2022 Recap: They were the favorites coming into the year last season, but things unfortunately didn’t pan out their way. The Wisconsin Badgers fired Head Coach Paul Chryst on October 2nd and Defensive Coordinator Jim Leonhard was named the interim Head Coach. Wisconsin could never get the ball rolling on offense with inconsistent play from Quarterback Graham Mertz. If you know anything about this program, they pride themselves on running the football and they have an elite Running Back in Braelon Allen. Defense is also a strong point for the Badgers as well as they were still one of the best in college football. They finished their 2022 season with a 7-6 record and a bowl game victory over the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
Key Departures: OL Joe Tippman, DL Keeanu Benton & LB Nick Herbig.
2023 Prediction: This is my pick to win the Big Ten West. Luke Fickell is now the new Head Coach in Madison and he’s very familar with the Big Ten dating back to his days with the Ohio State Buckeyes. Phil Longo will run the offense and bring his air raid attack with him. Tanner Mordecai will be the starting Quarterback for the Badgers in the fall. I still see this offense being ran through Allen and Chez Mellusi. The defense will be strong once again under new Defensive Coordinator, Mike Tressel. I look for Wisconsin to get back to the Big Ten title game for the first time since 2019.
