Luke Fickell has spent plenty of time trying to keep Wisconsin’s quarterback situation from turning into a full-blown controversy. That effort may already be over.
Fans want true freshman Ryan Hopkins. Colton Joseph has struggled.
And now Barry Alvarez has stepped in with a plan that doesn’t force a hard either-or decision.
Alvarez, the Wisconsin legend, said he would handle it by getting Hopkins on the field early without ripping the job away from Joseph.
"Every time you are struggling, everybody wants to junk the quarterback," Alvarez told ESPN Madison. "But to your question, I think you've got to give the young kid some playing time [even] in the first half.
I wouldn't start him; I wouldn't jump Joseph; I wouldn't jump [Hopkins] to number one into the game. But I would play him early in the game and see how he reacts...if he does well, you continue with him."
That approach gives Wisconsin a middle ground. Hopkins gets real snaps, not just mop-up work, and Joseph gets a clear message that the offense needs more from him. Alvarez put it bluntly: "You don't just junk your current starter and throw a freshman in there."
The timing may be ideal for that kind of test. Wisconsin faces Rutgers this weekend, which would offer Hopkins a softer first step than Iowa. It also opens the door for the Badgers to see whether the freshman can handle meaningful series while Joseph feels the pressure.
After Rutgers, Wisconsin goes to Maryland, who lost to Rutgers, and then plays Purdue. That three-game stretch could settle the question one way or another. If Alvarez’s plan is the one Wisconsin follows, Hopkins could either prove he belongs in the starting role for the axe game or show that he still needs more college reps.
Either way, the next few games would give Wisconsin something it needs: a real look at Hopkins, and a real answer on where the quarterback job stands.
In Other News...
Wisconsin Just Reached A Quarterback Decision Point Fans Saw Coming
After a lopsided loss to Iowa, Wisconsin reached the kind of quarterback crossroads fans had been bracing for. Colton Joseph was benched after a rough outing, and true freshman Ryan Hopkins took over, finishing 8 of 13 for 93 yards with an interception as the Badgers tried to steady things in the second half.
Hopkins now looms as the most likely answer for the next stretch, which gives Wisconsin a different kind of conversation than it was having a week ago. The question is no longer whether the Badgers need a change under center, but how quickly they want to lean into it and what that means for the rest of the season and beyond. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsin Has An Early Problem To Clean Up Before Delaware
Wisconsin got the win in its season opener against Denver, but the performance came with enough rough edges to keep Greg Gard and his staff busy before the next tip. The second half was the issue, and Gard was blunt afterward in saying the game fell below the programs standard while the coaches continue sorting through the rotation and trying to find the right mix early in the year.
Delaware now arrives as the next test, and it will be the first-ever meeting between the programs. Wisconsins projected starting group is expected to look much like it did in the opener, even as a few players are still working their way back from injury, which leaves the Badgers with an early chance to clean up the details before the schedule starts to tighten. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsin Has One Offensive Problem The Defense Cant Keep Covering
Wisconsins defense has done enough lately to keep the Badgers in games, limiting opponents on the scoreboard and making life difficult on the ground. The problem is that the offense has not matched that level of support, and the gap became impossible to ignore in the Iowa game, where Wisconsin was shut out, managed very little yardage and spent too much of the afternoon chasing possession instead of controlling it.
The larger concern now is not just production, but direction. Wisconsin still has to find a more reliable answer at quarterback, and until that settles in, the defense may keep doing the heavy lifting without getting much help in return. For a program built on balance and physical football, that is a hard way to survive the stretch ahead. [Read more 🡒]