In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, Lucas and Oates start with some breaking news out of college sports as the NCAA proposes to reduce the transfer windows into a single transfer window. Under the proposal, there would be just one 10 transfer window in January. No more players checking out before the bowl games! Lucas says hey, progress is progress. Oates is not so sure. Not that he doesn’t think it’s a good idea, just that he isn’t holding his breath that it’ll come anytime soon. He’ll wait to see if it will hold up before a judge before he starts celebrating.

But of course, the main topic today is the Packers. Green Bay’s season came to an end in Philly after losing to the Eagles on Sunday. To sum up the season with a phrase: they were a good team, but not a good enough team. So many people expected them to really step up this year, and they simply didn’t. Yes, they spent their money well last offseason when they picked up some top players on both sides of the ball. But look at Love. Expectations were high at the end of last season, and he just didn’t grow this season (though Oates thinks he didn’t regress either). Yes, he had some injuries, and those probably played into why he wasn’t as mobile as he needed to be. But people just expected more.

The defense played well this year, Lucas thinks, but the issues laid in the offense. There is a lot of talent on the Packers offense, but there needs to be a standout, specifically a standout wide receiver. Jacobs is great, but there were very few explosive plays on Sunday. 

Look at next year, the locker room will be looking different. One thing that we know is that Tom Clements, the Packers’ long time quarterback coach, is retiring. As a man who had worked with Farve, Rodgers, and Love, the Packers are definitely going to miss him next year. Plus, two major players are almost certainly gone: Christian Watson and Jaire Alexander. It’s neither of their faults, and nobody would rather sit around hurt than play. But you still need to show up, and both of their absences were felt on the field. 

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, it’s a Packers playoff preview as they take on the Eagles this Sunday with some losses on both sides of the ball. Jaire Alexander is still out on the defense, and Christian Watson went down with a no-contact injury against the Bears on Sunday. Looking at the NFL today though, they should be considered lucky they haven’t lost more top players. Watson is certainly a great player, who’s greatest skill might be his ability to dictate how the defense is going to play. He’s fast, he’s a deep threat, and he has a skill set that isn’t found anywhere else on the team. But his absence won’t particularly hurt the Packers on Sunday, Oates says. It’s not Jaire’s or Watson’s fault that they’re out, but they need to be available to play if they want to stick it out in the NFL. Because of that, and because both of them have a history now of debilitating injuries, their futures are murky at best. Yes, Jaire has certainly made some people mad from time to time, but if he gets cut loose, it will be because of the injuries. 

Moving to Sunday, the Packers have a chance to redeem themselves after their loss in Brazil. That loss, Oates says, should not be considered by fans this weekend as both teams have changed dramatically since week one in Brazil. Still, there’s something up with Jordan Love. He’s looked pedestrian and straight mediocre in recent weeks. He can’t blame his injury anymore, at least any injury that we know about. Lucas suspects he’s gotten conservative and isn’t dynamic in any way. Yes, he’s throwing significantly less interceptions, but he’s also not playing great like everyone hoped at the end of last season. But who knows what that’ll mean against the Eagles with Jalen Hurts who, as of Tuesday, remains on concussion protocol. Even if he’s healthy by Sunday it’s been nearly a month since he’s last thrown a football, which could be significant on Sunday. Whatever happens, it’ll likely be a great game and it is by no means a lost cause for the Packers.

That said, especially after Sunday’s loss to the Bears, the criticism of Matt LaFleur has grown significantly in recent weeks. Oates says it’s not unwarranted, so long as you ignore some of the “body language” arguments. He’s suffered some serious clock management issues in recent weeks, and Oates thinks it’s because of his biggest head coach complaint: he is trying to call too many plays. A coach needs to be thinking three or four plays ahead, and you can’t do that when your head is buried in the play cards. Sunday’s game against the Bears was a great example of that. Now imagine if he did that during a game that actually mattered?

Finally, moving to Badger Men’s Basketball, Greg Gard’s team put up 116 points against the Hawkeyes while holding Iowa to just 85. An amazing game, says Oates, from a team that if they hit their stride will be really hard to beat. Gard’s coaching has changed for the better in recent years and it’s turning the team into a real powerhouse. He’s blending styles in his offense and loosening the reins on the players. Players aren’t looking over their shoulder everytime they miss a shot. Gard is adapting to the world of college basketball today, and hopefully they can keep up their steam. 

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, Lucas and Oates prepare to hibernate for the winter (episodes will return on 1/08/2025) with an end of year special that sounds suspiciously like every other episode… This week, it’s time for the college football championship. With the first weekend complete the games have been, so far, underwhelming. Some people have blamed the seeding, which Lucas can’t argue against. None of the games were particularly close, now were they particularly exciting. There were a few highlights, like watching some southern teams play in the winter north, but who really wants to watch Oregon go through Ohio State again? They need to move to seeding by perceived strength, says Oates, and forget about conference ties. Maybe then more than three or four teams will have a shot and the games might be more exciting…

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t any interesting games coming up. Yes we’ve seen Oregon vs Ohio State already, but it’ll still be a great game. Boise vs Penn State could shape up to be a great game too, and Lucas thinks that Notre Dame (taking on Georgia) has been overlooked. So who do Badger fans root for? Do they go with the Big 10 teams and bring some acclaim to the division? Probably, but it’ll still be hard for Badger fans to do.

Moving to men’s basketball, the Badgers are coming off an easy win over Detroit Mercy this weekend, leaving them now at 10-3. The team is looking okay so far - all of their losses came from really good teams. But how can they compete with the rest of the Big 10? Well, take a look at the Big 10 these days, Oates says. How’s that “Number One” Indianna holding up these days?

Finally, turning to the NFL, Lucas wants to know: who’s the best team today in the NFC? Between the Eagles, the Lions, the Vikings, the Commanders, the Rams, and yes, the Packers, who stands above the rest? It’s an easy question with a not so easy answer, says Oates. It should be the Lions, given the talent in their players. But the Lions aren’t the full Lions right now, with injury upon injury. So does it go to the Eagles by default? Maybe, but Oates thinks that the Packers are looking pretty good going into the playoffs. Or at least he says that before Monday night’s game against the Saints…

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, the Badgers football team seems to be taking on their biggest rival yet: the transfer portal. Both Tyler Van Dyke and Braedyn Locke (not to mention his brother Landyn) are out of the Badgers, as are a slew of other players. In their place, however, are a handful of battle tested quarterbacks, namely San Diego’s Danny O’Neil and Maryland’s Billy Edwards Jr. Yes, both have come off of losing seasons, but so have the Badgers, so Lucas and Oates are feeling okay with this change.

That is, as long as they both stick around. There’s another transfer portal in the spring, and if one of them decides they aren’t getting the attention they want, they can easily find somewhere else that will. Lucas imagines it has to be driving coaches nuts, not knowing which players you are going to have at their disposal. Next year will see Luke Fickell’s third quarterback, and that isn’t his fault. The Badger’s haven’t been able to recruit someone they can grow, because they leave as soon as a better offer comes their way. It isn’t a Badgers problem either, all of college football is having to deal with this now. Marshall is dropping out of a bowl game after losing too many players to the portal. And at Penn State, quarterback Beau Pribula, the quarterback that beat the Badgers and helped lead the team all season, has entered the portal as the team gears up for playoffs. College football is going through some major changes, and hopefully some change comes soon. I wonder how Bill Belichick is going to tackle the issue, seeing as he’ll be coaching North Carolina next year. 

Moving to the Packers, their win over the Seahawks puts them one step closer to the playoffs. Playing in Seattle is hard, and that stadium was loud. But it was loud, at least in part, from Packers fans. The Packers played a great game on Sunday, and are starting to look like a team that could make a serious run for it. Love is getting more and more consistent, and the defense is starting to tighten up as well. A win over the Saints next week would secure their playoff spot, and with the Lions looking as hurt as they are, it could mean a serious path for Green Bay.

Finally, the Badgers men’s basketball team is rebounding after a losing streak to a couple of good teams and have a favorable stretch ahead. With Crowl, Winter, and Tonje continuing to grow, could the Badgers be the best team in the Big 10 this year? 

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, Willy Adames is heading to the bank with a new contract with the San Francisco Giants for $182 million over 7 years. It was bound to happen sooner or later this offseason, there’s just no way the Brewers would be able to afford that price tag. Yes, he was the lynchpin of the team, and did lots of good for Milwaukee. But with that kind of money, and that kind of risk signing someone for that much for that long, there was just no chance. 

Unfortunately, this is the new normal of professional baseball. Just look at the Dodgers, who are on the hook for a billion dollars in guaranteed contracts. Juan Soto alone is going to cost them as much as $800 million in about 15 years. Sorry Bobby Bonilla, your contract isn’t quite as laughable anymore. Without a salary cap in the MLB, this is the new reality. And it doesn’t even guarantee you’ll have an amazing player, they still need to stay healthy. Case in point is Mike Trout, who’s played about half all games since he signed a massive 12 year contract. Yes he’s a great player, but that doesn’t mean anything if he isn’t healthy. But hey, at least the Brewers will be getting a good deal out of it all. You know, despite the fact that they’ll never have that kind of money. 

Moving to the Packers, Lucas has a pretty big question this week: where is Jayden Reed? He only had one target against the Lions last week, and that’s been the story for weeks now. Sure, the Packers have a lot of great weapons when it comes to receivers (especially if you include Tucker Kraft in that bunch), but as someone once told Oates: when you have a cannon, use it.

Moving to Badgers football, Luke Fickell made a big move, and maybe a bit of a backtrack, by hiring Jeff Grimes as his new offensive coordinator. Coming most recently from Kansas, Grimes is definitely run-game friendly. When Fickell came aboard, he decided to junk the run game and go all in on that air raid offense instead. This is a good move, Oates thinks, especially when it comes to Fickell’s reputation. Oates sees this hiring as an admission that he was wrong and something big needed to change. Now if only they can have a quarterback next season that isn’t a freshman, considering Tyler Van Dyke is joining the over a dozen other players heading to the transfer portal. That means it’s time for the Badgers to open up the checkbook and start buying some players. 

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, Badger Football has come to a fizzling end, as they fell to the Gophers Friday. By the end of the game, only Gopher fans were still in Camp Randall in another dreary performance by the Badgers. After 22 years, the Badgers won’t be going to a bowl game this year. So what comes next?

Luke Fickell isn’t going anywhere, and after two years, he still can’t figure out what makes Wisconsin work. He was a good hire and had an impressive resume, and certainly promised the heavens, but it just isn’t panning out two years later. Maybe it’s coming from the athletic director, or maybe it’s his own desire to shake things up, but it doesn’t matter because it just isn’t working. 

What is the Badgers offense? What is the Badgers defense? Like Lucas and Oates have been saying all season, the entire team has no identity. Fickell’s portal picks didn’t work out, and the defense can’t seem to manufacture any pass rush. Maybe they’ll have more of an identity next season, but that’s two years too late. But what will the Badgers look like next year? We’ll get the first inkling when Fickell hires an offensive coordinator, and we’ll learn even more when we see what quarterbacks are on the practice field this spring. Either way, they’ll need to spend a lot of money in the portal if they want to be competitive next year. Just look at the offensive line, which will have four brand new guys on it next season. 

Moving to the Packers, two big names are being named as finalists in the Pro Football Hall of Fame: Mike Holmgren and Sterling Sharpe. Holmgren is a given, at least eventually, but Sharpe is more of a maybe. Oates thinks it’s a no brainer, a dog and a gamer who rarely missed a game. Lucas can’t disagree. 

The Packers will head to Detroit this Thursday to take on the Lions, and it’ll be closer than people might think. The Lions are beat up, and last time they played, Love was not yet healthy. Since the bye week though, Love has been playing at a higher level. They stand a good chance, as long as their defense can hold up. 

Finally, the Badger Men’s Basketball team is taking on Marquette this Saturday in what will be a great game. Oates thinks back to some of his favorite Badgers-Marquette memories, and Lucas has to say, Wisconsin should be thankful that it has two elite college basketball teams. 

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, it’s Axe Week in Madison as the Badgers prepare to take on the Minnesota Gophers on Black Friday. But this week, Luke Fickell did not have to defend (or not defend) any axings after the Badger’s big loss against Nebraska this weekend. Maybe he should have had to defend an axing after that performance. Lucas and Oates are at a loss for words at just what happened against the Cornhuskers, in what might be a new low for the team this year. 

Oates has one word for what happened: Effort. How is it that the Badgers can hold Oregon one week and lose to Nebraska the next? A lack of effort. Yes, the defense fell apart and couldn’t stop missing tackles, but that wasn’t the only problem. The issues spanned across the entire team, which means that it all has to trickle up to one person: the head coach Luke Fickell. It’s not like he was making smart calls either, he made some terrible choices. One of which even caused a fumble with only a few seconds left in the half, leading to Nebraska to score a field goal going into halftime. 

While Lucas and Oates disagree on a few nitpicky choices, they don’t disagree on one thing: it was a terrible game. Not that all the players played terribly, Braedyn Locke played his best game all season, Vinny Anthony played great, and Christian Alliegro played with real effort. But when you have great players and a terrible loss, it’s hard to know how to move forward. Maybe a new player in Carter Smith, a gift from Michigan who decided to buy a new quarterback thanks to a billionaire backer, will help them out. 

Smith won’t be able to  help this Friday against the Gophers though, in what is a must win game for the Badgers. Yes, they might be able to get into a bowl game even with a loss, but it won’t feel good and is no way to send out the seniors. 

Moving to a good Badger team, the men’s basketball team is undefeated as of Tuesday night with a 7-0 record. Who expected them to play this well this early in the season? Yes, the schedule has helped them a bit, but it’s still an impressive achievement thanks to an impressive team. John Tonje is playing great, in a way that is hard to even compare to past great Badgers. But there are multiple guys on the team who can pose a real threat at any time. Max Klesmit, meanwhile, is showing himself as a real leader for the team, and if that is what’s driving their success, he can keep being such a leader.

Finally, the Packers take on the Dolphins on Thanksgiving for a night game in Green Bay. What do you call a frozen dolphin? Tua Tagovailoa. Oates says the strategy is easy: hit them hard and hit them early. That way, the Dolphins will want to just go home and get out of the cold. 

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, Lucas and Oates aren’t talking about the Badger Football Team’s formidable fight against Oregon, or the Badgers Men’s Basketball Team’s big upset win, or even the Packers questionable win against the Bears. Okay, maybe they talk about those big moments a little bit, but that’s not their focus. No, something more concerning is at hand, and his name is Luke Fickell. 

Fickell fired Offensive Coordinator Phil Longo after the Badgers loss to the Ducks. Not the most surprising moves after the season they’ve been having. But the problem comes from how Fickell has decided to handle the situation. When asked at a media conference about why Fickell fired his prized hire, the one who was supposed to turn the team around, he seemed surprised and annoyed that someone would dare ask for an explanation. This isn’t Ohio State, Oates says, you need to explain yourself at least a little bit when you make a big mid-season move like this. 

Longo is a good coach, though maybe not a good coach for the Badgers. But Fickell is the one who hired the guy, and gave him big bucks to run his air raid offense. So why hire him, or why fire him! We can’t answer these questions, because all Fickell would do when asked about this, or maybe about who will be calling the plays the rest of the season. Instead, Fickell called play calling a bit overrated. But even if playcalling is overrated, we’ve been asking all season what the offense's identity is. Without an offensive coordinator they won’t have any identity and a lot of the players they’ve brought on have got to be questioning what direction they’re going to take going forward. 

Firing Longo is one thing, but what rubs both Lucas and Oates the wrong way is the arrogance that Fickell had when someone dared question that move. Lucas postures that he has to be feeling the heat. If things don’t turn around soon, the Badgers won’t get a bowl game this year for the first time in decades. If that happens after the hype that he raised last year, he has to be sweating. We would be. 

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, there’s a big, exciting weekend ahead for fans of Badgers sports. Starting on Friday night, the men’s basketball team will be taking on Arizona at the Kohl’s Center in what will likely be a great game for fans. Not only will it be Bo Ryan night, with the raising of a banner in his name with a few of his final four players in attendance (well, those not in Europe). Arizona is the first big non conference team the Badgers are facing this season, and will prove to be an exciting game for the team to test their real talent. The Badgers are looking good so far this season, but Oates wants to see a little aggression Friday night to see them really compete with Arizona. 

Then on Saturday night, the Badger football team takes on the number 1 Oregon Ducks. After a bye week and a terrible loss to Iowa the week before, the Badgers are going to need to really show their stuff if they want to even come close to competing with the Ducks. They are number 1 for a reason, with one of the best offensive lines in the nation, and a quarterback who can move, and thus dominate, to boot. They’ll have to stay physical, like Lucas and Oates have been calling on them to all season. But they’ll be playing without advisor Jack Del Rio, who resigned Monday after an OWI last weekend. The correct call, Lucas and Oates agree.

Then on Sunday, the Packers take on the Bears in Chicago after having a bye week. But that isn’t the story we’re focusing on, we’re focusing on how much longer Matt Eberflus has a job as the Bears head coach. They fired Offensive Coordinator Shane Waldron on Tuesday, after continuing the Bears tradition of not knowing what to do about their quarterback. Caleb Williams made waves when he was drafted, but since then what has he done? It’s been nearly 75 years since the Bears have had a truly great quarterback, and with Sunday’s disappointing loss to the Patriots, Eberflus has to be counting his days. As for the Packers, hopefully the bye week was productive for the team, and especially Love. Hopefully Love was not only able to heal up physically, but able to take a look at all of the interceptions he’s thrown this season, and figure out how to avoid them going forward with the season. 

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, Jordan Love is beginning to show a pattern for the season so far: big game making mistakes. This time while taking on the Lions in Green Bay, a pick 6 at the end of the first half, putting a dour mood over the rest of the game. Yes, Detroit played very well, and yes the weather was terrible, but that’s not an excuse. The Packers outdrove the Lions significantly, and on paper should have at least been competitive. Love needs to start learning from his mistakes, Oates says, and the fact that he keeps making these same mistakes over and over again is concerning. 

The blame can’t just lay on Love though, the game was filled with mistakes all over, with dropped passes and missed field goals. That’s not to mention the lack of discipline the team is showing, with 30 pre-snap penalties so far this season. Discipline needs to be the focus and emphasis going forward, Oates says, because these penalties cannot keep happening. 

The Lions, meanwhile, continued to show that they’re a, if not the, top team in the whole NFL. They have one of the best offensive lines around, and this was a weak game for Goff! That is to say, this shouldn’t be seen as a bad loss by the Packers, just a frustrating one. 

Speaking of frustration and disappointment, the Badgers fell hard to Iowa last weekend. It’s one thing to lose to Penn State, Oates thinks, but it’s another to lose to Iowa. In theory, they should be on par with the Badgers, not a team to blow them out. But the Badgers have forfeited any identity they have. It looked for a while like they might have some physicality, but they showed this weekend that they don’t. They can’t stop a run, and Brayden Locke keeps making mistakes, a pattern in Wisconsin quarterbacks these days. Lucas has to ask, what are the Badgers good at these days? 

Finally, the Bucks continue to lose, though by tighter margins against the undefeated Cavs. The team is just too old, Lucas thinks. When Giannes and Damian Lillard are throwing up 75 points in one game and still lose, there’s a big issue. While there has been media chatter about Giannes leaving, just looking at their record, it’s just too early to make any big statements about the team this year, though the playoffs already look like a far reach this season. 

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.