Wisconsin Badgers 2025 Football Preview, Prediction, Betting Ideas

Wisconsin Badgers

2024 Record: 5-7

View From Afar: Luke Fickell enters year 3 in Madison with a .500 record (13-13). It feels worse, I'm sure, not exactly what the Wisconsin faithful were hoping for when he took the gig. Seeing the likes of an Indiana or Illinois getting 10-plus wins must be tough to stomach for Badgers fans who were accustomed to those heights not long ago. Last year certainly had a few tough breaks, as starting QB Tyler Van Dyke was lost for the year in game three, the QB play from there on out was pretty tough to watch! To be fair to the Badgers, they made Oregon have to play damn near perfect down the stretch to stay undefeated, losing a tight 13-16 to the eventual Big 10 Champion. Offensively, Jeff Grimes comes over to replace Longo, who has been discussed at length on how his offense was not a fit for Wisconsin. Regardless of how it looked at times, Kansas's offense last year ranked 7th nationally in run blocking and 11th in rushing via PFF, which has to be music to Badger fans' ears. Defensively, Tressel returns at coordinator and will look to improve a group that gave up over 40 points on the road at Alabama, Nebraska, and Iowa (yes, you read that last one right!). '25 is a massive year for Fickell; in all likelihood, his job is on the line, and with an absolute gauntlet of a schedule, it is hard to know what a successful season looks like. Having said that, this man led Cincinnati to the 4-team playoff in 2021, and when you dig into this year's group, there could be a few things to be excited about in Madison!

Recruiting: Wisconsin dropped to Ninth in the Big 10 recruiting rankings in '25; they came in at 7 in '24. Keep your eye out for '24 class four-star Dilin Jones(RB) in the backfield.

Portal: Wisconsin came in 17th out of 18 in the Big 10 class rankings. There were a couple of significant gains, but certainly a few big losses. Billy Edwards is the biggest acquisition at QB. Coming over from Maryland, he is up to speed on the level, but 15 TDs, 9 int's will not wow you, he did add 5 on the ground, so he can move around a bit. Perkins (DT) come's over from UT- Martin where he was first team all big-south, he is also massive! Ballard(WR) comes over from Ohio St but only caught two passes all year, though that clearly was a tough WR room to crack! Tanner Koziol did the thing where you transfer in and then out in the same cycle, so that was a loss as he was the #1 graded TE, but alas, he is off to Houston. Losing Thompson and Neal off the D-line to Illinois is undoubtedly a blow.

Key Roster Departures: Wisconsin had two players drafted to the NFL, both in the 7th round. Hunter Wohler was the standout in the secondary.

Roster Tidbits: Jeff Grimes will be excited to work with this offensive line; they should be loaded. Renfro(C), the standout is back to anchor. The depth of players who graded well on PFF was quite impressive for a unit that had already graded out 5th nationally in pass blocking. Vinny Anthony had north of 650 yards receiving a year ago, so having him back to lead the room is essential; he and Kekahuna, along with Ballard, could provide decent options for Edwards. The aforementioned Dilin Jones could be a breakout talent behind this O-line. Defensively, it will be interesting. The secondary could be very impressive. Fourqueen and Hallman graded out well last season, and Lattimer at Jacksonville St. Zachman returns at Safety, the 4th highest graded player at his position in the conference. The line will be the question, if this D-line and linebacking corp can step up in the run game, this team could make some noise. Alliegro and Cheeks are returners who need to take a step. Shame about those losses on the line in the portal!

Statistical pulse: The Badgers ranked last in the conference in PFF run defense, and that needs to be emphasised. Wisconsin was gashed for 165 yards per game a year ago, ranking 91st in the country. Wisconsin was 10th in the country a year ago, only giving up 13 sacks all year. This is a simple counting stat, but the Badgers were 108th in the country in passing yards. Edwards should make a big impact there.

Schedule: Oh boy, strap in, Badger fans, a lot of doozies on this schedule! Whatever way you slice it or dice it, this is one of the toughest in the country. At Alabama, the third week of the season will be a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Tuscaloosa for Badger fans, and most likely a loss! Trips to Michigan and Oregon will be daunting to say the least, not to mention Ohio State, Iowa, Illinois, and Washington are all paying a visit to Madison! The At Michigan, Iowa, Ohio State, at Oregon has got to be the most challenging 4 game stretch of any team in the nation, you've got to just hope for 1 of those and grab your wins elsewhere.

Prediction: There are genuinely things I like about this team when I dive into the weeds. I think Edwards will win this team a ball game or two, yes he had some serious weapons at Maryland but the man was 39 for 50 with 373 yards and two TDs vs USC a year ago, he will do that to someone this season. The addition of Grimes with this O-line is also fascinating; that is a good fit. The defense should be solid in the secondary, and some of those transfers do interest me, Perkins and Barten could be salty! Wisconsin goes 7-5 and surprises, Bama, Michigan, Ohio State, and Oregon will likely be too much. But this line will provide Edwards opportunities, and he might cost them a game, but I think he also puts up some solid numbers and wins them quite a few.

Actionable: I don't see a number on it quite yet at the books I've checked, but keep an eye out for that Ohio State game on October 18. This is all about how they look out of the gate, but the Buckeyes lost a ton from that defensive line a year ago, and if the Badgers can push them around, I think they can keep it within a decent number. Remember, the secondary should be solid too, so they certainly won't stop, but maybe they can contain Jeremiah Smith a bit better than others. The Buckeyes will be coming off a huge road test the week prior at Illinois, and Madison will be absolutely electrifying. I love the Badgers to keep that one close!