BadgerBlitz.com's weekly feature, "The 3 Cs," returns for the 2024 season. The staff takes a look at one thing we're curious, confident and concerned about heading into Wisconsin's Week 13 showdown with Nebraska.

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

ROHRER: I'm curious as to which offense will look more discombobulated.

Both units have been massive disappointments this season. Wisconsin fired Phil Longo just 23 games into his tenure, apparently unconvinced that the play-caller was the right man for the job. After he gave very little reason to assume otherwise, this was the right move. But this is yet another wrench thrown into one of the most dysfunctional offenses in the conference, and I'm not sure how Wisconsin will respond.

Will this galvanize a unit that's underperformed all year? That seems somewhat unlikely. I know center Jake Renfro was excited about his team's plan this week, but what could've changed all that drastically? Many of the key issues remain: The Badgers have a quarterback problem, an inconsistent offensive line and a bevy mostly underwhelming skill-position players. That's doesn't change overnight.

Nebraska, meanwhile, is in the second week of its new offense under Dana Holgorsen. His unit only mustered 13 points against an unimpressive USC defense last week in his play-calling debut for the Huskers. Dylan Raiola remains turnover prone, and the offense as a whole lacks explosion. The Huskers' problems also don't appear to have a particularly quick fix. If you like crisp, cohesive offense, avoid the Big Ten Network at 2:30 P.M CT.

SLUSHER: I’m curious to see if Wisconsin’s defensive injuries cost them.

The Badgers defense’s performance against #1 Oregon was so impressive that it was easy to forget about their nagging health concerns.

There are a few key Badgers who have missed time recently.

Chief among them is starting inside linebacker Jaheim Thomas, who went from averaging 46 snaps a game to finishing with just 15 total against Iowa and Oregon, per Pro Football Focus.

Backup Tackett Curtis has also missed time due to injury. He was questionable to play against Iowa, but hasn’t logged more than seven snaps in a game since they played Rutgers.

On the bright side, this has given sophomore Christian Alliegro more snaps, which he’s taken advantage of.

Up front, defensive lineman Curt Neal was listed as questionable on the Oregon pregame injury report. He played 40 snaps, which is about his average, but it’s still something to monitor, especially given how thin that room is.

At cornerback, freshman Xavier Lucas left during the Northwestern game and has only played 12 snaps in three games since.

Although, what could end up being the most costly injury happened late in the fourth quarter against Oregon, when safety Hunter Wohler left the game after taking a hard hit. We haven’t heard anything from Luke Fickell, but Wohler wasn’t available for weekly media availability on Tuesday, which isn’t a great sign.

In a battle between two struggling teams, it could come down to which team outlasts the other. And health will matter in that equation.

ROHRER: I'm confident Wisconsin's secondary can make life tough for Huskers' quarterback Dylan Raiola.

The same can't be said about the front seven, which remains incredibly suspect despite logging two rare takedowns of Ducks' quarterback Dillon Gabriel last week. Still, I'm confident that if Raiola does have time to throw, he won't see much open downfield.

The Badgers' secondary held up incredibly well against one of the nations top passers last week in Gabriel. His 218 yards through the air were his second-lowest total on the season. Wisconsin's cornerbacks, namely Ricardo Hallman and Nyzier Fourqurean, came to play, going toe-to-toe with Oregon's future NFL wideouts.

Nebraska's passing attack isn't nearly as daunting. Raiola is averaging 209 passing yards per game with a 1/1 touchdown-to-interception ratio. What's more, his yards-per-attempt through the past five games is just 5.3, reflecting this passing game's lack of explosion. The top two receivers, Isaiah Neyor and Jahmal Banks, have struggled to get separation at times. The Badgers' defensive backs have a chance to take over this game if they carry over their play from last week.

SLUSHER: I’m confident that Braedyn Locke’s turnover streak will continue.

The most consistent thing about the Badgers this season has been Locke’s propensity to throw a costly, back-breaking interception at the absolute worst time.

Locke has thrown an interception in all seven of his starts, bringing his season touchdown-interception ratio to an even 9-9.

To make matters worse for Locke, he lost his offensive coordinator and play caller.

Regardless of how good or bad Longo was at his job, it’s hard to imagine the Badgers’ new play-calling operation will make Locke feel more at ease. Fickell described it as “collaborative” on Monday, without offering any real details.

They’ll test this method against a smart, experienced Nebraska defense that will prey on confusion.

Even if the Badger offense benefits from the coaching change, it’s hard to imagine that Locke will play his cleanest game of the season.

ROHRER: I'm concerned that Nebraska's veteran core on defense will have no problem shutting down Wisconsin's offense-in-transition.

The Cornhuskers defense hasn't been all that elite in the second half of the season, but it's still populated by an experienced core of grizzled veterans. From Ty Robinson and John Bullock in the front seven to Isaac Gifford and Malcolm Hartzog in the secondary, Nebraska's defense has continuity and experience that figures to make life tough on Braedyn Locke.

In my eyes, Wisconsin is going to need to hit on some big plays to expedite some drives. Locke can pick up a few first downs, but can he consistently drive the length of the field against a veteran defense? I've been given no reason to expect that.

SLUSHER: I’m concerned that the Badgers are too mentally depleted to win a battle on the road.

Wisconsin will enter on a three-game losing streak, which included two winnable games against top-three opponents and one beatdown against a rival. To top it all off, the Oregon loss prompted the firing of a coordinator.

I fear for the team’s ability to play with enough energy against an experienced team on the road.

We saw last season, when they lost to Northwestern, what a depleted Badger team looks like. It could get ugly, fast.

On the bright side for Wisconsin, Nebraska might be equally if not more broken than the Badgers. They’re on a four-game losing streak and have undergone a coordinator change of their own.

I’m sensing a true Big Ten West matchup on Saturday, where the leads will be low and the game will likely come down to the wire. Mental fortitude will matter.

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