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Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell gets 1-year extension on contract that runs through 2031

Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell adjusts his headset during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Southern California, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)

Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell adjusts his headset during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Southern California, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)
 
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MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell is receiving a one-year extension on a contract that will now run through the 2031 season.

The school’s athletic board approved the one-year extension recommendation Wednesday.

Fickell originally agreed to a seven-year contract paying him an average of $7.8 million per year when Wisconsin hired him away from Cincinnati in December 2022. That contract calls for him to get an annual review that would result in a one-year extension based upon satisfactory performance, the athletic director’s recommendation and the athletic board’s approval.

Fickell has received a one-year extension after each of his two seasons on the job, assuring he remains on a seven-year deal. With this new extension, his contract runs through March 31, 2032.

This latest extension comes after Wisconsin finished 5-7 in 2024 for its first losing season since 2001, snapping a string of 22 straight bowl appearances. The Badgers ended the season with five straight losses.

Fickell owns a 13-13 record during his Wisconsin tenure, which started with a 24-17 victory over Oklahoma State in the 2022 Guaranteed Rate Bowl. The Badgers went 7-6 in 2023, Fickell’s first season.

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He came to Wisconsin after going 57-18 in six seasons at Cincinnati, including an undefeated regular season and College Football Playoff berth in 2021. Fickell’s overall head coaching record is 76-38 in nine seasons.

Wisconsin’s athletic board also approved one-year extension recommendations for volleyball coach Kelly Sheffield, women’s soccer coach Paula Wilkins and men’s soccer coach Neil Jones. They’re on five-year deals that will now run through Jan. 31, 2030.

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