Something that I'm seeing is that the recruiting technique used by the new staff is intense. They don't just talk to a kid about joining the Badgers, they stay in touch with them, and are constantly listening to them, and bolstering their beliefs in why the Badger program would be best for their personal growth. It tells these kids that they really do care about them, beyond the scope of the football field.
With the limited recruiting that was done under Chryst, this obviously wasn't nearly to this level. It was something that could have made this program a bigger success quite some time ago. Where the log jam was, in spending the money to make it happen, I can only guess, but I'm not going to heap it all on the shoulders of Alvarez. I believe there were a lot of restraints from above him, in the chain of control.
There's going to be a few hiccups along the way, but I think Fickell is capable of turning the Badgers into a real national powerhouse, if given the facilities, and support needed, to get them up there with OSU and Michigan. They could end up being one of the elite 8, which will include Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma, Georgia, USC, OSU, Michigan, and either PSU or Wisconsin. These would be the 8 that would end up sending at least one representative, and possibly two, contenders to each NCAA tournament, with the 12 team format. Another contender, especially if they joined the Big 10, would be Notre Dame. On the outside, on the cusp of being included, Florida, Clemson, and Auburn.