BadgerBlitz.com's weekly feature, "The 3 Cs," returns for the 2023 season. The staff takes a look at one thing we're curious, confident and concerned about as Wisconsin prepares to face Indiana.

Staff writers Seamus Rohrer and Donnie Slusher each give their thoughts on the aforementioned topics for this week.

Rohrer: I'm curious if we see any new faces take the field for the Badgers in Bloomington.

Wisconsin has four guaranteed games remaining, a win away from bowl eligibility. There's a good chance they extend that to five by reaching six wins, but as we enter the stretch run of the season, there's an opportunity to get new faces involved, particularly true freshman that could appear in four games and still preserve their redshirt season.

"There's potential for a lot of young guys to get on the field in these final four games, even those guys that haven't played at all." Luke Fickell said on Monday. "There could be some situations where we start to throw some guys in on special teams, or even where we are with injuries..."

The last part of Fickell's comment is the most intriguing. Where are the Badgers with injuries? Well, they're down to their third string halfback. Is there a chance we see true freshman tailback Nate White as the calendar flips to November? It seems unlikely given where he appeared to be in the fall from a physical development standpoint, but it's clear that Wisconsin is still searching for answers in the backfield. Jackson Acker and Cade Yacamelli are on an extremely short leash.

Slusher: I’m most curious to see how Braedyn Locke looks leading the offense.

He’s only won one of the three games he’s played in, but has still shown plenty of promising flashes.

The high point was the fourth quarter against Illinois when the redshirt freshman was given the keys to the offense and led the Badgers to a comeback victory.

Yet, like the rest of the team, Locke has struggled to stay consistent. He led a few impressive drives to end the first half and begin the second against the Buckeyes, then didn’t make much of a mark for the rest of the game. But he also won’t have to face another defensive front as good as Ohio State’s for the rest of the regular season.

The big challenge for Locke this week will be potentially adjusting to life without Braelon Allen, who’s the heart and soul of the Badger offense and perhaps the best running back in the Big Ten.

Locke will have to mostly rely on Acker, the former fullback who finished with just 34 yards on nine carries after taking over for Allen last week, and Yacamelli, the former safety who saw his first carry last week.

In other words, Locke should expect to carry the weight of the offense.

Rohrer: I'm confident that Wisconsin's defense will severely limit the Hoosiers' offense on Saturday.

Indiana is 122nd in the nation in terms of scoring offense at a measly 18.6 points-per-game. There's only eight teams worse than them in that category. Other relevant numbers paint a similar picture — the Hoosiers are 111th in rushing offense, 93rd in passing offense and 113th in total offense. Long story short? They've struggled to move the ball all year.

Indiana had a handful of explosive passing plays against Penn State. But with one of those coming off what looked like a coverage bust, and the other a rare 90-yard touchdown, those look like outliers. Another striking stat? The Hoosiers' longest running play on the season went for just 25 yards.

The Badgers' defense played very well against an Ohio State offense that isn't as dynamic as it has been in recent years, but still has NFL-caliber weapons all over the field. This defense has improved drastically since Week 1, and they've also managed to stay relatively healthy while injuries have ravaged the offense.

With a freshman quarterback and quite possibly no Braelon Allen, the defense knows it will be counted on to win this game and not let Indiana build a lead insurmountable for a handicapped offense.

Slusher: I’m confident that Will Pauling will play his best game of the season.

The transfer from Cincinnati has slowly become Wisconsin’s undeniable No. 1 receiver. He’s logged 16 more receptions and 167 more receiving yards than the next highest Badger in each category, and is getting better as the season progresses.

Pauling has averaged 6.7 receptions in his last four games, bringing him up to fourth in the Big Ten in receptions. He struggled against Ohio State, but so did everybody else on offense.

The Allen and Chimere Dike injuries will increase the pressure on Locke, but they’ll also create an opportunity for Wisconsin’s other pieces on offense, and that’s especially true for Pauling.

The loss of a lead running back means that short-yardage situations won’t be as sure-fire. Phil Longo may turn to the passing game more in such situations, which is great news for both Pauling and Skyler Bell.

Most of all, this team is now in need of leadership. The four biggest leaders on Wisconsin’s offense have all suffered injuries this season, which is crushing for morale, but will also create space for other players to step up.

Rohrer: I'm concerned that Wisconsin will be unable to run the football in Bloomington.

The Hoosiers' run defense has been pretty porous, allowing 169.1 yards-per-game on the ground. But I haven't seen nearly enough out of Acker and Yacamelli to be confident in a backfield that features those two if Allen is indeed unable to play.

Yes, Acker looked good against Rutgers, compiling 65 yards on 13 carries and displaying a penchant for running physically and violently. But that was in a complimentary role as second fiddle to Allen. Acker said he was glad that he got a bye week beforehand to prepare for that workload. How about preparing to be the featured back coming off a normal week?

Yacamelli has some skills in the open field and has the potential to develop into a nice complimentary receiving back. But he's not the kind of tailback that can handle a significant workload in the trenches at this stage in his career.

If Indiana shuts down the running game — which should be its objective with a young, inexperienced quarterback —the Badgers will be in trouble.

Slusher: I’m most concerned Wisconsin’s slow-start woes will emerge once again.

It’s been a season-long struggle. The Purdue and Rutgers games are perhaps the only weeks in which they seemed to play better as the game progressed. In seemingly every other week, the Badgers stumble through first halves, then pull off a few successful drives later on in the game when they have to. The problem’s arguably gotten worse in recent weeks.

The first half against Iowa was one of the most abysmal halves I’ve ever seen from any Badger team. Then, they needed an 18-point comeback in the fourth quarter to squeak out a win against Illinois. The Badgers didn’t put up any points on the Buckeyes until the very end of the first half, and that was before Allen got injured.

While Indiana has yet to win a game in the Big Ten, they’ve had some impressive starts against even the best teams in the conference.

They were tied 7-7 with Michigan until near the end of the first half, before the Wolverines went on to hose them. Last week, they even led Penn State for most of the first half, before falling into a hole, and then nearly coming back at the end.

If there was a week for the Hoosiers to make a statement in the Big Ten, it could be against a Badger offense in crisis. We’ll know early.

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