Wisconsin:
Solidify O-Line, gain confidence in run game
Casual commentators have frequently remarked on Wisconsin’s rejuvenated rushing attack in the past several weeks. While it’s easy to marvel at the stats over the last four weeks—223 rushing yards against Nebraska, 190 against Northwestern, a whopping 363 against Illinois and 221 against Purdue—it’s premature to declare that the Badgers are back to their dominant ways on the ground. The struggles they had running the football earlier in the year may very well return when they face tougher defensive fronts against Minnesota this week or in future games.
For this reason, it’s important for the Badgers to use this opportunity to bully Minnesota on the ground and continue to gain confidence. The offensive line has been plagued by inconsistency and affected by constantly shuffling and reshuffling throughout the year, but has rounded into form the last month of the season.
If the Badgers can run the ball at will against the Gophers this year, they’ll have confidence that they can continue to pound the rock, even once they begin to see more stout defenses.
Don’t get caught looking ahead
Head coach Paul Chryst has done an excellent job this year of making sure that his players don’t overlook opponents, and instead focus on one game at a time. For the most part—with the possible exception of the near-disaster against Georgia State Sept. 17—the players have bought into that philosophy.
It’s now more important than ever that the Badgers don’t overlook Minnesota. A letdown at home against UW’s biggest rival would cast a pall over an otherwise phenomenal season. While it’s easy to get caught up thinking about B1G Championship and bowl game aspirations, the players and coaches need to remain focused on the task at hand: winning Paul Bunyan’s aAxe for the 13th consecutive year, and booking a trip to Indy.
Stay healthy
After a 9-2 start to the season, the Badgers have high hopes for the rest of the campaign. Despite several key contributors falling victim to the injury bug, the group has been able to continue to perform, week in and week out. UW needs to hope that things will stay that way this week; as they prepare for the stretch run, they need every player healthy. An injury at positions lacking in depth—such as offensive line, or linebacker, a positional corps that has already been ravaged by injuries—could spell doom for the team.
Injuries rarely happen as a result of negligence, and are often random and unavoidable, but with an important December and potentially January looming, the Badgers should be praying that they can avoid the injury bug for a few more games.
Minnesota’s keys:
Play spoiler
Although the Gophers will make a bowl this year, their hopes of winning the Big Ten West this year are nonexistent. Nevertheless, rivalry games always bring out the best in teams, and the opportunity to ruin Wisconsin’s hopes at a conference championship will be enough to put the Badgers on upset alert.
If we’ve learned anything from the past several weeks in college football, top teams that don’t bring their “A” game can be toppled by upstart underdogs looking to play spoiler. The Gophers would love to join the ranks of Iowa, Pitt, USC and others who have been able to put a dent in a playoff contender’s chances. The Gophers are itching to bring the axe back to the Twin Cities, and the prospect of winning it from a highly-ranked Wisconsin team will be a big motivator.
Capitalize on passing-game opportunities
The Badgers’ defense has been absolutely stifling through 11 games. It’s hard to find anything to complain about, but the unit has shown vulnerability against the pass. Georgia State was able to torch the UW secondary with a quick-hitting passing game. Nebraska’s Tommy Armstrong and Northwestern’s Clayton Thorson enjoyed some success targeting Lubern Figaro and his counterparts with timing routes and Purdue’s David Blough connected on several big plays through the air.
Minnesota’s Mitch Leidner hasn’t lived up to unreasonably high expectations (some considered him a dark horse Heisman candidate at the start of the year—look it up), but he is still a talented passer. If the Gophers are able to attack the Badger defense through the air, they may be able to keep themselves in the game.
Take crowd out of it early
Wisconsin’s significant home-field advantage will play a role in Saturday’s game. With the Gophers in town and the Badgers enjoying one of their best seasons in recent memory, the crowd will likely be sizable and raucous. In order for the Gophers to stand a chance at pulling the upset, they need a quick score to take the Camp Randall faithful out of it early. If the Wisconsin defense is able to get some stops, force multiple turnovers and in turn, ignite the crowd, Minnesota can forget about ending their dozen-year long drought against Wisconsin.
