2013-14 Football Previews – (Big 10) – Badgers
Bret Bielema did a great job with the Wisconsin Badgers football program. Wisconsin has won a lot of games the last few years. Bielema decided to head to the SEC and Arkansas in the offseason, which left the Badgers looking for a new coach. Gary Andersen from Utah State was the guy the Badgers hired, and I believe that was a very good hire.
Big 10 Conference 2012-2013 College Football Previews: Wisconsin Badgers (Team Link)
Head Coach: Gary Andersen
2012 Record: 8-6
Wisconsin Gambling Odds to win BCS Championship: +15,000
Wisconsin Gambling Odds to win Big 10 Leaders Division: +475
Wisconsin Gambling Odds to win Big 10 Conference: +950
Andersen did an amazing job turning Utah State into a very good football team after they had been a perennial doormat before he took over in Logan. This is clearly a different level of football, but Andersen seems like he is up for the challenge.
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Wisconsin went 8-6 last year, but each of their 6 losses were by a touchdown or less. The cupboard certainly isn’t bare for Andersen in his first year in Madison.
Team Strengths:
Chris Borland is one of the best defensive players in the Big Ten. Borland came up with 104 tackles last year despite missing two games and playing hurt for the majority of the season. Borland is going to set the tone for this defense with his tremendous motor. This is a guy who seems to find a way to be around the ball every single down. Expect some major accolades for him this year. He leads a solid group of linebackers.
While Montee Ball will be gone, the running back position is still an area of relative strength for Wisconsin. James White has been sitting behind some great backs the last few years, and it will be his turn to break out this season. Youngster Melvin Gordon also should get quite a few opportunities. The Badgers have plenty of talent at running back.
Wisconsin lost some talent at offensive line, but this team has shown the ability to constantly reload along the offensive line. Expect this offensive front to be very good again this year. Lots of depth along the line should be big for this offense in 2013.
Team Weaknesses:
The Badgers don’t have any real game changers at the quarterback spot. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Joel Stave is the front runner for the job, and while he isn’t a bad guy to have in the backfield, Stave isn’t a top notch passer. Curt Phillips will also push for the quarterback job. No quarterback on this roster will come in and star. Can they minimize their mistakes enough for the Badgers to consistently win?
Wisconsin is switching over to a 3-4 defense from its 4-3 defense of the past few seasons. This change is likely due to the lack of depth on the defensive line. While this move is meant to put less pressure on the defensive line, I’m concerned that it may allow opposing offensive lines to get to the second level easier in the running game.
2013-2014 Wisconsin Football Prediction: 9-4
Wisconsin has one of the easiest schedules in the Big Ten this year.
The Badgers play Ohio State on the road in late September, but their other road games are at Illinois, Iowa, and Minnesota. Wisconsin doesn’t have to play Michigan State, Michigan, or Nebraska. While the Badgers aren’t likely to beat the Buckeyes, they’ll be favored in every other Big Ten game this year.
An early non-conference test at Arizona State will be a good gauge of how this team will fare. The easier schedule should help them get an extra win, but this team has too many holes to be great.
2013 Wisconsin Schedule
8/31/13 TBD MASS
9/7/13 TBD TTECH
9/14/13 10:30 PM ET @ARZST
9/21/13 TBD PURD
9/28/13 8:00 PM ET @OHIST
10/12/13 3:30 PM ET NWEST
10/19/13 8:00 PM ET @ILL
11/2/13 TBD @IOWA
11/9/13 TBD BYU
11/16/13 TBD IND
11/23/13 TBD @MINN
11/30/13 TBD PENST
