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Before Saturday’s kickoff, Joe Thomas appeared on the B1G Tailgate Show on the Big Ten Network with on-site co-hosts Camryn Irwin and Tyvis Powell.
Irwin was a volleyball setter at Oregon and Washington State. Powell was a defensive safety at Ohio State and had multiple stops in the National Football League.
Thomas is a Badgers legend.
Worthy of having his No. 72 retired.
The former University of Wisconsin offensive tackle from Brookfield Central High School has been enshrined in both the College Football and Pro Football Halls of Fame.
Since retiring from the sport, Thomas owns and operates a premium cattle ranch, Hall of Fame Farms, outside of Spring Green in the Driftless Region.
He has always had a taste for food.
Something he shared with Irwin and Powell.
Along with the Joe Thomas bagel sandwich.
It consists of Hall of Fame Wagyu skirt steak, scrambled eggs, aged Wisconsin cheddar, Vitruvian greens, Flyte Farm tomato and Kewpie mayo.
“It’s a really good balanced bagel,” Thomas said. “Good garlic salt bite on the top, when you bite through it, it makes a perfect bite. … It kind of melts in your mouth.”
You won’t get any argument from Irwin and Powell. Or Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell and any of his players who may have dined on the specialty bagel sandwich.
“The Badgers started ordering it in week 2, and they won,” said Thomas, a partner in Madison’s Gotham Bagels. “You know how superstitious teams are…”
After Wisconsin crushed Michigan State, 31-3, Saturday at Camp Randall Stadium, Fickell is not about to break from his routine even with an upcoming bye on the schedule.
Since melting down in the second half and losing the Sept. 6 opener to Notre Dame, the Badgers have won four straight games, matching last year’s win total.
So far, Thomas has been encouraged by what he has seen from the offensive line, which has long been the measuring stick for most successful Wisconsin teams.
“They’re moving in the right direction. They’re starting to get more physical. They’re understanding a little bit more of their identity. Who they are, what they do well.”
But…
“One of the challenges now is defenses aren’t too worried about their passing game, so you’re starting to get safeties who creep down toward the line of scrimmage.
“But they’re starting to get fits better, double teams, combination blocks. Although Michigan State is not a great test, you’re hoping some of the bright spots will carry over.”
Shuffling the line
Wisconsin’s Kevin Heywood (55), moved from right to left tackle ahead of the Oct. 3, 2026 game against Michigan State.
Before facing the Spartans, the Badgers shuffled their offensive tackles with Kevin Heywood moving from right to left, and Emerson Mandell starting at right tackle.
Offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes, offensive line assistant Eric Mateos and Fickell wanted to generate some competition and find a way to get their best players on the field.
Mandell has been recovering from an injury and made his first start of the season. PJ Wilkins, who had been starting at left tackle, was used in rotation with Mandell.
“Everything is kind of flipped in your mind,” Thomas said of Heywood shifting from right to left tackle. “It’s impressive that he was able to make the switch quickly.
“When you’re playing tackle, your inside leg is the leg you push with, and your outside leg is the one where you kick and reach. So, it’s kind of doing the opposite.
“You’ve got to kind of switch your balance, and your brain has to kind of flop sides. It’s a matter of getting reps over there and getting comfortable with everything flipped.”
Heywood sat out last season with an injury. But Fickell never had any doubt about him making the switch, knowing his mindset. “He’d cut off his right arm for us,” Fickell said.
During the game, Wisconsin’s starting center Austin Kawecki was injured, creating a playing opportunity for his seldom-used backup Ryan Cory. Cory didn’t disappoint.
“Last week, I kind of said DD (running back Darrion Dupree) stepped up and was a grown man for us,” Fickell said. “Ryan stepped up and was a grown man for us today.”
Joseph runs to win
Wisconsin quarterback Colton Joseph beats Michigan State defensive back Devin Vaught in a race to the goal line for a touchdown on Oct. 3, 2026 at Camp Randall in Madison.
The Badgers were dominant physically and there were running lanes for quarterback Colton Joseph, who rushed for 141 yards, the second most for a QB in UW history.
“I saw him today run to win,” Fickell said. “Two weeks ago, we saw a little bit of that where I challenged him, ‘Look, if you’re going to run … run to win … run to score.”
Thomas saw the same thing.
“He runs it like a running back,” Thomas said. “He runs tough. He doesn’t want to go down, and he sees the game and he sees the defense.
“That’s the big benefit when your quarterback is running the ball. He’s usually seeing everything. He’s looking at safeties and coverages and he knows where the holes are.”
On the run-pass options, Thomas added, “When he does pull the football, they’ve got a really good sense of where the green grass is on the field.”
Michigan State coach Pat Fitzgerald had no answers for the way his team performed and expressed his curt disappointment that it was such a mismatch.
“They physically beat us in every aspect of the game,” he said. “We didn’t win any one-on-one battles upfront. … It sucks to get your ass kicked. That’s what you take from it.”
After Wisconsin rallied from a 17-0 hole and stunned Penn State the week before, there may have been some in the fan base wondering if the Badgers might show up flat.
Big Ten Network analyst Jake Butt spoke to that prior to the kickoff.
“This is the most important game for Fickell since he became the head coach of Wisconsin,” opined Butt, a former tight end at Michigan. “Let’s rewind a little bit.
“He was hired and brought to Wisconsin after leading Cincinnati to the College Football Playoff, and that was in the four-team era (it has since expanded to 12 teams).
“The expectations were that he was going to do the same here in Madison. But the truth is, they haven’t come close. In reality, they haven’t built any positive momentum.
“It has been one step forward, two steps back. That win on the road last week (at Penn State) is the beginning of the momentum.
“Fickell told us, ‘This locker room finally has hope.’ The hope would be to follow up a good win last week with an even more convincing win today.”
Mission accomplished.
Seeing Fickell’s vision
Wisconsin linebacker Mason Posa (8) celebrates with Wisconsin linebacker Cooper Catalano (44) after a stop against Michigan State on Oct. 3, 2026 at Camp Randall in Madison.
“You’re starting to feel some confidence … you’re starting to see the vision with coach Fickell,” said Thomas, who has shared his experiences with UW’s visiting recruits.
“As a Wisconsin fan, we’ve been kind of calling for a little return to the style that we were used to and familiar with and has brought us so much success for 20 years.
“Hey, play really good, hard, tough defense. Be good on special teams. Be physical in your front and run the ball. Offensively, they’re still a work in progress.
“But defensively you see that.”
What Thomas sees and admires is the energy of sophomore inside linebackers Mason Posa and Cooper Catalano. They’re the heart and soul of this team. Cliché but true.
“I think back to the teams that were Rose Bowl teams, great teams the last 30 years,” Thomas said, “and they always had great, tough linebackers.
“The Catalano and Posa duo have kind of imparted their identity, their personality on the whole team, which is really cool.
“When you’ve got guys like that who are roommates and teammates and they’re young leaders, they push everybody and hold them accountable.
“It’s a really great thing to build your program on, and you see that permeate. Because these kids are so young, they’re impressionable. They want to be led…
“They need that good leadership.
“And those guys are providing it.”
Thomas stays busy
Last week, the Green Bay Packers sought much needed offensive line help and signed guard Kevin Zeitler, a former UW All-American and 14-year NFL veteran.
Zeitler, 36, had retired.
“He just loves football,” Thomas said. “He’s always ready. He never stops training. He’s wired as a lineman, and he’ll just do it until he can’t.
The Packers did not call the 41-year-old Thomas. But if they had, he said, “I think I could have played like one series, then they would have to bring the ambulance out.”
Former Badger Joe Thomas, inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, waves to the crowd during an October 2023 game at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison.
Along with his farm, the various business endeavors and broadcasting assignments, Thomas stay busy these days with his four kids.
Sunday, he was at a lacrosse tournament with his 10-year-old son. It wasn’t a sport that was offered when Thomas was in high school.
“I think I probably would have liked it,” he said. “You get to run around with a stick and hit kids, which is pretty awesome for a boy.”
Thomas helps coach his son in flag football. His wife, Annie, a former UW basketball player, oversees their three young girls in sports, two in volleyball and one in soccer.
“I tell my wife,” he said, “we can help with the skills, but the most important thing is just teaching them to be coachable, teaching them how to be good kids, and listen.
“We tell them, ‘If your coach is talking, our mouth is shut, our eyes are on the coach. We’re not playing with our shoes or our waist band and our flags.’
“I’m just teaching them how to practice, how to prepare, how to be an athlete. To me that’s the most valuable thing I can help with.”
Food for thought. Cliché but true.
Source: captimes.com
