Wisconsin football's Luke Fickell fires OC after loss to Oregon
Wisconsin football has a prominent position open courtesy of Luke Fickell . The head coach will now look for a new offensive leader for the Badgers.
Fickell fired offensive coordinator Phil Longo Sunday, per the school. Fickell's decision comes in the wake of the Badgers' failed upset bid of No. 1 Oregon Saturday . The Ducks escaped 16-13 in Madison. Fickell revealed via the school when he made the decision .
"This morning, I informed Phil Longo that he will no longer serve as our offensive coordinator," Fickell said.
Now at 5-5, Fickell and the Badgers are in an evaluation mode. The head coach briefly shared what he found in examining his team.
"After continuing to evaluate the program, I decided we are not where we need to be and believe this decision is in the best interest of the team," Fickell said.
Fickell, who's in his second season at Wisconsin, concludes there was no animosity towards Longo.
"I appreciate Phil's commitment to helping us build our program over the past two seasons and wish him well moving forward," Fickell said. "This team still has a lot in front of us and I am committed to doing everything we can to close out this season with success."
How bad did Wisconsin offense get under Luke Fickell?
The Badgers defense didn't allow a touchdown until the 13:14 mark in the fourth quarter. Defense, though, is the reason why Wisconsin stays competitive in games.
The Badgers surrendered 14 points or less in all five of their wins. Longo's offense was even efficient in those wins — scoring between 23 and 52 points in all those victories.
However, the offense got stagnant the last three weeks. Wisconsin failed to surpass the 13-point mark in losses to Penn State, Iowa and Oregon. The Badgers also settled for only 226 total yards in the three-point loss Saturday.
Longo, 56, tried installing an Air Raid system in Madison. That meant wiping away the traditional physical running style known by past Badgers teams. He was even considered an outside hire as Longo had no previous ties to the university or even Fickell.
Will Fickell consider returning Wisconsin to its run-based roots? Or will Fickell pick out a former assistant?
If it's the latter Fickell seeks, Mike Denbrock likely will hear his name attached to the opening since he was Fickell's OC at Cincinnati. But, Denbrock is earning $2.1 million at Notre Dame and is on a four-year contract. He's got a high chance of not leaving South Bend.
A fast-riser to watch, though, is Brennan Marion at UNLV. The Rebels are averaging an astonishing 249.1 rushing yards per game through Marion's exotic two-back scheme, ranking sixth overall. Marion would add an input with wide receivers as the past position coach for Jordan Addison at Pitt and Xavier Worthy at Texas.
Fickell, though, will likely need a coordinator with expertise in quarterback play as Longo was a QB coach. That's where Dirk Koetter of Boise State gets mentioned. Koetter has the Broncos third in rushing yards while getting QB Maddux Madsen delivering career-best marks.
