Wisconsin is heading into one of its biggest tests of the Luke Fickell era with the betting market giving the Badgers just a sliver of respect.
After UCLA’s 17-15 upset of No. 13 Oregon in Eugene, the Bruins climbed to No. 12 in the AP Poll and stayed unbeaten at 5-0. Even with that surge, Wisconsin opened as only a 3.5-point road underdog for the Week 7 trip to Pasadena.
That number comes with Wisconsin still unranked, but not exactly overlooked. The Badgers are the unofficial No. 26 team in the country, drawing the most votes outside the AP Top 25. And after the way they’ve handled the last two weeks, it’s not hard to see why the market hasn’t buried them.
They’ve already shown they can play the role of spoiler on the road. In Week 4 at Penn State, Wisconsin entered as a 9.5-point underdog and erased a 17-point deficit before pulling out a win with a 72-yard touchdown pass to breakout tight end Jacob Harris. A week later, back home against Michigan State, the Badgers flipped the script again, this time as 9.5-point favorites, and rolled to a 31-3 win.
Outside of one bad half against Notre Dame in the opener, Wisconsin has looked better and better with each passing week.
That’s why this matchup feels so massive. A win would push the Badgers to 5-1 overall and 3-0 in conference play, and almost certainly land them inside the top 20 - maybe even the top 15 - in the AP Poll.
Still, the biggest watch item for Wisconsin has nothing to do with the spread. It’s UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava. He turned the ball over three times against Oregon before leaving with a leg injury, which forced backup Ty Dieffenbach into action.
Dieffenbach completed 43 yards and a touchdown, but he comes with questions of his own. The Cal Poly transfer threw nine touchdowns and nine interceptions while completing 56.8% of his passes at the FCS level last fall. Iamaleava hasn’t exactly lit it up this season, but if he can’t go, that would be a major drop-off at the most important position on the field for UCLA.
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BYU Has A Chance To Change How USC Sees The Cougars
UCLAs meeting with Wisconsin arrives at an awkward time for the Bruins, who are trying to steady themselves while also helping shape the broader conversation around USCs schedule. The Trojans are off in Week 7, but they still have an eye on the games that could affect how their College Football Playoff rsum is judged later on, and this one sits near the center of that picture because it involves a future opponent with plenty to prove.
The Bruins own situation makes the matchup even more interesting. An upset win over Oregon came at a steep cost, and the rest of the season now carries a different feel as UCLA tries to regroup while facing a tough Big Ten road ahead. For USC, the result in Madison could alter how dangerous the Bruins look when the teams cross paths, which is exactly the kind of detail the Trojans will be watching during their bye week. [Read more 🡒]
UCLA Heads Into Wisconsin Test With Availability Concerns Fans Will Notice
UCLA heads into its home matchup with Wisconsin carrying the kind of availability questions that can reshape a game plan before kickoff. The Bruins are already without Mikey Matthews and Nico Iamaleava for the season, and Tao Johnson is expected to miss this one as well, thinning out the options in a stretch where depth matters just as much as talent.
The biggest immediate concern is the status of starting tackle Jordan Davis and cornerback Rodrick Pleasant, both of whom are listed as questionable. If either is limited, UCLA could feel it in two spots that matter most against a Big Ten opponent: protecting the quarterback up front and holding up in the secondary on the back end. [Read more 🡒]
UCLA's Undefeated Start Faces Its Toughest Test Yet
UCLA heads into its matchup with Wisconsin still unbeaten, but the tone around the Bruins has shifted from celebration to evaluation. The offense has found enough balance early to keep winning, and the running game has helped steady the team while the defense has done its part to preserve the start. Now the spotlight turns to the latest move under center, with the Bruins asking a new face to guide them through a game that should tell plenty about where this season is headed.
Wisconsin brings the kind of defense that can make life difficult for any quarterback, let alone one trying to settle in against a tougher opponent. For UCLA, the challenge is less about style points than survival, and the margin for error figures to be thin if the Bruins cannot keep the ground game effective and the defense sharp. The bigger question hanging over this one is whether the offense can keep its rhythm when the opposition starts dictating the pace. [Read more 🡒]