Wisconsin will stick with freshman Ryan Hopkins as its starting quarterback this week at Maryland following his impressive debut in Saturday's win over Rutgers.
Hopkins completed 18 of 24 passes for 241 yards and three touchdowns as Wisconsin cruised to a 31-10 home win. He started in place of Colton Joseph, who was dealing with an injury but available against Rutgers.
Joseph, a transfer from Old Dominion, started Wisconsin's first nine games but has seen his passing production drop off. He hasn't had 100 yards in his last three games and was a combined 11-for-30 for 156 yards in losses to UCLA and Iowa.
Coach Luke Fickell said Joseph will remain in the team's offensive plan for the Maryland game.
"We're not going to try and hide that," Fickell said of the decision to start Hopkins. "But we feel like we've got two guys that we've got to find ways to be able to use and be comfortable with whoever's out there. Unfortunately, the last few years, we've had to battle with some of that, and we've had to have plans for different guys in different ways. I don't think that's the case now.
"We've got two guys that know an offense and can run an offense."
Wisconsin endured season-ending injuries to its projected starting quarterbacks (Billy Edwards Jr. and Tyler Van Dyke) in each of the last two seasons.
Hopkins, 6-foot-3 and 205 pounds, was a four-star recruit in the 2026 class.
"It's going to be another great opportunity for Ryan," Fickell said.
