As the countdown gets closer to number one, the games get tougher. That will be the case for the Wisconsin Badgers and the No. 5 ream in the rankings the Northwestern Wildcats.
Wisconsin for whatever reason has had trouble with Northwestern. Whether at Camp Randall or on the road, the Wildcats have given the Badgers fits. Beginning with the 2000 season, Wisconsin is just 5-6 against Northwestern.
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Last season: Northwestern finished fifth in Big Ten West with record of 5-4, 7-6 overall. Defeated Pitt 31-24 in New Era Pinstripe Bowl.
In that is the last time the Wildcats came to Madison. It was 2015 and Northwestern came away with a 13-7 win. The victory was marred with mistakes by Wisconsin and a questionable call on the Badgers final drive. If you remember, it was that game where it seemed Jazz Peavy caught a game-tying touchdown. But after further review, the officials deemed it incomplete.
But that was then and this is now. Running back Justin Jackson returns, coming off a phenomenal season where he ran for 1,524 yards and 15 touchdowns. He was held in check against the Badgers, however, only able to rack up 42 yards and zero touchdowns.
Quarterback Clayton Thorson will improve on his 3,182 yards, 22 touchdowns, and nine interceptions from last season. Don’t forget, he also ran for five scores as well. His top playmaker Austin Carr is no longer there, but I don’t think that will hinder his development. Given more time from the line and spreading the ball around, Thorson should have another solid year.
On defense, Northwestern was about middle of the pack in the country. They ranked 60th in total defense, giving up 404.4 yards per game. Although they gave up a ton of yards, they didn’t give up a ton of points. Ranking 24th in scoring defense, the Wildcats yielded just 22.2 points per game.
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As long as Northwestern takes care of their non-conference slate, this is a team that will flirt with 10 wins. If they want to contend with the likes of Wisconsin for a Big Ten West crown, they have a shot to do it this season. Wisconsin will have a great early season test in Northwestern and will be the perfect game to gauge just where they stand in the conference.