Wisconsin’s November push has reached the kind of spot where every game starts to feel like a checkpoint. After the Badgers got blown out by Iowa, they needed a response, and they got one against Rutgers in true freshman quarterback Ryan Hopkins’ first start. Now they head into a matchup with Maryland, a team that has looked looser and more energized since firing head coach Mike Locksley and turning things over to interim Aazaar Abdul-Rahim.
That sets the stage for Saturday morning in the DMV, where Wisconsin gets a chance to settle an old score with Maryland quarterback Malik Washington.
Washington was a problem for the Badgers last season, and this Wisconsin defense looks almost nothing like the one he carved up. Only safety Matt Jung remains from that unit, and Washington made the most of the matchup in 2025, throwing for 265 yards and two touchdowns, including a 62-yard strike, while also scoring on the ground in a 27-10 win that wasn’t nearly as close as the final score suggested.
This year, though, Washington has shown cracks against stronger defenses. UCLA picked him off four times, and against Ohio State he managed just 64 passing yards on 25 attempts.
That matters because Wisconsin brings the No. 14 total defense in the country into this game, along with the No. 18 run defense. If Maryland can’t lean on the ground game, Washington is going to have to win it with his arm.
And that’s not a simple ask. Maryland’s offensive line has given up only 10 sacks, which is a strong number, but the left side of that line looks vulnerable.
Wisconsin’s front just posted five sacks against Rutgers, and it should arrive with plenty of confidence. Mike Tressel’s defense isn’t always easy to trust schematically, but it would be a surprise if he didn’t have a few wrinkles ready for the quarterback who embarrassed his group a year ago.
The other place Wisconsin needs to be sharper is in the backfield. Luke Fickell said this week the Badgers have to narrow their focus and get the ball to two backs. He pointed to the problems that have slowed the rushing attack, including shaky blocking and the way Colton Joseph’s legs were leaned on when he was the starting quarterback.
“The backs have to have the ball in their hand a little more, we have to find ways. Sometimes it’s harder when you’re playing multiple guys back there, you don’t give a guy a chance to get a little bit hot,” Fickell said this week.
“I’ve kinda challenged them, I said look, I’m not saying you go to a one-back system, where only one guy is in there, I’m not even saying go to a two-back system. But I think it’s much more difficult to think you’re gonna go with more than two guys.”
Abu Sama and Darrion Dupree look like the obvious top two, but Bryan Jackson made a case last week with five carries for 32 yards and a team-best 6.4 yards per carry. He brings a different kind of run style to the room.
Jackson is the bigger, more physical option, the kind of back who can tell you a lot about what Maryland wants to do in the trenches. While Sama and Dupree can get a little shifty in the backfield, Jackson is more of a straight-ahead runner and, more than anyone in Jayden Everett’s group, he sets the tone.
Maryland’s defense does have some bite up front. Its front seven includes several capable linebackers, and true freshman Zion Elee, a former five-star recruit, has already flashed as a pass-rusher. At Purdue last week, he finished with seven pressures and three sacks.
Still, if Wisconsin’s offensive line holds together, Hopkins has a clear path to another productive outing. Rutgers’ defense was poor, but Maryland’s numbers aren’t much better in the passing game.
The Scarlet Knights rank 87th nationally in passing yards allowed per game, and Maryland sits 91st. There’s also a chance the Terps are without top cornerback Jamare Glasker, who has allowed a reception rate of 45.8 on 48 targets.
If Hopkins gets enough protection, Wisconsin has every reason to expect a repeat of what it saw in his debut.
In Other News...
Wisconsin Recruiting Loss Just Got More Painful For Badgers Fans
Wisconsins 2027 basketball class took a hit when Jack Thelen, the 7-foot-1 center who had previously pledged to the Badgers, backed off that commitment and landed at UConn instead. Thelen, ranked No. 88 nationally in the class by Rivals, had given Wisconsin a promising frontcourt piece for the future, and his departure changes the look of an early group that had already started to take shape.
The Badgers still have two four-star guards committed in the class, so the foundation is not gone, but losing a big man of Thelens size and profile stings. It also adds another layer to the challenge of holding off blueblood-level competition, with UConn continuing to build one of the nations strongest classes and sitting No. 2 nationally on 247Sports. [Read more 🡒]
Racine Case Just Ended A Drought Wisconsin Fans Will Appreciate
Racine Case gave Wisconsin high school football fans a familiar kind of thrill with a finish that came down to the final kick. Senior kicker Colin Gardner drilled a 28-yard field goal as time expired to lift Case past Muskego 6-3 in the WIAA Division 1 state quarterfinals, sending the team on to the state semifinals against West De Pere.
For a program with a long history but a long wait, the moment carried extra weight. Racine Case is headed to the state semifinals for the first time since 1980, ending a 46-year drought and giving its supporters a milestone they had waited generations to see. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsin Has A Nolan Winter Problem Fans Cant Ignore
Nolan Winters start to the 2026-27 season has been quieter than Wisconsin fans are used to seeing from the senior big man. His numbers are down across the board, and his shooting has not matched the efficiency he typically brings, even though he is still helping the Badgers with rebounding, passing and rim protection.
The bigger question for Wisconsin is what comes next, because Winters value has not disappeared, it has just been uneven so far. If the Badgers can get him more involved offensively and he continues to move past whatever has slowed him early, there is still a path for him to look more like the player Wisconsin needs in the frontcourt. [Read more 🡒]