Luke Fickell Gets Emotional Discussing Wisconsin Badgers QB Tanner Mordecai

If you were to ask any of the Wisconsin Badgers coaches their honest opinion of quarterback Tanner Mordecai, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who wouldn’t supply a glowing review of his character. 

Luke Fickell and offensive coordinator Phil Longo brought in Mordecai through the transfer portal from SMU to help lead the new-look Badgers offense while mentoring some of the younger options. 

However, things went differently than planned. Following a 4-1 start to the season, Mordecai suffered a broken hand against the Iowa Hawkeyes that would later require surgery. 

Wisconsin football would then lose two of its next three games before the Texas native shockingly returned to the Badgers lineup, playing through what I could only imagine was an ungodly amount of pain in his surgically repaired throwing hand. 

The sputtering Badgers team hit rock bottom after a devastating home loss to Northwestern. Thanks to the leadership from Mordecai, who called out his teammates give-a-shit-factor, Wisconsin football rallied, won its final two trophy games against Nebraska and Minnesota, and became bowl-eligible for the 22nd consecutive season. 

Then, in an era of players opting out of bowl games, there was never a question that Mordecai would be the Wisconsin Badgers QB1 against LSU. 

Wisconsin Badgers HC Luke Fickell Gets Emotional Talking About QB Tanner Mordecai 

Although the Wisconsin Badgers didn’t pull off an upset of the No. 13 LSU Tigers in the ReliaQuest Bowl, starting quarterback Tanner Mordecai put together his best performance of the season in his sendoff.

Mordecai completed 27 of 40 pass attempts for 378 yards, passing with three touchdowns, becoming the 11th Badgers signal caller to throw for 300+ yards in a game and the first since Jack Coan in 2019.

He gave Badgers fans a glimpse of what the Wisconsin football coaching staff envisioned with its new air raid offense when they took over.

Following the game, head coach Luke Fickell became emotional talking about Mordecai, who played a massive role during his first season with the Wisconsin Badgers.

“I mean, I don’t think you can say enough about that kid [Mordecai],” Fickell told reporters. “I mean, everyone’s programs, you know, in this time, it’s tough. And to have guys that stick things out, the guy that some people would say, come into a place and rent it. There’s no rent in that guy.

“There was never a hesitation at what he wanted to do and what he was going to do,” Fickell continued. “There’s a guy that played on a broken hand after three and a half weeks or four weeks, couldn’t clap for four weeks out there, I mean, and there was never hesitation as to whether he was going to play in this game or not. And you know, for him to go out and not just play the way he did but practice the way he did lead the way that did to help us move our program forward and, and kind of set an example of what things can look like when you when you really dive all in.”

Some STRONG emotion from Luke Fickell when talking about Tanner Mordecai after the game

You can see just how much he believes in the #Badgers QB@WKOW | 🎥: @Karley_Marotta | @t_mordecai pic.twitter.com/nhJQ1wdiJq

— Luke Gamble (@LukeGambleTV) January 1, 2024

No, the Wisconsin offense didn’t light up scoreboards like many had hoped they would in 2023. But Tanner Mordecai was, at times, the heartbeat of the entire offense and played with passion and grit every single time he ran out onto the field. I’ll remember him fondly and have no doubt that he’ll find success in whatever comes next.

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