Wisconsin football is almost here. You can almost see the mass of Cardinal and White marching down West Dayton street towards Camp Randall Stadium. You can almost smell the brats wafting from the tailgates. You can almost hear the opening horns of "Jump Around."

Various sportsbooks have Wisconsin with an over/under win total of 6.5. Give me the over on that. I'm sure this won't come back to bite me in the slightest.

Prediction: Wisconsin 35, Western Michigan 10

Record: 1-0

Last season's opener against a MAC team didn't exactly inspire an overwhelming amount of confidence. It was a sloppy win against a Buffalo team that would ultimately finish 3-9. While I still believe there will be some growing pains with several new faces in key roles, I expect this team's sense of urgency to be much higher in this season's opener. The Badgers make some mistakes but win comfortably.

Prediction: Wisconsin 49, South Dakota 9

Record: 2-0

South Dakota is a good FCS team, but that can't matter if Wisconsin wants to be taken seriously. If the Badgers want to navigate this treacherous schedule and emerge with a respectable record, they'll need to dominate the Coyotes here. Anything less than a complete shellacking of South Dakota would raise major concerns.

Prediction: Wisconsin 23, Alabama 20

Record: 3-0

Now we're getting juicy. I have the Badgers pulling off a big-time upset for what will be the defining win early in the Luke Fickell era. New Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer's inaugural season is all fun and games until he leads the Crimson Tide into what should be an absolute street fight in an extremely hostile Camp Randall Stadium. I think what gives the Badgers an excellent chance in this marquee matchup is that they have the speed and athleticism at linebacker to (in theory) contain Tide dual-threat gunslinger Jalen Milroe.

Prediction: USC 31, Wisconsin 27

Record: 3-1

Brimming with confidence after toppling Alabama, and coming off a bye week, Wisconsin waltzes into the Coliseum but loses a nail-bitter against Lincoln Riley's Trojans. Tackett Curtis plays like a madman, and scorned former defensive coordinator Alex Grinch has a few tricks up his sleeve, but its not quite enough as the Badgers loose in heartbreaking fashion. USC celebrates its first Big Ten win.

Prediction: Wisconsin 31, Purdue 17

Record: 4-1

Purdue gives Wisconsin a scare, and the Badger faithful begin to wonder if this is really the year the Boilermakers snap their losing streak to UW. But Wisconsin's defense harasses quarterback Hudson Card all day, and the Badgers pull away late to continue their dominance over the Boilermakers.

Prediction: Rutgers 20, Wisconsin 18

Record: 4-2

Rutgers is one of the sneakier teams in the country this year, and they'll prove exactly why on a sleepy Saturday in Piscataway. The Scarlet Knights' elite defense befuddles Tyler Van Dyke and company, and star tailback Kyle Monangai gets his revenge for his eight-carry, 16-yard performance in Madison a year ago. The Badgers drop a stunner on the road.

Prediction: Wisconsin 24, Northwestern 17

Record: 5-2

The Badgers exorcise their anger from the defeat in New Jersey by avenging their humiliating loss to the Wildcats from a season ago. It's close, because Northwestern remains feisty under head coach David Braun. Its defense does all it can against Wisconsin's playmakers, but quarterback Mike Wright simply doesn't provide enough offensive juice to pull this one out.

Prediction: Penn State 24, Wisconsin 14

Record: 5-3

Wisconsin maddeningly makes it six straight losses to a Penn State team it's capable of beating. The Nittany Lions' stout defense travels, as does the potent backfield duo of Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen. In a game that NFL scouts will debate all offseason, Penn State quarterback Drew Allar doesn't light up the stat sheet but plays mostly mistake-free football in a hostile environment, giving his program just enough to survive on the road.

Prediction: Wisconsin 17, Iowa 13

Record: 6-3

The battle for the Heartland Trophy will once again be a slog of a game. Two good defenses in a loud Kinnick Stadium make life mostly miserable for both offenses. Still, Wisconsin's offensive growth from a season ago and Iowa's continued inability to deploy a competent quarterback allow the Badgers to sneak past the Hawkeyes on the road.

Prediction: Oregon 34, Wisconsin 20

Record: 6-4

The Ducks roll into Madison and proceed to give the Badgers' defense fits. This is damn near an NFL offense, and they play like it even on the road. Dillon Gabriel, Evan Stewart, Tez Johnson and Jordan James are simply too many playmakers for Mike Tressel's defense to contain.

Prediction: Wisconsin 24, Nebraska 21

Record: 7-4

Huskers' quarterback Dylan Raiola plays an extremely impressive game for a true freshman, and it's apparent that he's going to be a problem in this conference for years to come. Still, it's not enough to snap Nebraska's losing streak to Wisconsin as the Badgers create just enough splash plays on both sides of the ball to squeeze out an important, morale-boosting win after getting out-classed by the Ducks a week prior.

Prediction: Wisconsin 30, Minnesota 24

Record: 8-4

Minnesota's dangerous playmakers, namely halfback Darius Taylor and receiver Daniel Jackson, keep the Gophers in the game as the late-November sky darkens. But the Badgers, who I firmly believe are the more talented team, prevail with clutch defensive stops. The Axe stays in Madison.

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