think, is the roster management in college football that is unique. And so you’ve got to kind of get ahead of it, or assume and try to predict what’s going to happen and things like that. And you can put yourself in a tough situation, but I think that we’re at a place where we feel comfortable that things naturally will be able to take care of themselves.”
The Badgers added four wide receivers via the portal and six defensive back commitments out of high school. Depth was certainly needed at both positions, however, those moves could put writing on the wall for the young players in those rooms. Spring practices will give players a better idea of where they stand, and potential transfers out could take the matter out of coaches’ hands.
For More Wisconsin Sports:
Follow me on Twitter at @mcquadewarnold, follow us @WiSportsHeroics, and listen to our Podcast, The Cheese Dads NOW with Legendary DT Gilbert Brown! You can also reach out to McQuade Arnold via email at mcquadewarnold@gmail.com. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest in ALL of Wisconsin sports, click here!
