With all these previews, I try to take an optimistic spin. That might prove next to impossible with this Badger offense. Let’s get to it.
The Numbers
You don’t need advanced stats to understand this offense, the raw numbers do just fine painting an ugly enough picture:
Points per game: 12.5
Rushing yards per game: 109.8
Passing yards per game: 152.1
Plays per game: 61.1 (#132)
Seconds per play: 30.6 (#133)
Passing play percentage: 43%
QB sacked percentage: 8.36% (#113)
Yards per play: 4.3 (#134)
Key Players
Billy Edwards Jr. started the season at QB and was supposed to give the Badgers an athletic spark at the position not typically seen in Madison. That never materialized as the Maryland transfer was injured in the first game of the season and his status is, well, unclear to say the least. The team next turned to QB Danny O’Neil, the San Diego State transfer, who threw for 2,100 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2024 for the Aztecs. He’s got some moxie and isn’t afraid to use his feet. Then he got injured, and Wisconsin is now on to it’s third quarterback, Hunter Simmons. The 6-3 and 229 pound senior is in his first and final year in the program after transferring from Southern Illinois. In four starts he’s thrown for 469 yards, two touchdowns, five interceptions and completing just 50% of his passes. The feeling among the fan base is that while O’Neil had his limitations, his scrambling ability gave them a better chance to win than Simmons. At this point, fans are calling for four-star freshman QB Carter Smith. Things are bad.
Wisconsin is typically known for it’s bruising running backs who power an effective ground game. This year…not so much. Freshman RB Dilin Jones was the starter but has been ruled out for the season with injury. RB Darrion Dupree is also on the injury list with unclear status for Saturday. Redshirt freshman Gideon Ituka took over at the end of the Ohio State game and had four carries for 35 yards. He’s 5-9 and had a strong (relatively) performance against Oregon with 21 carries for 85 yards. Those 85 yards are a season high by any Badger running back.
As you might expect, things don’t look much better at receiver, where just once this season has a player had a 100-yard game. The leader is senior Vinny Anthony II with 26 catches for 291 yards. He’s got great speed and can get behind a defense. He broke out as a junior with almost 40 receptions and averaged more than 17 yards a catch, but hasn’t recaptured that form this year due to issues at quarterback and the offense in general. TE Lance Mason’s three touchdown receptions lead the team.
Lastly, an already banged up and struggling offensive line lost one of its best players in C Jake Renfro to injury for the season.
The Scheme
This is a slow moving, run first offense. Because of their slow pace, they can possess the ball for long-ish stretches. But, in their last three games they’ve averaged four fewer minutes of possession than their opponent (compared to out-possessing their opponents early in the season). They give defenses a lot of different looks and formations in the run game and love to run play action bootlegs.
Final Thoughts
This offense is bad, and banged up. They scored 42 points in week 2 on a Middle Tennessee team that is currently 1-7, and their other point totals this season are: 17, 14, 1o, 10, 0, 0, 7. In their last three games, albeit against defensive juggernauts Iowa, Ohio State and Oregon, they scored just seven total points. They also have played Alabama, giving them arguably the nation’s toughest schedule, so their poor offensive output can at least be somewhat understood.
Washington’s defense has shown some vulnerability this year but mostly has been fine. Even coming off a bye week and playing at home, it would be a disappointment if this Husky defense gave up more than two touchdowns. Wisconsin is just that bad and that injured.