The Wisconsin Badgers’ 2026 slate looks friendlier on paper than the nightmare they navigated in 2025, but there’s still plenty here to make Luke Fickell’s team sweat.
Last season, Wisconsin ran into eight opponents that were either ranked or finished ranked, and that list included Alabama, Oregon, Indiana, and Ohio State - all four of whom reached the College Football Playoff. So yes, the bar for “tough schedule” was set pretty high. Even with a cleaner-looking draw in 2026, the Badgers still have a handful of games that can tilt the whole season.
Here are the four hardest matchups on the board.
At No. 4 is USC, a late-October trip that could easily find Wisconsin staring at a ranked opponent. That’s part of why this one lands where it does.
Lincoln Riley has spent years getting teams hyped up as something special before reality eventually catches up, and there’s no real reason to assume year 10 will be the exception. Still, a Trojans roster loaded with four- and five-star talent and led by Jayden Maiava is going to be a serious problem for the Badgers.
No. 3 is a trip to Penn State, and this one comes with a different kind of challenge. Matt Campbell has long been viewed as a strong coach, and the expectation is that he’ll do well in State College, even if the early returns have been mixed.
He rebuilt Iowa State into a steady winner after taking over a disaster, but those Cyclones teams were rarely true contenders in a Big 12 that was usually solid, but not great. After that breakthrough 8-win season in year two, his losses have gone 5, 6, 3, 6, 8, 6, 3, 4.
Rocco Becht gives Penn State a quarterback who can really play, and Wisconsin winning there would count as a major breakthrough. The Badgers will likely go in as double-digit underdogs, and they’re still chasing their first win in the series since 2013.
At No. 2, Wisconsin opens the season against Notre Dame in Lambeau, and that game will almost certainly bring a top-five Irish team to the field.
The Badgers will be sizable underdogs, no question. But in terms of pure difficulty, this writer sees a tougher assignment ahead.
Notre Dame carries more national value, sure, but when it comes to the actual challenge of winning the game, there’s one matchup that edges it out.
That brings us to No. 1: a Halloween trip to Iowa. Beating the Hawkeyes in Kinnick is viewed as a bigger mountain to climb than taking down Notre Dame in Lambeau, and part of that comes down to the unpredictability of opening games.
More than that, Iowa has had Wisconsin’s number for a while now. The Hawkeyes have been tougher, more talented, and better coached, and it hasn’t been close.
There’s no star quarterback in Iowa City at the moment, but they won’t need one to be dangerous. Wisconsin will need to be far better on both sides of the ball just to keep this one tight.
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