
Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell had a headache on his hand when his original starting quarterback, Tyler Van Dyke, was lost for the season just three games in.
Braedyn Locke was brought in to try to help the Badgers, but he finished the season with a 13-to-10 touchdown touchdown-to-interception ratio as the Badgers lost five straight to end the season with a disappointing 5-7 record.
Those were 2024 problems for Fickell, but they quickly became 2025 problems when both Van Dyke and Locke hit the transfer portal.
Fickell and his staff had to move quickly to restock Wisconsin's shelves at quarterback, and the Badgers have brought in two veteran quarterbacks in one day to try to turn this thing around for the faithful at Camp Randall.
The first was San Diego State transfer Danny O'Neil, who threw for 2,181 yards and 12 touchdowns (six interceptions) in 2024 for the Aztecs as their starter.
That was O'Neil's freshman season, meaning he'll have three years of eligibility left with the Badgers, not counting a redshirt season.
Jump⚪️ @BadgerFootball @coachgrimey @CoachFick pic.twitter.com/R4rN8jXevP
— Danny O’Neil (@_dannyoneil) December 16, 2024
After O'Neil, the Badgers brought in a veteran quarterback to potentially be the Day 1 starter next season. That was quarterback Billy Edwards Jr., who will be a senior at Wisconsin next season, and it will be his final year of eligibility. He played the past three seasons at Maryland, but he took a redshirt season in 2021 while at Wake Forest.
He totaled 3,317 yards and 19 touchdowns with 10 interceptions over the past three seasons, with much of that production coming in 2024 as Maryland's starter. He completed 65 percent of his passes last season for 2,881 yards and 15 touchdowns with nine interceptions. He also rushed 81 times for 150 yards and five rushing touchdowns.
Time to Jump Around pic.twitter.com/ItFzXvfgqJ
— Billy Edwards Jr (@Billy_Edwards4) December 17, 2024
The Badgers also signed two quarterbacks via the 2025 recruiting class, including four-star Carter Smith. That's not even mentioning Mabrey Mettauer and Milos Spasojevic, both of who were freshmen quarterbacks on the roster in 2024.
There will truly be a heavy amount of competition in the quarterback room next season in Madison.
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