The no. 6 Wisconsin Badgers will look to stay perfect on the season as they host the BYU Cougars. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 EST on Saturday, September 15, at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin. The game will be televised nationally on ABC.
Oddsmakers list Wisconsin as a 22-point favorite at home. Click here to see a full list of this week’s betting odds in college football.
As expected, the Badgers have won their first two games of the season in lopsided fashion. It started with a somewhat uninspiring 34-3 win over a weak Western Kentucky team the first week of the season. Wisconsin followed that up with last week’s 45-14 win over New Mexico. Surprisingly, the Badgers only led that game 10-7 at halftime. However, they managed to get things going in the 2nd half and win comfortably. Wisconsin now has one more game before they start the Big Ten portion of their schedule.
Independent BYU, meanwhile, is 1-1 on the season, as they look to bounce back from last year’s 4-9 campaign. The Cougars pulled off a road upset over Arizona to begin their season. Of course, that win is a little less impressive after Arizona’s continued problems this past week. BYU also struggled in Week 2, losing their home opener to Cal 21-18 as a 4th quarter comeback attempt fell short. Things get even more difficult for them this week with a road trip to Wisconsin.
These two teams met in Provo last September with Wisconsin steamrolling the Cougars 40-6. BYU had less than 200 yards of total offense in a game that was completely one-sided. Naturally, the Cougars remain considerable underdogs in this matchup. But it’ll be interesting to see if they can make this year’s meeting more competitive, even on the road.
I hesitate a little to swallow this many points. Wisconsin hasn’t looked all that impressive against inferior teams this season. In both games, the Badgers have essentially gotten away with playing just one half and sleepwalking through the other half. However, while I have no doubt that BYU is better than either of the teams Wisconsin has played thus far, I haven’t seen enough from the Cougars to convince me that they’re much better than the team that lost to Wisconsin by 34 points at home last year. With that in mind, I’ll lean toward the Badger to cover.
The BYU offense is my biggest concern coming into this game. The Wisconsin defense was a little inexperienced coming into the season and is still a work in progress. Against a quality offensive team, I think the Badgers could be a little vulnerable defensively, making it harder for them to cover. However, I just don’t think the Cougars qualify for that category.
Considering their opponents their first two games, the BYU offense has to be considered below average at this point in the season. I wouldn’t consider Arizona or Cal to be any special defensively, and while the Cougars were viable offensively at times against them, the numbers are unimpressive. Quarterback Tanner Mangum, who boasts plenty of experience, has completed just 58% of his passes for less than six yards per pass attempt. The Cougars are also averaging just 3.6 yards per carry running the ball.
To be blunt, that type of productivity isn’t going to cut it against the Wisconsin defense. If the Cougars couldn’t even reach 100 yards rushing at home against Cal last week, they’re not going to have much success against the Wisconsin defense on the road. If BYU can’t run the ball, they won’t do much offensively because Mangum doesn’t have the arm talent or the receivers to do much damage against a quality Big Ten defense.
On the other side of the ball, we know the Badgers are going to run the ball. Jordan Taylor has nearly 400 yards rushing in just two games, and that’s without having to play the entire game. Again, BYU will be better than either opponent Wisconsin has faced this season. The Cougars have also done a decent job of containing the run against both Arizona and Cal.
However, the Wisconsin rushing attack is a whole other animal, as they may have learned last season when they faced the Badgers. Taylor ran for over seven yards per carry against BYU last season, so it’s tough to imagine the Cougars will be much better against the Wisconsin running game this season. As long as the Badgers can run the ball effectively, they’ll be able to score enough points to cover.
I’m still a little wary of Wisconsin heading into this game because of their inability this year to play a full 60 minutes. But they may have learned their lesson about not taking teams lightly after only leading New Mexico 10-7 at halftime. I suspect with Big Ten play approaching fast, the Badgers will bring their best effort against BYU this week. If that’s the case, I have little doubt that Wisconsin will be able to cover the 22-point spread.