Luke Fickell’s hire as University of Wisconsin football coach has been an engine of change inside the program, even in the smallest of details.
After taking an aggressive approach in the transfer portal to fortify the roster, Fickell and his recently finalized staff capped off their first recruiting cycle with a win by pulling defensive tackle Jamel Howard Jr. back into the fold. But more changes are soon to be realized in how Fickell and his staff will operate this offseason.
The team announced Friday it would host fans April 22 at Camp Randall Stadium for an open practice with full-team scrimmage periods as it wraps up spring practices.
Fans are able to RSVP for the event, which is free of charge, on UW’s website. More information like the start time, how fans can reserve tickets and activities around the practice will be released over the next few weeks, UW said in a release.
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The open-practice format is similar to what has been held during the spring under previous coach Paul Chryst, but the manner in which the Badgers announced the open practice showed a difference in how Fickell and Co. are approaching it.
UW has branded the event as “The Launch,” and the graphic design on the webpage has a rocket ship theme.
“The first opportunity for YOU to experience the new era of Wisconsin football,” a tweet from the program said promoting the event. Signage featuring the phrase “new era” was in multiple locations at the alumni event Thursday as well.
Fickell told reporters he wants to create as much transparency with fans as he can, and the response he’s received since being hired in late November reinforced in his mind that he’s in the right place.
“The reception, you know, I've been incredibly happy with,” Fickell said. “And some would say, ‘Well, yeah, you guys have done some things and created some energy.’ Yeah, but I mean, anytime there's somebody new, I think they're gonna … it's just such great people around here that love the Badgers that they're gonna give you the benefit of the doubt.
“Whether they were a diehard coach Chryst fan or a coach (Jim) Leonhard fan, and to me that's where I see, as much as anything, what the culture is not just of the program, but of this community of the state. They love the program so much, if they had a bias, if they felt like something was done wrong, or they should have done something different, over and above all the other things it's about what's best for the program.”
Here are some other changes fans can expect from the Badgers this offseason.
Milwaukee recruiting emphasis
More than 300 people attended the Big Red Rally at the Milwaukee Italian Community Center on Thursday to hear Fickell speak.
Fickell highlighted the importance that Milwaukee and the southeast part of the state have in building the next crop of Badgers.
“We've got to do an incredible job, obviously not just within the state, but in Milwaukee in general,” Fickell said. “And I don't know the history, my job is to study and understand where all these kids are from and where all of our guys are from. But I know this, that this is a density population, I know that there's a great mix here of guys, not just outside of our big offensive linemen guys, but you're going to get a little bit more of the athletes as well. And I think that our presence here is critical.”
UW had one Milwaukee native in its 2023 recruiting class, running back Nate White of Rufus King High School, and has offers out to a number of 2024 prospects from the Milwaukee metro area. The program bought billboard spaces in and around Milwaukee as part of its recruiting push last month.
None of Fickell’s coaches are UW alums, something he said is a challenge the staff must work through, especially in target areas like Milwaukee.
“I think it's even more critical for me and for us and for our program because (our coaches) don't have quite the history, so our job is to build that history, and we will,” Fickell said. “We’ll do that. So I think it's very critical. I think it's more critical in particular in Milwaukee, but I can't sit here and tell you that I know the history, I just know that it's really important to us.”
Fickell’s ‘bat signal’
Previous UW staffs have utilized Twitter to tease forthcoming verbal commitments, a practice some have coined a “bat signal” for fans to follow to see who could announce their decision. Former director of player personnel Saeed Khalif and/or at least one of his recruiting staff would tweet a hashtag like #BADA22BADGERS or #Wiscon21n for particular classes. Last season, former recruiting assistant Billy Lewis sent tweets with a badger emoji.
Fickell’s own Twitter account has stirred up recruiting buzz for Badgers fans since his arrival, as he tweets a video indicating a new commitment is soon to be announced. The coach admitted, though, that it was started for him because his staffers know more information about what’s happening than he does.
“But what we want to be able to do within our program is let you guys in as much as possible, to be honest,” Fickell said. “I think about that in a lot of different ways for our fans, but I think about that in a lot of ways for our former players. Those guys, obviously, to me have built this program, and to let them within, and I know that we're talking about us bat signaling or something in recruiting, but you'll see a lot more as we continue the social media side, because I'm not one of those guys that’s a big social media guy.
“We're not setting things up to try to look good on the outside. And if there's ever anything done, and maybe you've seen a couple of the social media (posts) — I think I did something where I called our guys — that's not my idea. I'm not that creative, in case you were wondering, but we have a lot of other people within our program that are a lot more creative than me, and so they do those things.”