2014-15 Football Previews – (Big 10) – Badgers
Gary Andersen’s first year in the Big Ten went pretty well, though expectations in Madison have been awfully high so not everyone was happy with a 9-4 season. Wisconsin lost in heartbreaking (and frankly just downright disgustingly cruel) fashion to Arizona State thanks to a referee screw up.
Big Ten 2014-2015 College Football Preview – Badgers
Head Coach: Gary Andersen
2013 Record: 9-4
Wisconsin Odds to win the National Championship: +3,000
Season Win Total: 9.5
They then turned it around for a long period of time, but the Badgers finished the season with a disappointing loss at home to Penn State and a hard fought loss to South Carolina in their bowl game.
Wisconsin lost 25 lettermen from last year’s team, and they return just three starters from last year’s defense, so winning might be a little tougher this year. The Badgers do still have a nice nucleus though, and I’m high on Andersen as a head coach.
Let’s take a closer look at this team.
Team Strengths:
When does the Wisconsin running game not dominate? It’s really for two reasons: Wisconsin has the best offensive line in the Big Ten every single year.
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They also have some terrific running backs every year. Both of these spots are going to be stacked again this year. The “smallest” starter on the Wisconsin offensive line this year checks in at 6’3 and 313 lbs.
Expect the Badgers to have one of the top offensive fronts in the country. At running back, the Badgers lose James White, but they still have Melvin Gordon. Gordon is even more talented than White, and he’ll shine in a big way this year.
Corey Clement will be a very capable backup too. Very few teams will be able to stop this running game.
The strength of the Wisconsin defense this year will be their secondary. Six of their top eight in the secondary return from last year, and last year’s team was good against the pass. Sojourn Shelton is only a sophomore, but he looks like he has the talent to be a star for a long time at the cornerback spot.
Team Weaknesses:
Wisconsin lost all three starting linebackers from last year’s team. Chris Borland was the defensive emotional leader the last few years, and he will be badly missed.
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The coaches are high on the youngsters who are stepping in at the linebacker spots, but there is no way this group doesn’t experience a significant drop off in production.
Wisconsin doesn’t have many reliable pass catchers on the outside this year. Jared Abbrederis was that guy the last couple seasons, but he has graduated.
Jacob Pedersen was a top notch tight end for Wisconsin as well, and he’s no longer here. It’s up to youthful guys to step up and prove they are going to be play makers here. A definite question mark.
The Wisconsin defensive line returns just five career starts overall. This is the least experienced Badgers defensive front we have seen in many years. There is no J.J. Watt on this line.
While there are a lot of people talking about the Badgers weakness at the linebacker position, many are overlooking their problems along the defensive line.
2014-2015 Wisconsin Football Prediction: 9-4
I’ll call for another nine-win season for the Badgers, but I expect this team to be down a couple notches from last year. Wisconsin plays LSU in their season opener, but the rest of the non-conference slate is simple. The Badgers also draw a very favorable Big Ten schedule.
Still, with as many holes as they have, I expect Wisconsin to be a bit of a disappointment. It’s hard to be this inexperienced in the front seven on defense and be at the top of the Big Ten. Wisconsin will be a good, but not great team in 2014.
Wisconsin Football Schedule
- 8/30/14 9:00 PM ET @LSU
- 9/6/14 TBD WIU
- 9/20/14 TBD BGSU
- 9/27/14 TBD USF
- 10/4/14 TBD @NW
- 10/11/14 TBD ILL
- 10/25/14 12:00 PM ET MD
- 11/1/14 12:00 PM ET @RUTG
- 11/8/14 TBD @PUR
- 11/15/14 TBD NEB
- 11/22/14 TBD @IOWA
- 11/29/14 TBD MINN
