Wisconsin is coming off a much-needed bye week after getting boat-raced by Alabama at home while simultaneously losing its starting quarterback for the season.

As the Badgers get ready to head out west for their Big Ten opener, what questions surround the program it it gears up to play in the Coliseum?

After facing — and getting shredded by — one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in the nation in Jalen Milroe, Wisconsin jumps right back into the fire against Trojans' gunslinger Miller Moss.

Moss hasn't flooded the stat sheet like his predecessor Caleb Williams did, but he's shown beyond a shadow of a doubt that he's a high-level quarterback. Against LSU in the opener, he only threw one touchdown but carved up the Tigers' secondary to the tune of 378 yards on 75 percent completion. But it was his performance against Michigan that cemented his status as one of the top quarterbacks in the conference.

USC couldn't protect Moss whatsoever against Michigan's vaunted defensive front. The Trojans allowed a stunning 21 pressures, which, given USC's 59 passing plays, means Moss was pressured over a third of the time he dropped back, per Pro Football Focus. He was sacked four times and hit six. It was absolute carnage in the trenches for USC.

And yet, Moss hung in there. He threw three touchdowns and made great decisions, save for a pick-six that superstar cornerback Will Johnson baited him into expertly. the quarterback didn't cower in the face of relentless pressure; he took hit after hit while making throw after throw, nearly leading the Trojans to victory.

“I’ve been really impressed with him, actually. If you allow him to sit in there and feel comfortable, he can rip it. He can hit spots. You saw third-and-maybe 16 against Michigan this past week, Michigan dropped off into coverage a little bit more, where he had no right finding the touchdown pass [but] he did. He sees it. He knows when to get rid of the ball. He certainly has the arm strength," defensive coordinator Mike Tressel said.

Scouting Moss, he throws an accurate, pretty football and does a great job giving his receivers a chance to make a play on more contested throws. His completion percentage and lack of turnovers indicates that he's a good decision-maker, and that shows up on tape as well. He's not a mobile quarterback by any means but is athletic enough to move around in the pocket/backfield. Moss presents an entirely different challenge than Milroe did two weeks ago, but one that remains daunting.

The Trojans' loss to Michigan dropped them to 2-1 with an 0-1 record in Big Ten play, but it may have had a more lingering effect: it illuminated a game-plan to beat USC.

Michigan won while throwing the ball 12 times for 32 yards. Of course, the Wolverines racked up 290 yards on the ground in the Big House, gashing the Trojans' front repeatedly. It was a classic clash of philosophies: the glitz and glamour of sunny Southern California, with spread formations and speedy skill-position players everywhere vs. the hard-nosed, blue-collar style football of the Midwest.

If any program this century has rode the Midwestern style of football to success, it's been Wisconsin. The problem for the Badgers is that in year two of the Phil Longo era, they're still an offense lost at sea, one that seems to resemble the worst aspects of a run-heavy system and a spread attack.

Michigan is an extreme example because of its glaring lack of talent at receiver and quarterback, but it certainly won't be alone in its game-plan against USC. Every Big Ten program will try to attack the Trojans this way, and Wisconsin will certainly be no exception. The question is, can the Badgers replicate Michigan's will-imposing physicality? That falls squarely on the offensive line.

Wisconsin's offensive line allowed two sacks, but at least one of those can be credited to Braedyn Locke holding into the football for too long. The final box score won't reflect it because the Badgers played catch-up for most of the game, but running lanes were there. If there was one unit that wasn't out-classed by Alabama, it may have been the offensive line. Ultimately, the Badgers' big men on offense played admirably against a talented Crimson Tide defensive front. They'll need to replicate that effort if Wisconsin wants to replicate Michigan's physicality.

This defense has a myriad of issues right now, and it may be wise to focus on addressing the basics — such as stopping the run and not letting receivers run wide open down the field — before this unit can start to think about creating splash plays. But that's yet another area where the Badgers' defense has been painfully stagnant.

"The mentality of creating havoc, I think that mentality needs to improve," Mike Tressel said. "There's no doubt about that. We need to create a few more negative plays. But where the numbers get ugly is when you give up explosives. So if we can just leverage the ball, do some of those fundamental defensive things, that'll eliminate the explosives, and you'll see a big jump right then and there. And our guys understand that, so I think they will.”

Wisconsin hasn't forced a turnover since the opener. None of its starters have created a turnover; the Badgers' lone takeaway on defense thus far was an interception from true freshman cornerback Xavier Lucas in his first ever collegiate game. Turnovers can be flukey, but consistently good defenses consistently take the ball away.

“We need to get more hats to the ball. Very seldom, is it [that] one dude just makes a play, so if we get more hats the ball, with a little bit more intensity about us, they [turnovers] then have a tendency to come in bunches, because you get a little bit of momentum and you see the success,” Tressel said.

Forget turnovers for a minute — how about a sack from the team's pass-rushers? Leon Lowery finally registered a quarterback takedown against Alabama, but it was just that — more of a tackle on Milroe behind the line of scrimmage than a true sack. Meanwhile, it's been radio silence from his fellow transfer pass-rusher John Pius.

Playing a high-flying offense like USC on the road, it'll be absolutely critical to create negative plays on defense. Wisconsin also likely needs to create a turnover or two if it wants to pull off this upset.

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