Madison — When a misty-eyed Luke Fickell took to the podium following Wisconsin’s narrow 24-10 loss to No. 3 Ohio State, you could tell this game carried a different meaning than his first eight games as head coach of the Badgers.

Yes, Fickell has obvious personal ties to the Buckeyes — he played along their defensive line from 1992-1996, starting 50 games. He was a graduate assistant for the program in 1999. He then spent 2001 to 2016 as part of the coaching staff in Columbus, including one season as the head coach.

And yet, his history with Ohio State isn’t what appeared to have the coach as emotional as we’ve seen him following a game. It was the loss itself. A loss that, for a few surreal moments, looked like it had a chance to be a win.

“I don’t really know where to start. That’s a tough one.”

“Gut wrenching for those guys, and for all of us.”

“We’re gonna have to put this thing behind us, fast.”

Fickell’s comments illustrate what was clear to see from the press box, the stands and the broadcast: the Badgers believed they could win this game. And they nearly did.

Neither was true a season ago, when these two teams met with Paul Chryst at the helm for Wisconsin. The Badgers got humiliated, 52-21. They were carved up on defense and completely out of sync on offense.

At the time, that loss illuminated just how wide the gap was between the two programs. A year later, another loss to Ohio State has once again shed light on the gap between Wisconsin and the top teams in the nation.

The difference? The gap has shrunk.

“I think this was a big test for us,” slot receiver Skyler Bell said. “We wanted to show we could compete with teams like that, teams that are that caliber.”

Compete they did. The Badgers gave the Buckeyes hell for three-and-a-half quarters, stymying an offense with NFL players everywhere.

Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord walked into Camp Randall Stadium with just three giveaways on the season. He walked out with three more: two interceptions and a fumble.

His fumble came on the very first drive of the game, as he was stip-sacked by CJ Goetz. His first interception, courtesy of safety Preston Zachman, came in the end zone with the Buckeyes knocking on the door. His second, courtesy of cornerback Rico Hallman, came with Ohio State driving and looking to go up three scores.

“I’m proud of how we came out, how we attacked, how we prepared all week,” safety Hunter Wohler said. “I’m proud of the fight that we had.”

For Wohler, though, like Fickell, his pride came secondary to his pain at letting what was a winnable game slip away.

“This one sucks. You never want to lose, especially when you have it. When you’re that close,” he said.

Quarterback Braedyn Locke echoed a similar sentiment: moral victories are meaningless when the game is there for the taking.

“Losses hurt no matter who you’re playing,” he said. “You wanna come out on top, that’s why you play this game.”

The air around the Badgers following the loss was clear: this was a winnable game. They just didn’t do enough to come out on top.

The same couldn’t have come close to being said last season. Wisconsin played like they knew they were the inferior team. This year, they came out with a different hunger, a different will to win.

The deficiencies between a team like Wisconsin, who’s fighting to potentially win the Big Ten West, and a team like the Buckeyes, who are fighting for a national title, were made very clear. The Badgers must get bigger and stronger in the defensive trenches. They must get faster and more talented out on the perimeter, on both sides of the ball. They must attract blue-chip quarterbacks that can make every throw on the field.

Many of those deficiencies are in the process of being addressed. Blue-chip talent is waiting in the wings in Madison, thanks in large part to Fickell and his staff’s recruiting prowess both at the high school level and through the transfer portal.

A tight loss to a team many believed Wisconsin had no chance to compete with signifies the belief Fickell has instilled in his players in year one. It signifies the culture he’s creating. It signifies that the Badgers aren’t quite there yet. But boy, are they a lot closer than they were last season.

“We have to keep building off this,” cornerback Nyzier Fourqurean said. “We definitely know where we can go…we have a bright future.”

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