With the college football season dwindling down to the last month of the regular season, every game against a quality opponent becomes that much more important.
Desperate for any quality win they can get, the Wisconsin Badgers welcome the BYU Cougars to Camp Randall for a rare non-conference game in the midst of their Big Ten portion of the schedule.
Wisconsin (No. 24) and BYU (not ranked) need to move up the BCS rankings for bowl purposes and this could realistically be their last chance to make a significant push.
BYU Cougars (6-2) Analysis: The Cougars were on a roll before hitting their bye last week. They’ve won five straight, including wins over Texas and Houston who are a combined 13-3 on the season. If not for close losses to Virginia and Utah in their first three games, they would surely be ranked in the top 25.
If you watched BYU in their recent wins, it must come as a shock to think this team is not ranked. The Cougars own the 12th ranked offense which averages 511.1 yards per game. Sophomore quarterback Taysom Hill is as dynamic as they come while averaging 105.1 rushing yards per game (20th in the nation) and 252.4 passing yards per game (29th in the nation). It’s not like Hill is doing it against bad defenses either as he hanged a cumulative 69 points on Utah State and Georgia Tech who have the 16th and 15th ranked scoring defenses.
BYU fields a nasty defense as well with All-American pass-rusher Kyle Van Noy who’s 26 career sacks rank second nationally among active FBS players. During their five game winning streak, the team has forced 13 turnovers, bringing their season average up to two turnovers a game. There’s no lack of experience on this side of the ball as the Cougars have six guys who have played at least 40 games in their career.
Wisconsin Badgers (6-2) Analysis: After a shaky start against Iowa, the Badgers toughed it out on a windy day without linebacker Chris Borland and won 28-9. Since dropping back-to-back games against Arizona State and Ohio State, the Badgers have won three straight games in convincing fashion. Despite notching the road win, Wisconsin stayed pat in the BCS standings at No. 24.
It wasn’t Melvin Gordon who took the team on his back in Iowa City, but rather his teammate and good friend James White. White shredded the Iowa defense with two touchdowns to bring his career total to 43, the most among all active FBS players. The best part about Gordon and White is that the two feed off one another with a little friendly competition all while having fun.
Wisconsin’s best attribute on their sixth ranked defense (286.1 yards per game) has been in the red-zone. In opponents’ 21 trips to the red-zone, the opposition has scored a touchdown only eight times. That’s a blistering 38.1 percent which leads the nation. Coach Andersen expects to have Borland back for this game which will be a huge boost for the team even though Marcus Trotter has been serviceable in his absence.
Brutally Honest Prediction: Wisconsin 31 BYU 21
The Badgers have been a betting dandy when you consider they’ve covered their last eight games. BYU had Coach Andersen’s number at Utah State (1-3 record), but this isn’t Utah State anymore and no one wins at Camp Randall anymore. Expect the Badgers to stretch their second-ranked non-conference home winning streak to a marvelous 29 games.
TV Coverage: 2:35 PM CT ESPN; Bob Wischusen (play-by-play), Rod Gilmore (analyst) and Quint Kessenich (sidelines)
Betting Lines: Wisconsin favored by 7.5 points and the over/under set at 55 points.
2013 Record straight up: 7-1
2013 Record against the spread: 4-4
2013 Record in over/under: 4-3
*no over/under for Tennessee Tech game
Last week redux: Picked Badgers to win 28-21 over Iowa (they actually won 28-9). Hit on straight up and over/under (50) but spread (+9.5).
Do you think the Badgers will have any trouble with BYU? Let me know by commenting below.
Nick Grays is a senior writer at the Sports Bank where he covers the Wisconsin Badgers and Green Bay Packers. He also enjoys sharing Fantasy Advice and pretends to be a Golf expert from time-to-time. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here or visit his blog Nick Knows Best. If social media is not your thing, shoot him an email at grays@uwalumni.com.
*Pictures obtained from yahoo.com and heraldextra.com