Wisconsin’s three football rivalry trophies have been a big part of the program’s identity for years, and when you stack up the coaches who handled those games best, the list comes with a few surprises.
At the top is Bret Bielema, a name that still stirs plenty of mixed feelings in Madison. His departure for Arkansas - and now his move to Illinois - left a bad taste for many fans.
But when it came to the rivalry trophies, he was the most dominant of the bunch. Bielema never lost the Axe, never lost to Nebraska in the regular season, and went 3-2 against Iowa.
Across Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska, he finished 11-2 and was undefeated against Minnesota. Whatever else you think of him, he made sure Wisconsin’s rivals did not get much of a foothold.
Right behind him is Paul Chryst. He may not be the first name many people would have guessed for this spot, but his numbers in these games were excellent.
Chryst went 5-3 against Minnesota, 5-3 against Iowa and 7-0 against Nebraska. In all, he held those trophies 17 times and let the rivals take them only six times.
Barry Alvarez comes next, and his place here reflects the fact that he helped build the foundation for the coaches who followed. He does not have an official Freedom Trophy record, since that game did not really get going until 2011, so that part of his ledger is 0-0.
Against Minnesota, he went 11-5, and against Iowa he was 5-9. His overall mark in these games is shaped heavily by those Heartland Trophy matchups.
Gary Andersen is the odd case on the list. He owns the best record of any Wisconsin coach in these rivalry games because he never lost one.
He went 2-0 against Minnesota, 2-0 against Iowa and 1-0 against Nebraska. The catch is the sample size, which is why he comes with an asterisk and lands fourth.
Even so, in his two years at Wisconsin, he handled the trophy games perfectly before leaving for Oregon State.
Luke Fickell is currently at the bottom, but his story is still unfinished. So far, he is 1-2 against Minnesota, 0-3 against Iowa and 1-1 against Nebraska.
There is still time to change that, and this season matters. Wisconsin will not face Nebraska, but Iowa and Minnesota are both on the schedule.
If Fickell can go 2-0 in those trophy games, it would go a long way toward improving his place on this list.
In Other News...
Wisconsin May Have Finally Fixed The One Problem Fans Hated Most
Wisconsins 2026 basketball roster looks a lot different after an offseason that brought in eight new players to join six returnees, and the early emphasis from Greg Gard has been hard to miss. The Badgers spent the spring and summer trying to get bigger, sturdier and more capable on the interior, with the frontcourt depth standing out as the clearest area of improvement after a stretch in which physicality around the rim was a recurring concern.
Gard has pointed to that added size as the biggest shift on the roster, and Wisconsin is counting on its new-look front line to change the tone of games in a hurry. The Badgers still have some questions to answer before the season settles in, but the hope is that the mix of returning pieces and newcomers gives them a much better chance to protect the paint and make opponents feel them inside, which is exactly the kind of upgrade fans have been waiting to see. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsins New Position Coaches Are Already Facing One Clear Pressure Point
Wisconsins offseason makeover has not been subtle. Between a new roster, upgraded athletic facilities, a new athletic director and a fresh group of position coaches for 2026, the program is trying to reset a lot at once, and that makes the early read on the staff especially important. The most consequential hires are the ones closest to the line of scrimmage and the back end, where the Badgers have to look more like themselves again if the rebuild is going to take hold.
A.J. Blazek, Terry Joseph, Clint Everett and the new wide receivers coach all arrive with different levels of certainty, but they are already carrying a shared burden: prove these changes can translate on Saturdays. Blazek is expected to matter most because Wisconsins offense still has to start up front, while Josephs work with the secondary will be judged against the kind of passing games that have exposed the Badgers before. Everett brings a recruiting angle as much as a coaching one, and the wide receivers hire comes with more intrigue than history, which is exactly the sort of pressure point a staff in transition tends to create. [Read more 🡒]