Wisconsin’s first two weeks have left plenty of room for debate, but Luke Fickell came away from this week’s press conference with something Badgers fans can hang onto: real optimism about the offensive line.
The record says Wisconsin is right where many expected at 1-1. The way it got there is what has stirred up the uncertainty.
The Notre Dame loss offered one half of promise and one half of frustration. The Western Illinois game, meanwhile, never turned into the kind of runaway win a lot of people were hoping to see.
With Eastern Michigan next on the schedule, Fickell tried to put the focus on what’s quietly taking shape up front.
"I like where we are." Fickell said, "There's some makings of things that I'm not sure we've had before."
He pointed to each starter as part of that bigger picture. "I love where Kevin Heywood is; this is only his second game." Fickell continued, "He missed most of camp; he missed all of last year."
Colin Cubberly, in Fickell’s view, has made a clear jump from last season and still has more growth ahead. Stylz Blackmon earned praise for the way he has handled the leap from DII and the work it has taken to settle in.
Austin Kawecki remains a central piece, with Fickell saying "a lot falls on his shoulders." At the same time, he stressed that the veteran’s experience is something the Badgers can lean on.
PJ Wilkins, though, was the one Fickell said needs to be pushed for more. That was part of the broader message: Wisconsin’s line is not finished, but the ceiling is still ahead of it.
The numbers through two games support that optimism. Against Notre Dame, Wisconsin’s line helped both running backs average more than 3.3 yards per carry and allowed just two sacks.
Against Western Illinois, the unit didn’t give up a sack at all and helped the ground game roll at more than 7.5 yards per carry. Even without Abu Sama III’s 72-yard burst, which inflated his 13.4 yards per carry average, the production still sat well above five yards a pop.
Eastern Michigan gives Wisconsin another chance to show that the progress is real. It’s not Notre Dame, and it’s not Western Illinois, either.
The Badgers will have to protect Colton Joseph and keep creating lanes for the backs, and then carry that standard forward when Big Ten play arrives. For now, though, Fickell’s view of the group leaves a little more room for hope than doubt.
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