2024 was a year to forget for the Wisconsin Badgers football team. Luke Fickell’s second full season as the program’s head coach saw the Badgers finish at 5-7 overall and 3-6 in the Big Ten. It marked the first time since 2001 that they failed to reach a bowl game and tied the Badgers’ lowest win total since 1995. Wisconsin also lost at home to arch-rival Minnesota, tying the all-time series between the two teams at 63-63-8.
Despite the poor season, Fickell and co. are hard at work preparing for the 2025 season. With sixteen incoming transfers, including two new quarterbacks and one of the nation’s top tight ends, and a slew of freshmen arriving on campus this spring, the Badgers are hoping to exorcise some of the demons that plagued them in 2024.
Vinny Anthony II’s 2025 Goals
While many of the players on the 2024 team’s roster have entered the transfer portal, one key player who is staying in Madison for 2025 is the team’s leading receiver Vinny Anthony II. The Louisville, Kentucky native secured 39 receptions last season, totaling 672 yards and 4 touchdowns through the air and averaging a whopping 17.2 yards per catch. His role has steadily increased during his time in Madison. Anthony’s receptions, yards, and touchdowns have improved in each successive season.
In a tweet posted to the team’s X account, he discussed his favorite moment of the 2024 campaign, his offseason goals, and what he’s looking forward to in the upcoming 2025 season.
V8 stays outrunning everybody 🏎️💨
Reflect & Move Forward | @VinnyAnthony1 pic.twitter.com/SJ51BfXdZA
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) December 31, 2024
For the offseason, Anthony stated that one of his biggest goals is to improve his footwork and releases on his routes. Improvement in these aspects, combined with his already lethal speed down the field, would be a huge help to a Badgers offense that averaged only 196.7 passing yards per game in 2024.
Anthony also offered some insights on what he’s looking forward to in 2025, his fourth and final year as a Wisconsin Badger:
“In 2025, I’m most looking forward to the big games that we have next season. I saw that our season is like set now. I just see like that streak of really good opportunities, big teams, and I really just want to take advantage of that and hopefully have some big games and win all those.”
In addition to a loaded Big Ten slate that will see Wisconsin play Ohio State, Oregon, and Indiana, all three teams that qualified for the 2024 College Football Playoff, Wisconsin also has a trip to Tuscaloosa, Alabama on the docket for a September 13 match-up with the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Wisconsin Badgers’ New-Look Offense
The Badgers’ offense will have plenty of new faces in 2025. After 2024 starting quarterback Braedyn Locke transferred to the Arizona Wildcats, a competition will be held this spring between transfers Billy Edwards Jr. (Maryland) and Danny O’Neil (San Diego State) to decide who gets the starting gig this fall. Tight end transfer Tanner Koziol (Ball State), will bring Coach Fickell another dynamic pass catcher to deploy alongside Vinny Anthony II. Including Braedyn Locke, the Badgers have 25 confirmed outgoing transfers this winter. The Badgers currently boast the nation’s 31st-best 2025 recruiting class per ESPN with 23 current signees.
The Wisconsin Badgers open the 2025 season on August 30 with a home game against the Miami (OH) Redhawks.
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