Wisconsin football went 11-3 and won the Big Ten West and the Cotton Bowl in 2016. Can the Badgers win the league for the first time in half a decade?
Another year yielded another Big Ten West title in 2016 for Wisconsin. The Badgers went 10-2 in the regular season, losing at Michigan and at home to Ohio State. They also fell against Penn State by a touchdown in the Big Ten championship game in Indianapolis. But they were nevertheless invited to the Cotton Bowl, where the Badgers knocked off Western Michigan, the Group of Five representative, in a 24-16 victory.
Though their offense sputtered at times, Wisconsin boasted one of the top defenses in the nation. Timely stops and a secondary that loved nothing more than robbing opponents of the football combined to help the Badgers get through a down year for their running attack and a largely ineffective passing game.
Several preseason injuries have impacted the Badgers leading up to the 2017 season, but they still remain the favorite in the West. It has now been five years since Wisconsin last won the Big Ten title, back when the conference was divided into Legends and Leaders. Since splitting into a more sensible East-West format, the Badgers have been to the Big Ten title game twice and lost both times.
Remember when Wisconsin was a Big Ten champ?
The last time the Badgers won the Big Ten championship was in 2012. That title was clouded by mitigating factors that allowed Wisconsin to slip into the bowl game in the first place. Both Ohio State and Penn State finished ahead of the Badgers in the short-lived Leaders division, but sanctions against both schools prevented them from playing in the championship game. Wisconsin crushed Nebraska 70-31, then went on to the Rose Bowl where they lost 20-14 to Stanford to finish off an 8-6 championship season.
After coming close to knocking off the Nittany Lions last year, Badgers fans hope to have another shot at ending the conference drought in early December. Will the favorites in the Big Ten West make another trip to Indianapolis and challenge for the league title?
Offense
The Badgers are going with Alex Hornibrook at quarterback next season after he split time with Bart Houston last year. Hornibrook started in nine games as a redshirt freshman last year, but threw for just 1,262 yards and nine touchdowns. Three of his seven interceptions came against Michigan, though, and otherwise he was a serviceable if underwhelming quarterback.
After a year of seasoning and a shift to full-time starter, though, Hornibrook could develop into just the caretaker the Badgers have always relied on under center. Luckily his center is redshirt junior Michael Deiter, who has started all 27 games of his career with Wisconsin. He anchors an offensive line that has started 90 combined games heading into 2017. The biggest loss is left tackle Ryan Ramczyk, who was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the 2017 NFL Draft.
Hornibrook will also have back a familiar group of receivers. That includes Jazz Peavy and tight end Troy Fumagalli, the team’s top two receivers in terms of yardage last season. Peavy was also a dynamic return man who helped set up Wisconsin with great field position throughout the season.
The next halfback up in Madison
What kept the Badgers from fully realizing its offensive potential in 2016 was a running game that was hardly its usual self. This was despite fielding Corey Clement, who averaged over 100 yards per game and rushed for 15 touchdowns last season. Clement went undrafted in the 2017 NFL Draft, but he was signed as a free agent by the Philadelphia Eagles.
More: 5 reasons why the Badgers will win the national title in 2017
Wisconsin was a top-40 rushing unit last season, which was better than their abysmal 2015 numbers but hardly what the Badgers have historically produced. With Clement entering his rookie season of pro football, Paul Chryst and offensive coordinator Joe Rudolph need to figure out how to return the UW running game back to prominence.
Look for Bradrick Shaw to emerge out of Clement’s shadow. As a redshirt freshman earning his first playing time last year, Shaw rushed 88 times for 457 yards and five scores. An increased number of reps could turn the former Alabama prep star into Wisconsin’s next 1000-yard rusher.
Defense
In contrast to their offense, Wisconsin fielded one of the top five defenses in college football last year. That success all began with the front seven. The group held opposing rushing attacks under 100 yards per game in 2016. The Badgers led the nation in time of possession last season in large part because the defense took care of business so efficiently.
The defensive line brings back all of its top six players from 2016. That bodes well for another strong showing, especially against the run. Defensive end Chikwe Obasih, who has started 31 games during his time at Wisconsin, leads the unit.
On top of the stout rushing defense, Wisconsin also gave up just 200 passing yards per game. Only San Diego State had more interceptions than the Badgers’ 22 picks. While the secondary loses cornerback Sojourn Shelton, the defensive backfield boasts three senior starters. Highly touted freshman corner Scott Nelson looks ready to step into Shelton’s vacated spot.
Related Story: Depth at linebacker will ease the loss of Jack Cichy
How the loss of Jack Cichy impacts the linebackers
The linebacking corps already lost T.J. Watt and Vince Biegel from last year’s unit. Then, during fall practices ahead of the new season, senior inside linebacker Jack Cichy tore his ACL and will be out for the 2017 season. It remains to be seen whether Cichy is granted a medical hardship waiver and allowed a sixth season of eligibility, but the Badgers will survive the injury to remain stout at the second level.
What will new defensive coordinator (and former UW safety) Jim Leonhard do about the situation? Look for him to take advantage of a deep group to compensate for the loss of Cichy. Look for Ryan Connelly, a redshirt junior who led all FBS inside linebackers at stopping runs for losses, to step into Cichy’s starting role. Chris Orr, who started last season’s opener versus LSU but was injured on the first defensive play, will rotate time with Connelly alongside T.J. Edwards.
2017 Schedule
| WEEK | DATE | OPPONENT | LOCATION |
| 1 | Sep 2, 2017 | Utah State @ Wisconsin | Madison, WI |
| 2 | Sep 9, 2017 | Florida Atlantic @ Wisconsin | Madison, WI |
| 3 | Sep 16, 2017 | Wisconsin @ BYU | Provo, UT |
| 4 | BYE WEEK | ||
| 5 | Sep 30, 2017 | Northwestern @ Wisconsin | Madison, WI |
| 6 | Oct 7, 2017 | Wisconsin @ Nebraska | Lincoln, NE |
| 7 | Oct 14, 2017 | Purdue @ Wisconsin | Madison, WI |
| 8 | Oct 21, 2017 | Maryland @ Wisconsin | Madison, WI |
| 9 | Oct 28, 2017 | Wisconsin @ Illinois | Champaign, IL |
| 10 | Nov 4, 2017 | Wisconsin @ Indiana | Bloomington, IN |
| 11 | Nov 11, 2017 | Iowa @ Wisconsin | Madison, WI |
| 12 | Nov 18, 2017 | Michigan @ Wisconsin | Madison, WI |
| 13 | Nov 25, 2017 | Wisconsin @ Minnesota | Minneapolis, MN |
What’s in store for Wisconsin in 2017?
The Badgers were gift-wrapped another opportunity to return to the Big Ten championship game in 2017. Their non-conference schedule features home games against Utah State and Florida Atlantic. Wisconsin will also travel to Provo to face BYU before their conference schedule begins.
In Big Ten play, the Badgers managed to avoid both Ohio State and Penn State from the East. They only have four road games in league play. That includes a trip to Nebraska, the least experience team in the division, in early October. The Badgers also take on Illinois, Indiana, and Minnesota on the road.
The bare minimum for this year’s Wisconsin team is another trip to Indianapolis. Paul Chryst’s team enters 2017 with a veteran roster on both sides of the ball. There is no clear challenger in the West to dethrone the Badgers.
Prediction: 11-1 (8-1 Big Ten)
The Badgers are going to enter conference play with an undefeated record after taking down the Aggies, Owls and Cougars. Wisconsin has a path toward an unbeaten regular season. But they have not entered November with an unblemished mark in the standings since 2004. This year they should still have a zero in the loss column at the end of October.
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Jim Harbaugh‘s young but skilled squad looks like the most likely candidate to deal Wisconsin a loss, but the Badgers will still be facing off against the East champ in the conference title game. They could even be in the College Football Playoff hunt if they win the school’s first Big Ten championship since 2012.