WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – With just two games left in the regular season the Badgers need to win out to secure the Big Ten West title and a bid to the conference championship game, and they can take another step towards that goal with a win today over Purdue in West Lafayette.

BadgerBlitz.com will be at Ross-Ade Stadium to take in all the action, and John Veldhuis’ three keys to the game for UW are included below.

First Read: Can Purdue slow down Wisconsin’s running game?

This might be a one-read type of game, to be honest. Purdue has had trouble stopping teams from moving the ball on the ground all season, and if they can’t stop Wisconsin on Saturday then it might be a long afternoon for them. The Badgers have taken a step forward on the ground over the last few weeks now that their offensive line has settled in a bit and they’ve established a solid rotation at running back, which means that they could be primed for a big game against the Boilermakers. To keep pace today the Boilermakers are going to have to do something they haven’t been able to do this season – if they can’t contain Corey Clement and the rest of Wisconsin’s backfield, they’re going to have a hard time staying competitive.

Second Read: Can the Badgers keep the Boilermakers behind the chains?

Assume for a moment that the Boilermakers can stop Wisconsin’s running game – they’re still going to need to be able to score points against a Wisconsin defense that has surrendered at two or more touchdowns in just four games this year – and just twice over their last seven games. UW thrives when they get teams behind the chains and force them in to third-and-long, so Purdue’s passing game will have to complete passes over the middle of the field and see if they can break off more than a few big plays against Wisconsin’s defense. They’re going to put the ball in the air quite a bit – and the Badgers know it. It’s going to come down to execution on that side of the ball, and if the Badgers can make a few big plays of their own on defense it might not matter if their running game misfires.

Third Read: Can Wisconsin’s quarterbacks step up when (or if) they are called upon?

The Badgers haven’t asked much out of their two quarterbacks over their last few games: Alex Hornibrook and Bart Houston have combined to throw for just 349 yards over their last three outings. That’s in part because the run game has been working, so they haven’t needed to really put the game in their hands over the last few weeks. I’m not sure that they’ll throw the ball very much in this game, either, but if the Badgers are going to have success in the post-season they’re going to need their quarterbacks to step up in big spots. This might be a good game for one of the two passers to show a bit of a spark and build up some confidence as they finish out the regular season.

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John Veldhuis covers Wisconsin football, basketball and recruiting for BadgerBlitz.com on the Rivals.com network. Follow him on Twitter at @JohnVeldhuis.