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Luke Fickell emphasizes importance of Wisconsin’s national brand after 1st Early Signing Day with Badgers

Cole Thompson

By Cole Thompson

Published:

Luke Fickell will hopefully bring Wisconsin back to national title aspirations shortly. For now, Badgers nation will have to settle on being relevant on the recruiting trail.

The Badgers are currently ranked No. 56 in the latest 247Sports team rankings for the 2023 recruiting cycle. And while that number might not be as high as some hoped, players continue to explore Madison as an option via the transfer portal prior to the start of the 2023 season.

Fickell, who spent the previous 6 years at Cincinnati, has ties to the B1G due to his time at Ohio State. Still, the first-year coach was stunned by just how much power the block red “W” could have when it comes to selling the program.

“The hardest thing is really trying to get the class together. I thought that we, the coaches, and recruiting guys all did a great job. I think it’s a very diverse class. I think more than anything It just shows you how strong the brand is and how strong the ‘W’ is across the country.”

The Badgers added 14 recruits for the 2023 class, including 4-star offensive lineman James Durand. Wisconsin also is still trying to work the transfer portal in its favor, but it did add former Oklahoma quarterback Nick Evers.

Wisconsin will take on Oklahoma State in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl on Dec. 30 at 10:15 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Cole Thompson

Cole Thompson is a freelance writer for Saturday Tradition who has covered college football and the NFL for multiple websites. Thompson is currently based in Houston, Texas, and also can be heard daily on SportsMap National Radio's 'Just Sayin It' from 3am-6am.