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Wisconsin runs the ball.
But you knew that.
And the Badgers play defense.
And you knew that because you’re happy LSU stole defensive coordinator Dave Aranda from the Badgers.
But what should you know about the 2016 Badgers?
We’re here to help with these five tidbits:
The offensive line could be the best LSU sees
Because of injuries and inexperience, Wisconsin started seven offensive line combinations last season. The Badgers return five players who started at least three games a season ago.
That added experience should help the Badgers return to form up front. Wisconsin, a school that has twice set the NCAA record for combined rushing yards by a running back tandem (Melvin Gordon and Corey Clement after James White and Melvin Gordon) in the previous two seasons, averaged just 3.8 yards per carry last year (13th in the Big Ten).
Even with the early retirement of guard Dan Voltz because of injury, every position can potentially be manned by a player with starting experience. Wisconsin should be much better running the ball this year, particularly with Clement healthy and starting again after missing much of last season with a sports hernia.
Expect to see two quarterbacks
Joe Stave went 31-10 as Wisconsin’s starting quarterback, but that era is over and the Badgers have had an interesting camp trying to figure out who the starter will be.
Senior Bart Houston, named after Green Bay Packers Hall of Famer Bart Starr, is the winner of a camp competition with redshirt freshman Alex Hornibrook. Houston has the big arm and experience in the program. Hornibrook is a left-hander who is more nimble on his feet.
By all accounts, both quarterbacks had their moments in August camp. Houston, who came off the bench to throw for 232 yards, 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions in a 24-13 win over Illinois last season in his most extensive playing time, leaned on that experience to earn the start.
But against an athletic LSU defense, the mobility of Hornibrook could be useful. Expect to see him at some point.
The defensive front seven is good … but hurting
Wisconsin was not only second in the nation in total defense last season under then-defensive coordinator Dave Aranda (now at LSU), but also first in scoring defense. Its strength is up front, where six of the front seven players return, with the notable exception being All-Big Ten linebacker Joe Schobert.
However, linebacker T.J. Edwards will not be among the returning players to play against LSU, having been ruled out for the game because of a broken foot suffered in June that has kept him out of August camp. Edwards was the Badgers’ leading tackler last season with 84 total tackles. Schobert added 79, including a whopping 19.5 for loss.
With the Badgers’ top two tacklers from last year either departed or out, don’t be surprised if Les Miles doesn’t challenge Wisconsin’s defense at what’s supposed to be its strength, right at the heart of the run defense.
The secondary is a work in progress
Aranda’s replacement, Justin Wilcox, may have his work cut out for him in the secondary, where Wisconsin lost three starters from a defense that allowed just 173.2 yards per game in the air (seventh in the nation).
Last season, the Badgers relied on a pair of senior safeties who had good chemistry and made few mistakes. Between them, Michael Caputo and Tanner McEvoy combined for 107 tackles and 8 interceptions, but their careers are over.
This year, cornerback Sojourn Shelton is the lone returning starter in the Badgers’ secondary. Leo Musso and D’Cota Dixon are the new starting safeties. It would be tough to expect them to provide the same veteran leadership and playmaking ability Caputo and McEvoy provided.
Expect LSU to test those safeties early and often.
Remember 24-7
Wisconsin has lost four of its last five meetings against SEC teams, including last year’s 35-17 loss to Alabama in the season opener.
But LSU fans should not be lulled into a false sense of security by that.
The first half of this two-game series was in Houston in 2014, and in that game, Wisconsin jumped to a 24-7 lead after Melvin Gordon’s 63-yard run on the first play of the third quarter before LSU rallied back to win, 28-24.
LSU is a clear favorite this time based on having more returning starters and the Tigers’ dominance in nonconference games (53 straight wins). But considering this game is in the state of Wisconsin — the 2014 game was four hours from Baton Rouge in Houston — and Wisconsin continues to have a quality program, this is far from a game LSU should take for granted, despite being a 10-point favorite.