BADGERS HC LUKE FICKELL PROVIDES INITIAL INJURY UPDATE ON QB TYLER VAN DYKE

The Wisconsin Badgers suffered a tough loss on Saturday in a 42-10 beatdown by the Alabama Crimson Tide.

The game was an ugly one from the jump, as starting quarterback Tyler Van Dyke suffered what appeared to be a major injury on the first drive of the game, which required him to be carted off, and he later appeared on crutches on the sidelines.

Van Dyke, a transfer from Miami, had slowly begun to get in a groove, moving the ball well with his legs on the first drive against the Crimson Tide, but suffered an unfortunate injury on a scramble attempt, leading Braedyn Locke to jump in the rest of the way.

Following the game, head coach Luke Fickell couldn’t commit to anything, but acknowledged that it doesn’t look good for his starting quarterback.

“He wasn’t able to come back,” Fickell said about Van Dyke. We’ll get a little more clarity, hopefully here soon get an MRI and things like that. I don’t think it looks real good for us, for him. And that’s really, really difficult because I think he was really well prepared and I think that he had grown in those first few weeks and was really sharp to start that game.”

Van Dyke’s play was going to be one of the major tipping points for the Badgers to be competitive, not only against a tough Alabama opponent, but also for the duration of the 2024 season.

Without Van Dyke at the helm, the Badgers struggled on Saturday as Braedyn Locke was put into yet another unfortunate situation, while the offense looked severely limited in the air.

If Wisconsin is to miss their starting quarterback for the remainder of the 2024 season, there are definitely questions to be had around their winning season record, as the Badgers have a tough schedule ahead, starting in two weeks with a road trip to USC.

For Van Dyke, it’s a really unfortunate way to cap off his fifth year of college, should it be a season-ending injury, as he had looked to rewrite the narrative around his career with hopes of earning a professional opportunity next year. Now, it’s time to rehab instead, with a sixth college season potentially even as a possibility if Van Dyke elects to use the medical redshirt.

2024-09-15T16:29:25Z dg43tfdfdgfd