NFL Coach Spotting Sparks Mass Speculation About Job Change

Mike McCarthy was seen in public over the weekend with Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh, and the rumors are already out of control.

The Wisconsin football program is in a place that I honestly never thought it could return to. Gone are the days of 10+ win seasons. It's now the late 1980s/early 1990s when Wisconsin was at rock bottom.

There was no clearer indication of that fact than the Badgers getting blown out at home by Maryland this past weekend.

Fans are in open revolt against Luke Fickell and chants rained down demanding he be fired.

Will Wisconsin fire football coach Luke Fickell? The Badgers are 2-2 after losing to Maryland at home. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)

Mike McCarthy spotted with Wisconsin AD.

Following the Saturday bloodbath, the former Packers and Cowboys coach was spotted with Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh on Sunday watching a Badgers volleyball game.

As soon as a photo was shared on X, it took off like throwing a grenade into a 55 gallon drum of gasoline.

College football fans are no stranger to this kind of situation. Coaches being spotted with university officials while the current coach is on a scorching hot seat always results in speculation and rumors.

It's one of the reasons why college football is so much fun. It's right up there with the people who track private jets like their life depends on it.

Mike McCarthy was spotted with Wisconsin's AD as Luke Fickell's seat is engulfed in flames. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)

Having said that, let me go ahead and end the fun for everyone right now. There is *ZERO CHANCE* Mike McCarthy will be the next coach of the Wisconsin Badgers.

Zero.

Mike McCarthy is an NFL coach. He won a Super Bowl with the Packers, and while a connection to the state exists, his last experience coaching college football came in 1992 with Pittsburgh, just a few years after his college career came to an end. It's now 2025 and Mike McCarthy is 61-years-old.

McIntosh is also fighting for his job after hitching his wagon to Fickell. That's why he still showed support for the current regime following the Maryland loss. McIntosh knows his fate is tied to the success of Fickell, and the $40 million buyout looms large.

If a coaching change does happen - and it needs to be done, to be clear - then Wisconsin will target a proven college coach. Not a guy whose last college experience came when George H. W. Bush was in office.

The school is teetering on the brink thanks to the disaster that has been allowed to unfold. Another misstep and the face of the university will implode. Hiring the wrong coach won't just be bad.

It will be a mistake that could doom the school for years to come. That's the reality of the situation, and Mike McCarthy in no way, shape or form fits into future plans.

Wisconsin's football program is in an unbelievably dark place. (Photo by Michael Chang/Getty Images)

Who would you like to see Wisconsin target if Fickell is shown the door? Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.