Wisconsin targeting Luke Fickell

Donate To GopherHole
Fickell hire is to drive NIL money up. Smart move. It was all about the dough.
 

I first paid attention to Cincinnati when they beat Notre Dame, something that WI was unable to do.
Then they made the CFP the same year, which I thought was pretty amazing.
The Athletic has had many in-depth articles about Fickell since he left UC to come to WI.
I would suggest that before anyone surmises how he might do at WI that you read the articles.
If you judge the trajectory of NE, WI, and MN FB over the last eight or nine years it is easy to say that NE has fallen off the cliff by hiring Frost whose character weaknesses exacerbated NE's chronic problems of demography and geography compounded by unrealistic expectations of the fans and donors.
Ruhl was brought in to rebuild the program. Time will tell if he will be successful.
WI was clearly on a downward trend after Chryst took over.
It was not the total collapse that NE had but each year after their last Rose Bowl loss was more disappointing than the previous year.
At the end of last year, the WI AD told Chryst that many things had to change in the offense. Chryst only did not do that so after the ILL debacle, the AD again told Chryst that he had to change. Chryst denied that there was a problem and so he was fired.
Fickell was approached, a few weeks ago his wife visited Madison to see what she thought, NE offered Fickell and he turned them down and after UC lost to Tulane he decided to accept the WI offer.
Kill helped MN recover from the debacle caused by the clown car from TX. Fleck has continued to stabilize the program. Has he improved the program significantly?
By judging how MN has done against a fallen NE and a slipping WI, yes.
Compared to a stable IA, no.
The next few years are going to be interesting with new coaches at NE and WI, no more divisions, and a 12-team CFP.
 

Gophers_4life said:
Ah good point. Nothing happened when Briles left.

He just decided to hang it up and call it a career, for no reason. They still had exactly the same talent there.

And there was nothing about the kinds of people that Briles was recruiting that might have contributed to his success, either.


Yep, nothing at all to see there. Good point
Click to expand...
Not what I said AT ALL.....Briles won a lot. He had some disgusting individuals on the team....some convicted, even more accused of sexual assault. All is said is that the cupboard wasn't bare when he left as plenty of talent stayed.
 

cheeseheadgophfan said:
Not what I said AT ALL.....Briles won a lot. He had some disgusting individuals on the team....some convicted, even more accused of sexual assault. All is said is that the cupboard wasn't bare when he left as plenty of talent stayed.
Click to expand...
None of this proves in the slighest that Rhule should've had them as CFP contenders in three years.

In the third year he went 11-1 in the regular season, losing at home to OU 31-34. Lost to OU again in the Big 12 championship game in Overtime 23-30. Lost the Sugar Bowl 14-26 to a Georgia team that lost the SEC championship game to LSU with Joe Bro.

They were right there. In year three.
 

Gophers_4life said:
None of this proves in the slighest that Rhule should've had them as CFP contenders in three years.

In the third year he went 11-1 in the regular season, losing at home to OU 31-34. Lost to OU again in the Big 12 championship game in Overtime 23-30. Lost the Sugar Bowl 14-26 to a Georgia team that lost the SEC championship game to LSU with Joe Bro.

They were right there. In year three.
Click to expand...
Are you a Nebraska fan?
 


Some guy said:
Are you a Nebraska fan?
Click to expand...
What I think of their program or Rhule is absolutely irrelevant to how well he will do there.

You don't actually think that if we all just collective delude ourselves about his potential there, that that will just magically make it come true??
 

I hope every single coach Nebraska hires is perpetually the next Scott Frost.


But we all know that's not the real world. They have nearly limitless money to keep trying, and eventually they're going to hit on someone.
 

Gophers_4life said:
What I think of their program or Rhule is absolutely irrelevant to how well he will do there.

You don't actually think that if we all just collective delude ourselves about his potential there, that that will just magically make it come true??
Click to expand...
When have I ever said he won’t be successful there?

I was just asking if you were a Nebraska fan based on him losing close games as meaning he is right in the mix 😂
It’s a very Nebraska-ish take
 

I could be wrong, but I'm getting a sense of concern from some of these posts.

as in, if WI improves under their new coach, it will be harder for MN to beat WI or finish ahead of them in the standings.......

well, there's a name for that - it's called competition.

If MN wants to be better than WI, then they have to out-recruit and out-coach WI. If MN can do that, they'll be fine.

on the other hand, if MN can not out-recruit or out-coach WI, then they won't be fine.

and that is how competition works.

same thing with the new coach at NEB.
 




Rhule is an upgrade from Frost. With the current Joseph issue Nebraska may have dodged a bullet. Interesting to see how much Fickel can change Wisconsin’s identity to a more balanced attack
 

noamfromm said:
They didn't have an exodus though https://www.sbnation.com/college-fo.../baylor-football-2017-preview-schedule-roster
Click to expand...
OK. I should have figured there was some key missing piece that posters were glossing over and/or purposefully withholding from their analysis of the situation.

Art Briles last 3 at Baylor:
2013 - 11-2 finished #13
2014 - 11-2 finished #8
2015 - 10-3 finished #13

Jim Grobe (interim, former HC at Wake Forest):
2016 - 7-6 unranked

Matt Rhule at Baylor:
2017 - 1-11 unranked
2018 - 7-6 unranked
2019 - 11-3 finished #13


That interim 2016 season is a pretty key thing and important omission in the discussion.

Even if there was no mass exodus of players leaving the program between the 2016 and 17 seasons, that doesn't prove in the slightest that the talent level on the roster in 17 was anywhere near the 2013-15 seasons. Recruiting could have taken a hit as well.

Having to learn new systems, new coaches, etc.
 

Gophers_4life said:
OK. I should have figured there was some key missing piece that posters were glossing over and/or purposefully withholding from their analysis of the situation.
Click to expand...
this was clearly the tacit conspiracy amongst us
 



Nah. Like I said, could've just been a simple overlooking.

Your lack of responding to the actual parts of the post is equivalent to your agreement that I got it right.

Works for me
 

Gophers_4life said:
Nah. Like I said, could've just been a simple overlooking.

Your lack of responding to the actual parts of the post is equivalent to your agreement that I got it right.

Works for me
Click to expand...
Why you…..(fist shaking)
 

I haven’t been paying close attention. Has he gotten any Cinci commits to switch over to WI? I feel like Fleck had multiple within 24 hours.
 

GophersInIowa said:
I haven’t been paying close attention. Has he gotten any Cinci commits to switch over to WI? I feel like Fleck had multiple within 24 hours.
Click to expand...
Switching from Western Michigan to Minnesota is probably an easier decision than switching from Cincy to Wisconsin.
 


Fickel’s value is in recruiting. He has strong ties in the talent rich Cincinnati area . He will do well picking up the 3-3 1/2 stars that Ohio State misses. That was the core of his team. He should do well at Wisconsin and be an able adversary for Minnesota.
 


Got a new highest rating player in his class at WI, a 4* following from Cinci.

 

If Chryst had been a competent HC Leonhard would have eventually been the WI head coach.
I am certain Fickell as HC and Longo as OC are very definite upgrades for WI.
I am not sure if the new DC is going to be an upgrade over Leonhard.
 









You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom