Wisconsin football has a gauntlet of a schedule in 2024 with games against Alabama, USC, Penn State, Oregon, Iowa, and Nebraska. Luke Fickell has his work cut out for him in his second season with Wisconsin, especially after losing his starting running back and quarterback to the NFL this offseason.
The Badger's tough schedule is the reason On3's Jeese Simonton has Wisconsin finishing 10th in the Big Ten this next season.
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Wisconsin finished 7-6 in their first season under Luke Fickell after hiring him from Cincinnati. There was bound to be an adjustment period for Fickell going from the American Athletic Conference to the Big Ten Conference. Making it to a bowl game in his first season was a big accomplishment, but now Badger fans will want more.
Fickell's squad has consistently been put in the middle of projected Big Ten standings and a lot of that is because of their schedule.
They at least get to face Alabama, Penn State, and Oregon at home, which will help. However, they have to travel to USC to start out Big Ten play and then face Iowa and Nebraska later in the season when wins become more and more important.
It is not impossible for Wisconsin to win the Big Ten in 2024, but they have a lot of new pieces this season that have to figure out how to work together. The addition of Tyler Van Dyke will help with the passing game tremendously, but the receivers will need to step up. The running game may not be what it was with Braelon Allen, but the one-two punch of Chez Mellusi and Tawee Walker should be successful.