Badgers fans booed Luke Fickell last Saturday. Was that the right thing to do?
As if losing a listless, 27-10 debacle at Camp Randall Stadium to a lightly-regarded Maryland Terrapins squad last Saturday wasn’t bad enough, the Godfather of Wisconsin Badgers Football’s postgame comments somehow made it worse.
“I think it’s embarrassing, terrible, despicable…they’re spoiled rotten,” said Barry Alvarez on ESPN Madison this past Monday.
No, The Don wasn’t talking about the sleepy, overmatched Badgers. He was calling out Wisconsin fans booing the team and letting Coach Luke Fickell have it.
There aren’t many of you who revere Alvarez quite the way I do, but his comments still rubbed me the wrong way, and I’m hardly alone. His take also raises a broader ethical question: do fans have the right to boo the Badgers at Camp Randall?
While booing is not my thing, I still say, unequivocally, yes.
When a fan pays a substantial amount of money for tickets, parking, food, drink, and merch, their foot is in the door. Add to this the fact that they’re funneling a huge amount of emotional energy into caring about what a bunch of college kids do on a 120 x 53.3 field, and it’s very difficult to argue that Badger fans haven’t earned the right to respond to what they see as they so choose.
Yes, there are limits. I draw the line at vicious personal attacks–that’s never okay, whether in person or on social media, and I’ve pushed back robustly on this many times. But whether it’s throaty booing or letting loose on a very highly paid coach who has been an objective disappointment, Wisconsin fans absolutely have the right to let their feelings be known inside the stadium.
While I believe this situation involves players getting let down by coaches more than the reverse, the reality is that these are still professional athletes in 2025, so trying to bubble wrap them from fan emotions, however raw, feels odd and overprotective.
I respect Alvarez beyond words, but he simply missed the mark on this one. It is Wisconsin fans, not the team and coaches, who should have his sympathy right now.
Category: General Sports
