College football rivalries have a way of creating the kind of enemies fans never forget, and Wisconsin’s latest villain list comes with a name that still stings in Madison.
ESPN put together an arch-nemesis for every FBS program, and for the Badgers, the choice was former Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett.
The reasoning goes straight back to one of Wisconsin’s most frustrating near-misses. “The undefeated Badgers advanced to the 2017 Big Ten championship game and were a win away from making the College Football Playoff,” ESPN’s Jake Trotter wrote. “Instead, six days after undergoing surgery on his right knee, Barrett threw for two touchdowns and ran for another in Ohio State’s 27-21 victory.
“The Badgers had to settle for the Orange Bowl, where they beat Miami 34-24. Wisconsin has reached double-digit victories only once since. Barrett also defeated the Badgers in 2016 with an overtime touchdown pass in a battle of top-10 teams.”
Minnesota’s answer on the same list was a little more familiar, and a lot more personal: Bret Bielema, specifically the Wisconsin version of him.
“While at Wisconsin, Bielema never lost to Minnesota, winning all seven meetings,” Trotter said. “Bielema’s tenure came in the middle of the Badgers’ 14-game winning streak in the rivalry, which kept Paul Bunyan’s Axe in Madison from 2004 to 2017.
“In 2010, up 25 points, Bielema called for a 2-point conversion, prompting an angry response from Minnesota coach Tim Brewster afterward. Since taking over at Illinois, Bielema has continued beating up on the Gophers, posting a 3-1 mark. The only loss came in 2024, when the Gophers rallied in the fourth quarter for the 25-17 win in Champaign.”
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