The Wisconsin Badgers are a little more than two weeks away from taking on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Sept. 6 to kick off the 2026 season. It's a highly anticipated game, but one that is stacked against the Badgers. The Irish are ranked No. 4 in the AP Poll, and the Badgers are nowhere to be found in any poll, coming off a four-win season.
The Badgers are heavily doubted, and the opening line when the betting opened for this game was set at 18.5 in favor of the Irish, as presented by FanDuel. It has only moved away from the Badgers, and it's now all the way up to 20.5, more than two weeks before the season. The anticipation is that it will hover around that mark, and if it does move, it'll move further against Wisconsin. Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
ESPN Matchup Predictor has the Badgers at only a 7% chance to beat Notre Dame. There aren't many sites or experts predicting Wisconsin to have much of a fighting chance. It's rare to find a serious person thinking the upset happens.
Wisconsin has some good news/bad news going on with this Week 1 betting line
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Depending on who you ask, this is a good thing or a bad thing. The good news is there really is zero pressure on Wisconsin for game 1. There's only pressure on Notre Dame. The 20.5 underdog line is high enough that there's not even a snowball chance given to the Badgers. If Wisconsin even keeps it close or punches the Irish back every time they get punched, the narrative gets dicey for Notre Dame.
The big question is, does Wisconsin have a similar level of talent? The roster is a ton better than last season, but is it Notre Dame-good? Can the Badgers hang with the Irish or even have a potential upset bid on the table? More so than the 2025 squad, but how close? 20.5 feels like a lot for two Power-4 teams, but maybe it's not.
Wisconsin will go out looking to prove a point. Jeff Grimes won't shy away from pulling punches on the offense. The Badgers will have a chip on their shoulders and will be looking to knock off the Irish. And yet, when all is said and done, and the lights get turned off, if Wisconsin is 0-1, no one will bat an eye.
Many Wisconsin fans have a slight hope in their heart that it could happen, but are jaded from the last few seasons. Thus, many are already looking at Week 2 as the official start to the season when the Badgers take on Western Illinois. Treating Notre Dame more as a litmus test than anything. Which isn't a bad way to look at it, and the betting line would only confirm your suspicions.
However, if there are any hopeful optimists out there, 20.5 against the Badgers is available.
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