Five Burning Questions: Wisconsin vs. Rutgers
Wisconsin hopes to make it 4-0 in the all-time series against Rutgers this weekend in Piscataway, and with that, continue its path to a Big Ten West division title.
The Badgers (5-3 overall, 3-2 Big Ten) last defeated the Scarlet Knights (4-4, 1-4) in a 31-17 victory in Camp Randall Stadium over three years ago during the 2018 season. Can UW continue its perfect streak against Greg Schiano's program?
BadgerBlitz.com presents its weekly "Five Burning Questions" before the two conference programs go head-to-head on Saturday in Piscataway (2:30 p.m. CT, BTN).
1) Can Wisconsin continue its positive turnover trend, but will it also add points to the scoreboard?
Wisconsin holds a +6 turnover margin in the past two weeks, and it has led to two victories over ranked opponents (No. 25 Purdue and No. 9 Iowa, with those rankings at the time the game was played) in consecutive weeks. That has made a fearsome defense even more daunting to play against.
Rutgers holds a +4 turnover margin heading into the weekend affair against UW (10 takeaways, six turnovers lost). Can UW create some sudden change opportunities in New Jersey that can put its offense in strong position to capitalize?
For that matter, can UW come away with points more consistently after generating those turnovers? There have been missed opportunities in the past couple of weeks. Iowa stopped Wisconsin on a 4th-and-Goal fullback dive by John Chenal (though a Hawkeyes fumble a play later gave the Badgers new life to score a red zone touchdown). A week earlier, Paul Chryst's program scored only 13 points off of five takeaways against the Boilermakers.
2) Can Wisconsin's run game continue its revamped progression?
The offensive line play has really improved in the last four games -- all wins, not so coincidentally. That shows especially in run blocking, which has led to UW rushing for 1,045 yards in that timeframe. True freshman Braelon Allen has emerged as a complement to Clemson transfer Chez Mellusi, and the former has accumulated 100 or more yards in the past quartet of outings.
Mellusi and Allen have combined 1,272 yards and nine touchdowns this season, and during the four-game winning streak, the duo has gained 891 of those yards.
Rutgers comes into Saturday's contest allowing 143.8 yards per game on 4.0 yards per carry. Ohio State and Michigan State totaled 208 and 249 yards on the ground, respectively, during two Scarlet Knights losses in Piscataway last month.
Can UW's bread and butter wear down Rutgers' front seven on way to a handful of consecutive wins?
3) Will Wisconsin's passing attack find a groove against Rutgers' secondary?
Wisconsin currently ranks 125th in the FBS in both passing yards per outing (140.8) and team passer efficiency (103.1). The Badgers have not needed the passing game to be as consistent as it should be during its recent quartet of victories -- relying on the aforementioned tandem at tailback and its stout, constricting defense.
However, quarterback Graham Mertz and the aerial attack may have a chance to put up some numbers against Greg Schiano's defense on Saturday. Enter Rutgers, which ranks 96th in the FBS in team passing efficiency defense (142.78) and 51st in passing yards allowed per game (216.1).
Rutgers has given up at least 190 passing yards in its last four contests. Northwestern, which ranks 108th in the nation heading into this weekend (181.2 yards per outing), threw for 267 yards on Oct. 16.
UW has (at least) four proven receiving targets in wide receivers Danny Davis, Kendric Pryor, and Chimere Dike and tight end Jake Ferguson. Is this the weekend Mertz and the passing game get on track?
4) How will special teams play a role on Saturday?
Rutgers boasts the conference's co-special teams player of the week in punter Adam Korsak. The senior from Australia averages 47.5 yards per punt in 42 attempts this season. Twenty-three of those boots have landed inside opponents' 20-yard line, and 16 have gone 50 or more yards.
The Scarlet Knights average over 12 yards per punt return, thanks in large part to the efforts of former Badgers' standout returner, Aron Cruickshank. However, his status remains uncertain as heard during Schiano's Monday press conference due to a shoulder injury.
On the flip side, it only allows just over four yards per punt return, which is good for 23rd in the nation. Opponents gain just 17.3 yards per kickoff return, which ranks 18th in the FBS.
Regardless if Cruickshank plays or not, can the coverage and return units contain potential big plays on the road?
5) Who will need to step up if injuries arise at key positions on offense ?
Wisconsin's numbers at both tight end and fullback have dwindled behind starters Jake Ferguson and John Chenal, respectively, due to injuries (or for the latter, the transfer portal). In Mickey Turner's room, Cam Large and Hayden Rucci have already been ruled out for Saturday's contest against Rutgers. Wisconsin added redshirt sophomore Clay Cundiff as out for the season due to the terrible right leg injury suffered last week against Iowa.
Redshirt junior Jack Eschenbach returned last week, which is a welcomed sight for UW, and Jaylan Franklin got his feet wet against Purdue for eight snaps. Is Cormac Sampson still a potential here as a pseudo tight end, or because Kayden Lyles left the program to enter the transfer portal, is he solely used on the offensive line?
At fullback, UW listed no No. 2 fullback behind Chenal on its depth chart this week. Quan Easterling, his apparent backup in the two-deep, entered the transfer portal last week. Large, who again is out this week, appeared to receive reps in a fullback-like role a few games ago against Illinois.
If something happens to Ferguson or Chenal, how will Wisconsin compensate?
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