Football: Wisconsin visits Penn State
The Wisconsin football team closes out its 2012 season with a trip to central Pennsylvania November 24 to take on Penn State, which will be led by new head coach Bill O’Brien.
With Ohio State ineligible for postseason play in 2012, the Nittany Lions look to be the Badgers’ biggest competition in the Big Ten’s Leaders division. If Wisconsin is able to hold off Penn State on the road, they will likely be making their second-straight appearance in Indianapolis and the Big Ten Championship game.
Wisconsin’s defense will hope to repeat their performance against Penn State from last season, when the Badgers held PSU to just 233 total yards and seven points in a 45-7 throttling at Camp Randall.
This game will also be the first time since 1966 that UW has made the trip to Happy Valley and not faced off against Joe Paterno. The much-maligned program will try to distance itself from its recent controversy and turn over a new page for Penn State football in a statement game.
-Matt Masterson
Women’s hockey: Wisconsin hosts Minnesota
The Badgers lost just five games all of last season, and the Gophers were responsible for three of them. The biggest of those came in the national championship game in Duluth, Minn., where Wisconsin fell to its WCHA rival, 4-2.
From a historical standpoint, Wisconsin’s showdown against Bemidji State October 19 will be the biggest game of its season, as that will be its first game in the new La Bahn arena. However, from a talent standpoint, the national championship rematch January 26 will be the Badgers’ biggest game of the regular season.
These two teams are two of the nation’s best: At least one has played in the national championship game in eight of the past nine years. They will likely both carry a high ranking into the January matchup, and a packed La Bahn Arena will make for an electric atmosphere.
-Vince Huth
Men’s basketball: Wisconsin vs. Indiana
The 2012-’13 schedule hasn’t come out yet, but the Badgers will play the Hoosiers at least once during the regular season. If that’s the case, the game will almost certainly be in Bloomington, Ind., as the Hoosiers played at the Kohl Center in the teams’ only regular season meeting last season.
Indiana is one of the early favorites to contend for a national title and will likely be favored when it plays Wisconsin. However, high rankings won’t scare the Badgers, who have a recent history of knocking off top teams.
Wisconsin beat then-No. 5 Duke when the Blue Devils came to Madison as part of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge three seasons ago. The following season, Wisconsin took down then-No. 1 and undefeated Ohio State behind a Jordan Taylor-led comeback in the second half.
Yes, both of those games were at the Kohl Center. But Wisconsin also won on the road against then-No. 9 Ohio State last season, and the Value City Arena isn’t the easiest place to steal a win. The Buckeyes have suffered just three combined home losses over the past three seasons.
In a matchup between two of the Big Ten’s top teams, the Wisconsin-Indiana game will also feature some of the conference’s top individual players. Indiana sophomore center Cody Zeller is a favorite to win Big Ten player of the year honors (and All-American ones, too). Wisconsin forward Sam Dekker and Indiana guard Yogi Ferrell will have a big impact on their respective teams as freshmen. Wisconsin center Jared Berggren, forward Ryan Evans and Indiana forward Christian Watford are three of the conference’s top seniors.
It’s hard to go wrong when conference rivals—and conference title contenders—square off. It will surely be a hot ticket if the Hoosiers visit Madison this season. If they play only at Assembly Hall in Bloomington, park yourself on the couch and grab a beer or six.
-Vince Huth
Men’s hockey: Wisconsin vs. Minnesota at Soldier Field
For the first time since 2009, the Wisconsin men’s hockey team will be heading outdoors, this time at Soldier Field in Chicago February 17. The Badgers will take on archrival Minnesota in the inaugural Hockey City Classic—a doubleheader that will also feature a game between Notre Dame and Miami University.
The last time UW played outdoors, they defeated Michigan in a 3-2 thriller in front of over 55,000 chilly fans at Camp Randall Stadium. This time, the Badgers are looking to bounce back after a rocky 2011-’12 season and prove their worth against one of the best teams not only in the WCHA, but in the country.
Junior forward and Hobey Baker hopeful Mark Zengerle heads a more experienced roster that could compete for a WCHA championship as well as their first spot in the Frozen Four since 2010.
This game will also be the last regular season contest between the two schools before they both move to the Big Ten Conference in 2013.
-Matt Masterson
Football: Wisconsin hosts Michigan State
After two seasons of bad blood, controversy and (most importantly) classic games between the Wisconsin and Michigan State football teams, the two schools are finally bringing the fight back to Madison October 27.
Sparty played host to the Badgers for their last two regular season contests, both of which went the way of Michigan State. The inaugural Big Ten Championship, however, was a different story, with Wisconsin pulling out an incredible 42-39 victory over the Spartans last December.
Both teams lost numerous starters to the NFL and will be looking to rebuild in order to stay among the Big Ten’s best, but while the personnel has changed, the rivalry has not.
Returning starters, such as senior running back Montee Ball and redshirt junior wide receiver Jared Abbrederis, will lead an offense that hopes to be as productive as the 2011 unit that broke several UW and Big Ten records.
For the second straight season, this matchup could be an appetizer for another marquee championship game in Indianapolis.
-Matt Masterson
