BYU football: Get to know the Wisconsin Badgers

What does Wisconsin need to do to win in Provo?

Noah Seligman: Wisconsin has to avoid self-inflicted wounds. The Badgers’ two turnovers this season led to 14 points for the opponents – and both were just poor plays by Wisconsin, not brilliant defending.

The first game against Utah State was marked by a series of penalties. Again, good calls and self-inflicted. So, a clean game is the first objective because on a talent vs talent basis, Wisconsin has the edge.

The most important thing for the Badgers to do offensively is always establishing the run. That sets up those high-percentage pass attempts off play action. That also keeps the Badgers ahead ahead of the chains a bit.

The Badgers shouldn’t be thinking balance at all. This is a run first, run second and pass third kind of offense. Hornibrook is a little inconsistent after all, so the Badger offense won’t go very far if it has to depend on his left arm to move the football. Wisconsin struggled a bit in the red zone against FAU and obviously that can’t happen against anyone – especially higher quality opponents.

Game prediction

Noah Seligman: I’m tempted to pick a bold upset, especially in Provo. But the BYU football offense has struggled so much (granted, LSU is really good), that I can’t bring myself to go with the home team.

I think Wisconsin wins this one riding the strength of its offense to eventually break open BYU football’s defense. Even though the Badgers will have to acclimate to the thin air, the Cougar defense will likely have to be on the field too much.

Last week, the Badgers ran 84 total plays against FAU. For the record, Clemson ran just under 100 plays in the national title game when the Tigers exhausted a talented Alabama defense.

I respect BYU football and its defense enough to think the Cougars can keep it close for awhile. They aren’t going to get gashed for big plays and let Wisconsin run up the score. But in the end, it’s just too long a day getting mauled by a big Wisconsin offensive line. Like the Holy War, the Cougars add a late cosmetic touchdown to help the final margin look more respectable.

Wisconsin 27, BYU 13.