There’s no question that Billy Edwards is Wisconsin’s guy in 2025.
The Wisconsin Badgers had quite the overhaul this offseason, losing and bringing in players at key positions to reshape their roster for the 2025 season.
One of those additions was Maryland Terrapins transfer quarterback Billy Edwards Jr, who was a first-year starter in 2024, throwing for 2,881 yards, 15 touchdowns, and nine interceptions.
It will be the third straight year that Wisconsin is starting a transfer quarterback, but there’s something different about this year’s situation than in years past.
Wisconsin brought in three transfer quarterbacks in the 2023 cycle, adding veteran Tanner Mordecai with coveted former four-stars Nick Evers and Braedyn Locke. Then, they brought in Tyler Van Dyke last offseason to start before adding Edwards in this year’s cycle.
Speaking on The Jime Rome Show on Tuesday, head coach Luke Fickell praised Edwards’s leadership, while noting a big change about the team’s approach at the position in comparison to years past.
“Well, I feel great about Billy [Edwards],” Fickell said. “I think Billy walking in here, playing in this league, but also being through what he has been through. He’s a leader since the day he walked in the door.
“The last two years, we’ve brought in quarterbacks thought to be the starter. But in some ways, we kind of said, ‘Hey, as you come in, you’ve got to earn this. You got to beat everybody else out.’ This year, walking in the door, it was like, ‘Hey, Billy, you’re our guy. If you’re coming here, you’re the guy. You’ve got to start your leadership right now. You’ve got to embrace everybody. They got to follow you.’ And he’s done a phenomenal job of that.”
When Wisconsin brought Mordecai in two years ago, he was a new face amid a major coaching change, coming into a building with many returners. But, he was still the clear entrenched starter at quarterback, which was made apparent by the time spring ball started.
Last year, however, the Badgers had a battle between Tyler Van Dyke and Braedyn Locke for the starting job. Van Dyke always seemed like he was a step ahead in the competition, which was made apparent by fall camp, but it felt Wisconsin owed a shot to Locke since they brought him in the year before.
This offseason, however, the Badgers made their quarterback plans clear even before the players got to campus in January. Sophomore Danny O’Neil acknowledged that he was recruited to be the backup this year with potential for more in 2026.
Edwards has been Wisconsin’s guy from the jump, and the coaching staff raved about the leadership from both him and O’Neil throughout the spring. While it may not result in anything, it is a shift for Fickell and the Badgers, who are trying to find their identity on offense after a big coaching change this offseason.