Wisconsin is in danger of losing five straight to close out the season and snapping its bowl game streak that dates back to 2001.

As the Badgers look to defend the Axe and reach the postseason, what burning questions surround the program?

Let's be perfectly clear: this is the biggest football game Wisconsin has played in Luke Fickell's tenure, and for all of the wrong reasons.

The Badgers are in danger of finishing the season trophy-less and without a bowl game appearance for the first time in over two decades. The hopes and dreams of this season have already been dashed, but if this team were to fall to 5-7, sitting on its hands during bowl season with its trophy case bare, it would represent a new low this program essentially hasn't experienced this century.

In that sense, the stakes couldn't be higher. But will Wisconsin play like it? Inconsistency has plagued this team all year. After an incredibly spirited performance against the No. 1 team in the nation almost led the Badgers to an upset win over Oregon, Wisconsin regressed significantly the following week against Nebraska. The Cornhuskers, knowing they were on the brink of taking their program back to the postseason for the first time in eight years, played with more passion and fire. They simply wanted it more.

That can't happen against the Gophers. The most-played rivalry in the history of college football obviously means a lot to both programs, and Fickell has made sure to stress the importance of rivalry games in his time at Wisconsin. But the Badgers need to play like even more is on the line than usual, because failing to make a bowl game in year two under Fickell would be an abject failure. It's also worth noting that for a coach that has repeatedly harped on playing your best football at the end of the season, his team is in danger of losing five straight to close out the year.

Fickell was asked about Wisconsin's bowl game streak being in jeopardy this week, and he re-directed attention back to the rivalry:

“When we start at the beginning of the season, we talk about rivalries, we talk about the battle for the axe, we talk about the history of the game more than we talk about different types of streaks and things like that. I'm not downplaying it. I'm not saying it's not incredibly important. I'm not saying it's another thing that's on our plate. But when it gets down to this last week, it's about one thing. It's about the rivalry. It's about preparing to play it in the most important game of the year,” he said.

This is certainly the most important game of the year, but for reasons Fickell wasn't willing to admit in earnest to reporters. Friday's outcome will have a massive effect on the just how hot the head coach's seat is this offseason.

If he can't, there likely won't be a postseason. But after a rollercoaster of an eight-start stretch, Braedyn Locke will look to stack good performances and do what he's struggled to do all season: carry the Badgers to a critical win.

Against Nebraska, and notably in the absence of ex-play-caller Phil Longo, Locke had his best game since Week 6 against Purdue. He tossed for 292 yards, three touchdowns and one interception (that went right through the hands of receiver Bryson Green) while completing 67 percent of his passes.

"I think he managed what we asked him to manage, and he took some shots when we needed him to take shots and he made some good decisions," Fickell said after the Nebraska game. "Those are the kind of things we've gotta continue to build upon. But it's hard to see through, for me, some of the other things. There are some positives. It's hard to see right now."

Fickell was understandably unwilling to heap praise on his signal-caller after yet another brutal defeat. But the fact remains the Locke, for as much as he's struggled this season, was not the problem against Nebraska.

Locke must keep that up against Minnesota. With the Badgers' streaky-at-best ground game, Wisconsin once again needs Locke to make good decisions, hit on some big-time throws and take care of the football. He'll have to do it with an offensive play-calling operation that's been pieced together on the fly in the wake of Longo's firing, but Fickell said that for the most part, he liked what he saw from the tandem of Nate Letton calling plays and Kenny Guiton signaling them in.

"I thought they were in rhythm. I thought they handled the tempos of things, were very efficient in what they were doing. There weren't any real, I think maybe one mishap, where we made a check and weren't all on the same page. But the process and what those guys had to go through this week, I thought they did a really good job," Fickell said.

It won't come all that easy against the Gophers. Minnesota boasts the 22nd-ranked passing defense in the nation, allowing just 182 yards-per-game through the air. The Gophers' secondary also has four defensive backs with multiple interceptions, including true freshman safety Koi Perch who has five.

Tackling, coverage, gap integrity, pass rush — it was all bad against Nebraska. That putrid performance came against an offense that had fired its coordinator just weeks prior. The Huskers' 44 points were the most they'd scored all season, and they closed out the game (minus the kneel-down at the end of the fourth quarter) with six-straight scoring drives. It was about as ugly as it gets on defense in Lincoln.

Of course, the week prior, Wisconsin's defense bottled up Oregon's offense like no other team has this year. The dichotomy of going from the best performance of the season to likely the worst in just a weeks' time is a maddening aspect of the Badgers' struggles this season.

"If you let up just a little bit...there's no doubt our guys poured their heart and soul into, for example, Oregon and Penn State, and played really really well, and didn't perform to that level in other games," defensive coordinator Mike Tressel acknowledged. "What you really recognize is, it doesn't matter who the opponent is. If you relax in your preparation, your intensity, your passion, even in the slightest, there's no margin for error. There's so much parity."

That was an interesting way for Tressel to not exactly shoulder the blame, but not exactly throw his players under the bus either. Still, if it's all about the preparation, that falls on Tressel to ensure his unit grinds all week long.

Minnesota's offense is nothing to write home about. Averaging just 328 yards-per-game, there's just 16 teams with a worse total offense in the nation. Regardless, the Gophers have some talented players, including wideout Daniel Jackson and tailback Darius Taylor. Wisconsin's defense must come ready for a street fight.

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