When looking at the schedule for the Wisconsin Badgers’ 2024 football season, it is fair to assume most fans' eyes glossed over the first two weeks and darted directly to the third date on the schedule: Sept. 13, against the No. 4 team in the nation, Alabama.
And after watching Wisconsin play lower-quality opponents Western Michigan and South Dakota in the first two games of their season, it is fair to assume the Badgers eyes' did as well.
Before the season, the two matchups looked to be more like test runs before the Badgers would square up with their next nonconference opponents, The Alabama Crimson Tide, a match-up that has been highly anticipated since the two schools agreed to a home-and-home series back in 2019.
But with the two tune-up games behind them, the Badgers find themselves with more questions to answer than they’d like.
Sure, Wisconsin did take care of business in the first two games of the season, winning both games and improving to 2-0 for the first time in four years. But in doing so, they did the bare minimum. Unable to put away either team, Wisconsin proved they have more to work on and didn’t put any fan worries to rest before the looming Alabama game.
Two weeks into Phil Longo’s second season as Wisconsin’s offensive coordinator, his offense continues to look dry. In Week 1 last season, the Badgers put up 38 points against Buffalo. Fourteen games later, Wisconsin has not been able to top that number.
Wisconsin scored 28 points in each of their two games of the season. Not bad marks, but considering the opponents, it’s nothing to write home about.
The Badgers are severely lacking in the big-play department. Out of the 150 plays Wisconsin’s offense has run this season, only nine have been marked as an explosive play — a run of 12 or more yards and a pass of 16 or more yards — The Athletic’s Jesse Temple reported. That rate is a ghastly six percent.
To consistently put points on the board, Wisconsin must work to throw the ball downfield and gain chunk plays. Thus far, transfer quarterback Tyler Van Dyke has only completed two of eight passes that travel at least 15 yards downfield. But one of those came in the form of a 50-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver CJ Williams, proof that working to gain big plays can be beneficial for this Badgers offense.
As Van Dyke gains more experience in Longo’s system, the offense should begin to look more fluid.
Meanwhile, Wisconsin’s running game trends more toward the optimistic side, with multiple ball carriers showing they can contribute.
Chez Mellusi has embraced the role of starting running back, smoothly returning from a fibula injury that prematurely ended his 2023 season. In just two games, the sixth-year senior has compiled 134 rushing yards and three touchdowns.
But what is most encouraging for Wisconsin is that they’ve gotten production from their running backs down the line.
Transfer Tawee Walker played well in the season opener, rushing for 66 yards and a touchdown, but a leg injury sidelined him against South Dakota. However, redshirt sophomore Cade Yacamelli filled in admirably on Saturday, rushing for 73 yards on eight carries, including a career-high 29-yard rush.
Also contributing were freshman Dilin Jones and Darrion Dupree, who each received multiple carries in their Wisconsin debuts.
Speaking on the offense as a whole, Longo put it perfectly when on Monday he told reporters, “I think there’s not a glaring major concern, which is a good thing. And I don’t think we’re really top shelf in anything yet right now either.”
If Wisconsin wants any shot of taking down Alabama, their offense must break out of its early-season growing stages and find its groove in every facet.
On the defensive side of the ball, Wisconsin has looked sound. They surrendered only 27 points in two games into the season and look to continue to build in defensive coordinator Mike Tressel’s second season.
Star safety Hunter Wohler has unsurprisingly led the way for the Badger defense, accumulating a team-leading 15 tackles, while transfer linebacker Jaheim Thomas has added 12. Transfer Elijah Hills leads with Badgers in sacks, with two in the season so far.
Wisconsin has looked clean on defense but has not been the reckoning force they may have hoped to be in the first two weeks of the season. They have totaled only four sacks and allowed a four-play, 75-yard drive against South Dakota.
To beat Alabama, Wisconsin must avoid any defensive sloppiness. The Crimson Tide offense, led by Heisman-candidate quarterback Jalen Milroe, is a drastically steep uptick in competition than what Tressel’s defense has seen in their first two weeks. Alabama has scored 66 and 42 points in their first two games and shows no signs of slowing down.
Saturday’s matchup represents an enormous challenge for the underdog Badgers. Wisconsin has not looked sharp two games into this season, and they are up against one of college football’s perennially dominant programs. Simply put, if Wisconsin’s uninspiring play continues against Alabama, this highly anticipated showdown will quickly turn into a Badger-whipping.
