Wisconsin Football: 5 Questions Following the Bye Week

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Oct 31, 2015; Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Badgers running back Corey Clement (6) rushes with the football as Rutgers Scarlet Knights linebacker Quentin Gause (50) defends during the second quarter at Camp Randall Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Will Corey Clement ever get fully healthy?

A noticeable absence from the Badgers this offense has been running back Corey Clement, who many predicted to be near the top of the crop when it came to running back talent in the Big Ten in 2015.

Clement has played in just two games this season, a 8-carry, 16-yard showing in the season opener to Alabama — a game he exited with an injury — and an 11-carry, 115-yard, 3-touchdown performance against Rutgers eight weeks later. He wasn’t able to make the turnaround after the Rutgers game, and didn’t travel with the team to the Badgers last game in Maryland.

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Clement’s sports hernia injury caused him to miss seven straight games, and he’s since been injured again in an off-campus incident that caused a cut on his hand. Clement returned to practice this week, and Paul Chryst said the hand injury won’t slow him, but his status for Saturday is dependent on his original injury.

Clement is listed second on the depth chart this week behind Dare Ogunbowale, so it appears the bye week allowed him to get healthy enough to be considered come Saturday.

The real question is, will he be back to full strength this season. That appears unlikely, as it’s taken so long just to get him back out on the field.

Clement will hopefully be healthy enough to get out on the field and help the Badgers win the last two games on the schedule so he can rest up as Wisconsin prepares for its bowl game.

Next: Which Joel Stave will show up the remainder of the year?