College football programs kick off fall camps in less than a month. With the sport returning soon, BadgerBlitz.com dives into who Wisconsin will face on the field during the 2021 season.

Each preview breaks down every opponent, including last year's stats and who's back (and not back) on both sides of the line of scrimmage. Plus, we also receive insight from those who cover the respective programs.

*Sept. 4 -- vs. Penn State

*Sept. 11 -- vs. Eastern Michigan

*Sept. 18 -- BYE

*Sept. 25 -- vs. Notre Dame (at Soldier Field)

*Oct. 2 -- vs. Michigan

*Oct. 9 -- at Illinois

*Oct. 16 -- vs. Army

*Oct. 23 -- at Purdue

*Oct. 30 -- vs. Iowa

*Nov. 6 -- at Rutgers

*Nov. 13 -- vs. Northwestern

*Nov. 20 -- vs. Nebraska

*Nov. 27 -- at Minnesota

Head coach Brian Kelly and his program come off a 10-2 season where it claimed the No. 4 seed in the College Football Playoff. Now, Notre Dame has to replace its defensive coordinator while also reloading, as nine players heard their names called in the 2021 NFL Draft.

There are, however, key returners in the offensive and defensive backfield to help cushion the blow. On top of that, an old friend of the Wisconsin program could be leading the Irish's offense when the two schools clash in Chicago this September. Intrigue abounds in "The Windy City," indeed.

*Record: 10-2 (9-0 in ACC play)

*Points per game: 33.4

*Opponents points per game: 19.7

*Rushing yards per game: 211.1

*Opponents rushing yards per game: 113.0

*Passing yards per game: 237.4

*Opponents' passing yards per game: 230.6

*Third-down conversions: 49.7%

*Opponents' third-down conversions: 31.4%

*Total turnovers created: 17 (seven interceptions, 10 fumble recoveries)

*Total turnovers given up: 11 (three interceptions, eight fumbles)

*Sacks: 31

*Sacks allowed: 25

The main storyline for the Sept. 25 matchup inside Soldier Field very well could be the matchup of former Wisconsin quarterback Jack Coan against his past teammates. The Long Island native transferred to the Fighting Irish and is competing for the QB1 spot.

Coan very likely could replace Ian Book, one of nine Irish players who were selected in the 2021 NFL Draft earlier this year. Offensive linemen Aaron Banks, Liam Eichenberg and Robert Hainsey all departed for the next level as well, so Jarrett Patterson and Marshall transfer Cain Madden will be called upon to help anchor that key position group.

Kyren Williams is a versatile back, running for 1,125 yards on 5.3 yards per carry with 13 touchdowns on the ground in 2020. He also hauled in 35 receptions for 313 yards and an additional score through the air. Notre Dame will need to replace two key receivers in Javon McKinley (42 catches, 717 yards, three touchdowns) and Ben Skowronek (29, 439, five) -- both of whom are off to play in the NFL.

*Key returners: WR Avery Davis, TE Michael Mayer, OL Jarrett Patterson (2020 PFF Grade 81.7), RB Kyren Williams, RB Chris Tyree

*Key additions: QB Jack Coan (Wisconsin), OL Cain Madden (Marshall -- 2020 PFF Grade 92.5), OL Blake Fisher (five-star early enrollee), OL Rocco Spindler (four-star early enrollee)

*Key departures: OL Aaron Banks, QB Ian Book, OL Liam Eichenberg, OL Robert Hainsey, OL Tommy Kraemer, WR Javon McKinley, WR Ben Skowronek, TE Tommy Tremble

FROM BLUE AND GOLD

Breaking Down Notre Dame’s Roster With Insight From Pro Football Focus

Addressing Five Notre Dame Summer Storylines With Brian Kelly, Tommy Rees

Notre Dame’s 2021 Offensive Line ‘Standard’ Gets A Different Kind Of Test

Addressing 5 Defensive Summer Storylines With Marcus Freeman, Brian Kelly

Friday Five: Final Notre Dame-Related Thoughts On 2021 NFL Draft

The Fighting Irish will have to replace three draftees within their front seven, as linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoa and defensive linemen Daelin Hayes and Adetokunbo Ogundeji will now play on Sundays. Owusu-Koramoah led the team in tackles for loss (11) on way to 62 total stops in 2020, good for second for the Irish in the latter category. Ogundeji led the defense in sacks and quarterback hurries (seven each), while Hayes registered six tackles for loss and three sacks.

Based on Blue and Gold's interview with new defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman, can Isaiah Foskey and others step in to a potentially deep line?

All-American safety Kyle Hamilton (team-leading 63 tackles in 2020) leads a secondary that should pose an intriguing challenge to Graham Mertz and the Wisconsin offense in late September.

*Key returners: DT Jayson Ademilola, DE Isaiah Foskey, DE Jordan Botelho, S Kyle Hamilton, NT Kurt Hinish, CB Clarence Lewis, DL Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa, LB Drew White

*Key additions: N/A

*Key departures: S Shaun Crawford, DE Daelin Hayes, CB Nick McCloud, DE Adetokunbo Ogundeji, LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah

Patrick Engel from Blue and Gold of the Rivals.com network answered some questions about the Fighting Irish before fall camp arrives.

Entering fall camp, who could be a surprise for the team?

Junior linebacker Jack Kiser isn’t a like-for-like athlete to Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (because no one in the linebacker room is), but his spring season offered plenty of reasons to think he can be effective in his own way as Owusu-Koramoah’s replacement. Heading into training camp, he appears to be the favorite at the vacated rover position.

Kiser doesn’t have the man-to-man cover skills Owusu-Koramoah did, but he was an impact run defender in his limited playing time last year, has the burst to be disruptive as a blitzer and can help in underneath coverage by wiping out yards after the catch. He spent the spring game wiping out receivers in the flat and limiting them to small gains. He was one of Notre Dame’s better tacklers last year.

This season goes well if ...

The offense weathers its turnover and finds a bit more explosion. That hinges on:

-Former Wisconsin quarterback Jack Coan being efficient and accurate like he was at Wisconsin, but in an offense that will ask him to do different things than he did in 2019 and rely on his ability as a pocket passer. Coan isn’t the athlete or improviser departed starter Ian Book was, but the Irish might have an upgrade in pocket decisiveness if he starts.

-An inexperienced offensive line’s ability to gel quickly and still be a net positive. This group won’t be the dominant Joe Moore Award finalist it was a year ago, when it had three AP All-Americans and three top-100 draft picks. It’s believed the 2020 unit had the most returning starts of any offensive line in team history. The 2021 group has just 31 returning starts – among the lowest in the Brian Kelly era.

The starting five could include a freshman at left tackle (former five-star Blake Fisher) and a sixth-year senior making the jump from Conference USA to Notre Dame (former Marshall guard Cain Madden). It will have one returning starter – senior Jarrett Patterson, the 2019-20 center who’s moving elsewhere.

There are a lot of unknowns and potential for ups and downs. That’s not ideal for an offense with a strong backfield and quarterback who is best when in the pocket. But Notre Dame has recruited the position well enough to think it won’t be a liability. Adding Madden, a 2020 second-team AP All-American, should help the floor.

-Senior receiver Kevin Austin is healthy and becomes the go-to option Notre Dame’s coaching staff and players think he can be.

It’s not the best sign for a receiving corps that the player pegged as the top target has played two games in the last two seasons, has six career catches and is coming off a pair of foot fractures. But those concerns will be moot if Austin stays on the field and delivers on the praise he gets from those within the program.

Kelly and offensive coordinator Tommy Rees told me earlier this summer they think his physical traits match those of former Irish receivers who are in the NFL (Miles Boykin, Chase Claypool, in particular). He’s big, at 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds. He can run after the catch and accelerate. He can be a downfield threat. Notre Dame’s offense missed that presence without Claypool last year.

This season goes off the rails if ...

Coan struggles and Notre Dame gets inconsistent play from its quarterbacks, the offensive line never comes together and has a bumpy season with lots of lineup shuffling and no one emerges as a top receiver who can stress defenses.

Without an Austin breakthrough, it’s hard to see how Notre Dame’s passing offense is more explosive than it was a year ago. And that wasn’t a strong suit of the Irish’s 2020 attack. Running back Kyren Williams’s impact would be dampened if the blocking isn’t reliable.

I make this mostly about offense because the floor for the defense feels high even without Butkus Award winner Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and defensive coordinator Clark Lea. Notre Dame hired one of the country’s rising coaching stars in Marcus Freeman to replace Lea. It has a potential top-10 pick in safety Kyle Hamilton. It has a deep and experienced defensive line with some upside.

The range of outcomes for the defense feels smaller. That’s a good thing.

What is the position to watch during fall camp?

I’ve already touched on the offensive line, so I’ll go defense here. Notre Dame’s defensive line separated itself this spring as the team’s best position. It will rotate nine players when healthy. It rotated 10 last year.

There’s little drop-off among the five interior linemen. At defensive end, Isaiah Foskey takes over for Daelin Hayes at “vyper” end and Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa moves from tackle to end to replace Ade Ogundeji on the other side.

Notre Dame’s pass rush has finished between 30th and 40th nationally in sacks per game the last three years. Getting there doesn’t feel like the 2021 goal as much as pushing past it does. Foskey and No. 2 vyper Jordan Botelho are high-upside rushers who are arguably the most important pieces in getting Notre Dame there.

*Thanks to Patrick Engel from Blue and Gold on confirming the key returners, additions and departures -- which were initially put together looking at last year's stats and PFF grades, along with the aforementioned linked articles.