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    IU football 2025 opponent overview: Week 12 — Wisconsin

    Seth TowBy 2025 Opponent Previews 7 Comments
    Photo - Wisconsin Athletics

    With the college football season starting to creep up, we’re running down Indiana’s schedule to preview all 12 opponents for 2025.

    Indiana’s penultimate game of the 2025 regular season comes at home against Wisconsin, the teams’ third meeting in the last eight years. IU has won both of those other two games — 14-6 in Madison, Wis. in 2020, and 20-14 in Bloomington in 2023. Luke Fickell will face some pressure to get the Badgers rolling this year, and Curt Cignetti’s team will be one of their biggest challenges.

    • Opponent: Wisconsin
    • Date/Time/TV: Saturday, November 15, time TBD
    • Location: Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, Ind.
    • 2024 record/postseason result: 5-7, 3-6 Big Ten

    Returning production, offense: 68 percent (per Bill Connelly/ESPN) (26th in the country)

    Offensive outlook: After a disappointing two-year stretch for their offense, the Badgers replaced offensive coordinator Phil Longo with Jeff Grimes. They’ll have a new quarterback running the show as well, in Maryland transfer Billy Edwards Jr. The redshirt senior finished second in the Big Ten last year with 261.9 passing yards per game, on a 65 percent completion rate with 15 touchdowns to nine interceptions.

    UW has leading receiver Vinny Anthony II back this year. He caught 39 passes for 672 yards and four touchdowns as a junior in 2024. Third-leading receiver Trech Kekahuna (25 receptions, 339 yards, two touchdowns) could play a bigger role this year. And Ohio State transfer Jayden Ballard, a former four-star recruit, will get a long-awaited opportunity to shine. Tight end Riley Nowakowski transferred to Indiana, but junior Tucker Ashcraft returns at tight end looking to up his production.

    Leading rusher Tawee Walker transferred to Cincinnati in the offseason. That leaves sophomore Darrion Dupree (79 rushes, 317 yards, one touchdown, 12 receptions, 119 receiving yards) and redshirt junior Cade Yacamelli (33 carries, 274 yards, two touchdowns) to run the Badger backfield.

    Wisconsin has three starters back on the offensive line. UW finished with the fourth-highest Pro Football Focus pass-blocking grade in the country last season, and the run-blocking (38th in the nation) was also solid.

    Returning production, defense: 67 percent (per Bill Connelly/ESPN) (16th in the country)

    Defensive outlook: Wisconsin’s defense performed well in 2024. The Badgers ranked 41st in the country and 12th in the Big Ten in total defense, allowing 342.7 yards per game. Their pass defense (14th in the country) was largely responsible for that success.

    That makes it fortuitous for UW to have four starters back in the secondary this year. Graduate student cornerback Nyzer Fourquean tied for the team lead with five passes broken up, and redshirt senior safety Preston Zachman led Wisconsin with two interceptions last season.

    The Badgers have three starters returning up front. Redshirt senior outside linebacker Aaron Witt was the most productive of that group last season, with 4.5 tackles for loss and a QB hurry. But Fickell added some defensive line transfers that could be important to his team this year. Redshirt senior Corey Walker led Western Michigan with 5.5 sacks in 2024. Redshirt senior defensive tackle Parker Petersen recorded 4.5 TFLs and 2.5 sacks at Tulane. Redshirt senior outside linebacker Mason Reiger had six TFLs and five sacks at Louisville in 2023, but missed 2024 with an injury.

    Wisconsin also has junior Christian Alliegro back at inside linebacker. Although Alliegro didn’t start last season, he still finished second on the team with five TFLs and tied the team lead with three sacks.

    Special teams outlook: Junior punter Atticus Bertrams returns after a strong season — he ranked second in the Big Ten and 12th in the country by averaging 45.3 yards per punt. Senior Nathanial Vakos is also back at placekicker, though he went just 12 for 19 on field goals in 2024. The Badgers have a new long snapper, senior Purdue transfer Nick Levy; that switch could be notable in the kicking operation. UW got solid production out of Anthony on kick returns last season, as he averaged 27.9 yards per return.

    Overall Outlook: Wisconsin looks like a good-not-great Big Ten team — the type that should be in the mix for a bowl game, but is not particularly close to the conference’s top tier. The Badgers have a tough schedule this year, facing Ohio State, Oregon, Indiana, Michigan, Iowa, and Illinois in conference play, plus a non-conference road game at Alabama. That leaves them with little wiggle room among the rest of the slate. IU should be comfortably better than Wisconsin, but UW and Fickell could be a desperate group playing to keep seasons and jobs alive by November.

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