Madison — The Badgers enjoyed an early bye week after their first Big Ten win of the season, knocking off Purdue in West Lafayette.

As Wisconsin looks for a 2-0 start in conference play and a homecoming weekend win, what are the hottest questions surrounding the football program?

Three games into the season, Wisconsin was only allowing 93 yards-per-game on the ground. Buffalo topped the 100-yard mark with its tandem of Mike Washington and Ron Cook, but neither Washington State nor Georgia Southern appeared interested in establishing the run.

Purdue was a different story — it ran for 194 yards and 6.3 yards-per-carry, for the most part riding the talented tailback Tyrone Tracey and the quick feet of quarterback Hudson Card. Especially in the second half, the Badgers seemed to have little answer for the Boilermakers' ground game. Luke Fickell didn't seem particularly anxious about the issue when asked during his weekly press conference:

"It's not like there's an over-concern level. We feel like we've given up some big runs in third down situations, and those are the ones that have probably cost us as much as anything," he said.

"Obviously against Purdue the quarterback scrambling and running cost us a lot, a couple of the big runs on the third down stuff that just really put you in a bad situation. So not alarming, but you're finding things that you need to shore up and definitely run defense is one of those things."

Looking at Wisconsin's upcoming schedule, there's legitimate cause for concern with the run defense. When Rutgers touches down in Madison this weekend, they'll bring with them a tailback who's collected 471 yards and six touchdowns so far this season in Kyle Monangai. He's a big-play threat and has had performances of 165 and 143 yards rushing this year.

It doesn't get easier as the Big Ten schedule rolls on. Iowa's Kaleb Johnson, Ohio State's TreyVeon Henderson and Miyan Williams, Minnesota's Darius Taylor, the list goes on. Wisconsin must tighten up in the defensive trenches in order to have a successful conference run.

Rutgers is off to a 4-1 start this season, and they've had early success by playing very fundamentally sound on offense and not making mistakes.

Head coach Greg Schiano knows who his team is. They're not going to overpower you with their offense, but they ride good situational football and a stingy defense to victories. One of the key cogs in their methodical offense is quarterback Gavin Wimsatt.

Wimsatt's numbers won't wow you — again, this isn't a flashy offense. What he does really well, however, is get the ball to his playmakers and limit mistakes. Through five games, Wimsat only has one turnover: a pick-six he threw against Michigan. Contrast that to Tanner Mordecai's five turnovers on the year; three interceptions and two fumbles.

On paper, the Badgers have a better roster than Rutgers. That's why Wisconsin is currently 14-point home favorites. But there's a path for the Scarlet Knights to steal this game, and it's predicated on possessing the ball and not doing the Badgers any favors with turnovers. Expect Mike Tressel's defense to try to confuse Wimsatt with various alignments and pressures to try to force him into a rare mistake or two.

What Rutgers and its defensive coordinator Joe Harasymiak have accomplished early in 2023 is nothing short of impressive. Across the last five games of the 2022 season, the Scarlet Knights gave up 202 points. Through the first five games of 2023, they've allowed 40, 31 of which came in a beatdown courtesy of Michigan.

Now, Rutgers has a nationally relevant defense and the numbers to back it up. They're ranked 19th in scoring defense, 14th in passing defense, 24th in rushing defense and 20th in first down defense. That's a top-25 unit.

When the Scarlet Knights gave up 31 points to the Wolverines, their one blemish thus far, Michigan was extremely balanced, rushing and throwing for just over 200 yards each. Few teams in the country can match Michigan's physicality in the trenches, and Rutgers is clearly not one of them. Will Wisconsin manage to replicate what the Wolverines did two weeks ago? With obvious questions surrounding the Badgers' running game, that might be a tall task.

This is an extremely intriguing matchup between Wisconsin's offense and Rutgers' defense. Phil Longo appeared to open up the playbook more two weeks ago, and now without one of his top tailbacks, he'll need to continue to get creative. Rutgers, meanwhile, has been rolling on defense aside from when it played the No. 2 team in the country. Much will be revealed about both units come Saturday.

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