The college football offseason is almost over as we are halfway through July. The season will get going in about a month and a half, and college football fans everywhere are eager for the new beginning. College football fever is rampant across the country as we get closer to the season, but also because of the new EA Sports NCAA 25 video game that just came out in mid July. All in all, it’s an exciting time to be a college football fan, and one fan base that is excited for the season is Wisconsin football fans. The Badgers have a big season ahead of them.
This college football season is going to be a big one for a number of reasons. The sport is going through big changes, and some of those changes are going to be seen for the first time this season. Let’s take a look at what some of them are.
First off, there are going to be some new rules seen this year in college football, and some fans aren’t really in favor of them. Perhaps the biggest change is the addition of the two-minute warning. Fans have already started getting sick at all of the commercials that are happening in today’s era of college football, and the two-minute warning is another way for tv networks to get more commercial times in.
The bigger changes, however, come with conference realignment and the expanded College Football Playoff. College football is going to look completely different next year because of those two things. California schools playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference? Yeah, things are changing.
Conference realignment has shaken things up big time in college football. The power five is no longer a thing as the Pac-12 is essentially dead. Every team left for a new conference except for Oregon State and Washington State. Those two teams have scheduling alliances with the Mountain West.
Every other Pac-12 school found a new home. Utah, Colorado, Arizona and Arizona State are now in the Big 12. Oregon, Oregon State, USC and UCLA joined the Big Ten. Lastly, Cal and Stanford joined the ACC (makes a ton of sense, right?).
The other big change with conferences comes in the SEC. Oklahoma and Texas are both leaving the Big 12 and they will join the SEC. The Big Ten and the SEC are loaded with good teams and seem on the verge of forming two super conferences.
This season, we will also see 12 teams make the College Football Playoff. For about a month, the College Football Playoff will be happening. Some people aren’t in favor of the big expansion, but there will be more marquee college football games, and it’s hard to be too upset about that.
All in all, this is going to be one of the biggest college football seasons of all time. The game is changing, and this is the start of a new era.
Year two of the Luke Fickell era is almost here
It was a bit of a surprise to see the Wisconsin football team move on from Paul Chryst when they did. He had been with the Badgers for awhile and overall, the team experienced a lot of success with him. However, they clearly thought that they could do better, and the man that is supposed to make that happen is Luke Fickell. Unfortunately, his first season was nothing more than mediocre at best.
Last season, Wisconsin finished the regular season with a 7-5 regular season record, and they finished the year with a 7-6 overall record after losing to LSU in their bowl game. That's simply not going to cut it, and Luke Fickell has to do better in year two.
2023 was Luke Fickell's first year as head coach, so there is no need to panic if you're a Wisconsin fan. First-year coaches typically get a pass, and there is certainly a chance that the Badgers have a good bounce back year in 2024. However, to see them fall to teams like Indiana and Northwestern is extremely disappointing. Those are teams that Wisconsin just shouldn't lose to, and it's definitely not a good sign that those losses happened.
Wisconsin football has to be better this year, or Luke Fickell is going to be on the hot seat after two seasons. Flat out. One thing that can help the Badgers perform better is experienced talent. Here are their three best players that are returning to the team after playing last season:
1. Ricardo Hallman, CB
Ricardo Hallman was an absolute beast for this Wisconsin defense last year. He finished the year with 27 total tackles and seven interceptions. Hauling in seven picks in one season is incredibly hard to do, but Hallman pulled it off. He is now returning to the team with another offseason under his belt, and he is a big reason why this defense can be something special. The Badgers have some good returners on that side of the ball, and Ricardo Hallman is one of the best.
2. Hunter Wohler, S
Hunter Wohler is another returner that is going to be a crucial part of this Wisconsin football defense. Wohler also put up some ridiculous stats last year as he ended up totaling 120 tackles on the year and he also added two interceptions. Again, racking up over 100 tackles in one season is not a feat that is easy to accomplish, but Wohler pulled it off. This Wisconsin defense has the potential to be one of the best in the Big Ten.
3. Jack Nelson, LT
Lastly, we have senior offensive lineman Jack Nelson. Nelson is certainly one of the most important players on this team as it his job to help pave the way for the running game, and also to give his quarterback enough time to complete passes. The Badgers will have Miami transfer Tyler Van Dyke as their starting QB this season, and with that addition, you have to think that Wisconsin is going to throw the ball more than they typically do. If they want to be successful there, they will need Nelson and the rest of the offensive line to be rock solid all year long.
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