As we near the start of Wisconsin's 2018 football season, the BadgerBlitz.com staff has assembled our predictions for the upcoming year. Who do we think will win the Big Ten? What type of season will the Badgers have? What players will take home the conference player of the year honors and the Heisman Trophy? Here are all of our predictions for the 2018 season.

Veldhuis: This is a tough one to pick because I think both of Wisconsin’s road trips to Michigan and Penn State are going to be challenging. Neither game has been assigned a timeslot yet, but I would be surprised if the Michigan game isn’t at night. But I think Penn State is the better team at this point in time - and I don’t think Beaver Stadium is an easier venue to steal a road win than the Big House, so I have to say that Wisconsin’s matchup against the Nittany Lions will be their toughest of the regular season.

McNamara: This is a tough call between Penn State and Michigan, but I'll go with the Wolverines in Ann Arbor because there are already rumblings it will be a night contest. The Badgers should be in good shape if they can split those games and then take care of business the rest of the way.

Mills: Wisconsin's biggest challenge in 2018 may be living up to its preseason expectations. Similarly, Michigan is another program that has continually received preseason hype, but seems to fall short year after year. This year, Michigan's defense returns nine starters and is a team that believes it has solved its inconsistency at the quarterback position in the form of transfer Shea Patterson. As a result, UW's road trip to Ann Arbor in mid-October sticks out to me the most.

Veldhuis: I’m expecting to see Iowa take a step forward this season - but I don’t know if they’re going to challenge the Badgers for the Big Ten West title. Getting quarterback Nate Stanley back for another season is a big win for the Hawkeyes, and they always seem to find a way to play good defense - even though they need to replace two studs in Josey Jewell and Josh Jackson. I think Nebraska will also improve as well, but not to the point where they are competing for any championships in 2018.

McNamara: How about Purdue? I really like what Jeff Brohm has been able to do in a short amount of time, both on the recruiting front and on the field. The Boilermakers went 7-6 last season, won a bowl game and gave Wisconsin a four-quarter battle at Camp Randall. Purdue is definitely moving in the right direction.

Mills: I believe the Michigan State Spartans could make some noise in the BIG Ten East this season. The Spartans face a lineup of tough opponents - Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State - but at least one win against any three of these programs would be huge. Although the East is littered with talent, the Spartans are looking to build off a 10-3 season in what some deemed as another "rebuilding year." This team isn't ready to compete for the BIG Ten East just yet, but Mark Dantonio and his staff are ahead of schedule.

Veldhuis: I think Wisconsin’s offense is going to be good enough this year to where Jonathan Taylor can continue running over defenses. Even without Quintez Cephus and Danny Davis for a few games Wisconsin’s passing attack should be balanced enough to where defenses just can’t key in on stopping Taylor, and that’s good news for his chances at winning the Heisman Trophy and other national awards.

McNamara: Taylor is certainly a popular and safe pick here, but I'll buck the trend and go with quarterback Trace McSorely from Penn State. The senior owns Penn State's single-season passing yards (3,614), completions (284), passing touchdowns (29), total offense (4,061) and touchdowns responsible for (37) records.

Mills: I'm going to side with John Veldhuis on this one. As long as Taylor adjusts when teams focus their energy on him, a 2,000 yard season is by no means out of reach for the sophomore.

Veldhuis: Nick Bosa gets my vote for this season. I was thoroughly impressed with him in 2017, and I can’t imagine that Big Ten offensive coordinators are thrilled that the Buckeyes get him back for another season.

McNamara: I'm not going to argue with Nick Bosa here. He's a dynamic playmaker who gave Wisconsin fits in the Big Ten title game last year. The junior is coming off a season in which he led the Buckeyes in tackles-for-loss (16.0) and TFL yardage (74) with another team-high in quarterback sacks (8).

Mills: Michigan linebacker Devin Bush is my pick to win the conference's Defensive Player of the Year for 2018. Last season, the junior recorded 102 tackles last season, which lead the Wolverines. He also finished with 9.5 tackles for loss and five sacks on one of the nation's top statistical defenses. As one of they kegs on the Wolverine defense, the award is his for the taking.

Veldhuis: I don’t think it’s particularly fair - but the Heisman Trophy has become a quarterback award unless there is no obvious frontrunner. I think Arizona’s Khalil Tate gets my vote in the preseason, in part because he’ll be able to rack up a ton of rushing yards as well.

McNamara: I'll also go with a quarterback, but it won't be from an Arizona team that will likely finish 7-5. My pick is Georgia's Jake Fromm because I think the Bulldogs' offense is going to be loaded this season. Fromm, who led Georgia to the SEC championship and an appearance in the National Championship game, finished with 2,615 passing yards, 24 touchdown passes and seven interceptions as a true freshman.

Mills: West Virginia quarterback Will Grier is who I believe will hoist the Heisman Trophy this season. He threw 34 touchdown passes in 2017, and this should look strikingly similar - if not bette r- in 2018. However, if Grier fails to show he can beat tougher opponents, then his final stat-line will not be enough.

Veldhuis: I’ve gone back and forth on this for a while - ever since the end of spring ball, really. But I can’t put a decision off any longer, so I’m going to say that the Badgers go 11-1 (8-1) with a loss to Penn State on the road in November. I’m completely sold on Wisconsin’s offense - and I think that will help them steal a win against Michigan, even with their superb defense. But Penn State’s offense is dynamic as well, and even if Wisconsin’s defense is just a Top 25 unit instead of a Top 10 group I feel like that game is going to be tough for them to pull out. I could see this team going anywhere from 9-3 to 12-0 in the regular season, to be completely honest.

McNamara: I agree with John Veldhuis in that this team could go anywhere from 9-3 to 12-0 during the regular season. There's still a lot I want to see from this defense during non-conference play, but the offense should be very, very good. With that, I'll go 10-2 but I wouldn't be surprised if the Badgers dropped a game or two they were favored in this year.

Mills: My prediction is Wisconsin finishes with a 10-2 (7-2) record. I believe the biggest area of concern is how the Badgers respond to the absence of numerous veteran defenders.

Veldhuis: This Wisconsin team is definitely capable of climbing the mountain and winning the Big Ten championship game - but I still think Ohio State (the team I’m predicting to win the Big Ten East) would be favored more often than not. I’m reserving my right to change my mind until the Badgers start playing games and we see how their defense performs, but for right now I’m thinking they lose the conference championship game and head back to the Rose Bowl - which will be looking for a Big Ten team to replace the conference champion if they make the playoff. An all ‘W’ matchup between Wisconsin and Washington would certainly make for an entertaining matchup.

McNamara: I don't see a scenario where Wisconsin doesn't make it to the Big Ten title game. So if they go into that game with a loss or two and fall to, say, Ohio State, the Rose Bowl seems like a logical spot. I'm just not ready to say the Badgers will be in the playoff this year.

Mills: Wisconsin cannot seem to solve its recent BIG Ten Championship drought, and I believe 2018 will be no different, especially since I believe the team took a step back defensively from a year ago. I envision the Badgers making the trip to Arizona to play in the Fiesta Bowl.

Veldhuis: My bracket looks like this:

1. Alabama over No. 4 Oklahoma

2. Clemson over No. 3 Ohio State

Alabama over Clemson

McNamara: My bracket looks like this:

1. Alabama over No. 4 Clemson

2. Ohio State over No. 3 Georgia

Alabama over Ohio State

Mills: My bracket is laid out below:

1. Clemson over No. 4 Washington

2. Georgia over No. 3 Alabama

Clemson over Georgia

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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.