With spring practices in the rear view mirror, Wisconsin football is now locked into the offseason. Summer is in full swing as finals wrap up and players return home. Before we know it, the Badgers will take the practice field once again in August for fall camp. In this period of relative calm, though, what better time to analyze Wisconsin's fall schedule?

Before the season kicks off, it can be difficult to pinpoint the magnitude of individual games. Yes, the Axe Game is always critical, and any time Ohio State shows up on the schedule it's a daunting litmus test. But who would've thought that last season, an Oct. 1 home game against an Illinois team the Badgers had lost to once in the past 10 meetings would be the turning point the sent Paul Chryst packing?

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Thus, rather than breaking down standalone games, this article will outline Wisconsin's toughest tests, all opponents considered. Under Luke Fickell, the Badgers have the firepower to compete for a Big Ten title. The following is what stands in their way.

This one isn't too difficult to discern. This was true a season ago as well, and will likely be true anytime the Badgers and Buckeyes square off in the foreseeable future.

The Badgers walked into a nightmare in Columbus a season ago. Current Houston Texans' quarterback C.J Stroud eviscerated Jim Leonhard's defense, particularly the secondary. The Buckeyes scored early and often, and Wisconsin's defensive backs looked woefully unprepared to face a passing game of that caliber.

Stroud is gone, but most of his weapons remain from a passing attack that ranked 14th nationally in 2022. If that number seems low, it is; the eye test will tell you that Ohio State fielded one of the most dangerous passing games in the nation. The individual numbers tell a more accurate story.

The Buckeyes averaged 14.15 yards per completion, good for fourth in the nation. That speaks to the explosiveness of their passing attack, and the talent of Brian Hartline's wide outs.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the first receiver selected in the 2023 NFL draft, only caught five passes last year. Ohio State didn't miss a beat. Led by Marvin Harrison Jr. (77 catches, 1,263 yards and 14 touchdowns) and Emeka Egbuka (74 catches, 1151 yards and 10 touchdowns), the Buckeyes tore up opposing secondaries with ease. Harrison and Egbuka both return in 2023.

As if their returning production wasn't enough, the assembly line of top-shelf receiver prospects in Columbus has minted two new gems in the 2023 class, Brandon Inniss and Carnell Tate. Both are five-star prospects, ranked first and third at their position, respectively. Not to mention their other two freshman receivers, both of whom are blue chips as well. It remains to be seen how Ryan Day incorporates his influx of fresh receiver talent, but Inniss and Tate are too talented to ride the bench for long. Tate has already reportedly been receiving first-team reps this spring.

The biggest question for the Buckeyes' offense at this point is their signal caller. Kyle McCord and Devin Brown are in the midst of a heated battle that figures to continue well into fall camp. McCord appears to have the slight advantage, but both still have an opportunity to win the job. Both quarterbacks were ranked fourth in their respective recruiting classes, and either could've played for a number of blue-blood programs coming out of high school. Whoever starts for Ohio State will have undoubtably earned it. The good news for Wisconsin? Whoever the Buckeyes trot out under center in late October will have started at most just seven collegiate games to that point.

Once again, the Buckeyes' offense reigns supreme. It was tempting to go with Minnesota here, as they lean on their running game more and have had plenty of success in recent years. But with Mohammed Ibrahim off to the NFL, and the likes of Miyan Williams and TreVeyon Henderson still in Columbus, Ohio State is the only right answer.

The Big Ten is littered with dynamic one-two punches at running back. Braelon Allen and Chez Mellusi at Wisconsin. Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen at Penn State. The scariest backfield duo, however, resides in Columbus.

Henderson arrived at Ohio State in 2021 as a highly coveted tailback who could've played anywhere in the country. He wasted little time establishing himself, running for 1,255 yards and 15 touchdowns as a freshman. His carries dipped significantly in 2022 for a few reasons. One, he was injured and forced to miss five games, including The Game against Michigan and the College Football Playoff semifinal against Georgia. Two, Williams emerged as a dynamic threat in his third season.

Williams was a three-star running back in the class of 2020 with a much more modest offer sheet than his backfield mate. In 2021, Henderson's breakout freshman season, he proved to be a solid second tailback, rushing for 507 yards and three touchdowns on 71 carries. Last year, he took his game to the next level with 825 yards and 14 touchdowns.

For the most part, the two halfbacks split backfield work when they're both healthy. There's no clear lead back as there is in some of the other one-two punches in the conference. The Buckeyes' passing game remains their calling card, but as they break in a young quarterback, Day might rely on the ground game more than he did a season ago.

The Big Ten is typically the nation's premier defensive conference. Last year was no exception; in fact, the conference fielded a number of especially dominant defenses, many of which Wisconsin had the misfortune of playing. Illinois knocked the Badgers around. Minnesota clamped up a hapless Wisconsin offense in the Axe Game. Still, the best defense on Wisconsin's schedule right now is the Iowa Hawkeyes.

This was a tough call. Illinois had the better defense last year, but they've lost several key secondary pieces to the NFL Draft. There's no doubt they'll still be formidable, but they appear primed for a slight regression.

Iowa, meanwhile, may also regress this year. After allowing allowing a shockingly low 3.99 yards per play in 2022, easily tops in the nation, the Hawkeyes lost much of their production. Namely, Lukas Van Ness, Jack Campbell and Seth Benson have all departed from the front seven. Nevertheless, between their returning talent and their mastermind coordinator Phil Parker, it's never wise to bet against an Iowa defense.

Their headliner is cornerback Cooper DeJean. After barely playing as a freshman in 2021, the corner stepped into starting role last season and shattered all expectations. He proved to be the ultimate ballhawk, picking off five passes and taking three of those back for touchdowns, including a pick six off of Graham Mertz. He enters 2023 as one of the top corners in the nation and he'll draw the toughest assignment week in and week out for the Hawkeyes.

Quinn Shulte was another first-year starter who outperformed his expectations. The defensive back totaled 71 tackles, an interception and six passes defended. Also in the secondary is Xavier Nwankpa, the top-ranked safety in the class of 2022. He figures to slide into a starting role.

Just like any highly successful college defense, Iowa has production to replace. With an experienced but limited quarterback in Cade McNamara, the Hawkeyes will rely on their defense to win them ballgames, and they should once again field one of the nation's top units in 2023.

This one was a tough call as well. It's not like a season ago, where the 104,000 plus that cram into the Horseshoe in Columbus is the easy answer. There's a case to be made for multiple stadiums the Badgers will travel to, but Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana figures to be the toughest environment Wisconsin will experience in 2023.

First of all, Purdue packs their stadium. Ross-Ade may be smaller than Camp Randall with a capacity of 57,282, but they fill those seats. In 2022, the Boilermakers' attendance averaged out at 57,129. Coming off a Big Ten West title and once again in contention this year, expect the Boilermaker faithful to be out in full force once again.

What's more, the situational context during the clash between these programs on Sept. 23 lends itself to a hostile environment. Number one, Purdue hasn't beaten the Badgers in 20 years. That's two decades of dominance against a divisional foe. With every Wisconsin win, it feels like the Boilermakers have to be due the next time around, right? Right?

Number two, this will be the first conference game for both programs. Purdue will have already played two ACC teams in Virginia Tech and Syracuse, but there's nothing like the start of conference play in the Big Ten. There's a tangible electricity that just isn't there for out-of-conference matchups.

West Lafayette may not readily come to mind when thinking about hostile environments, but it figures to be the toughest place Wisconsin will play in 2023. Washington State will be a new location, but the Cougars barely put 25,000 fans in the stands. Illinois and Indiana have loyal fanbases, but they still don't scratch the surface of 50,000 fans. As the Badgers' winning streak over Purdue balloons into the late teens, the pressure to slay the dragon increases for the Boilermakers. Divisional records, pride and much more will be on the line Sept. 23 in West Lafayette.

The 2024 NFL Draft looks like it's going to be peppered with elite Big Ten prospects. That's true every year, but next year's class projects to be awash with high-end, top-20 level prospects from the conference. Unsurprisingly, a great many of them are from Ohio State. Unsurprisingly, their best prospect happens to be a wide receiver.

Harrison is a tantalizing prospect. His game has almost no flaws. At 6-foot-4, he's got a great catch radius and is a handful in jump ball situations. He has unbelievable hands, and he makes absurd catches look routine. His body control, both when he's tracking a football and when he's near the sideline, appears to defy physics. One of his best, and perhaps most underrated traits, however, is his ability to get open. He's an elite separator, adept at finding the soft spot in any defense.

Harrison is getting hype as a generational receiver prospect, the kind we haven't seen since Ja'Marr Chase. You get the sense Harrison could step into the NFL right now and be a top-10 receiver, but one more year in college will only polish his game even more. If I'm Ryan Day, I like Harrison against any defensive back in the country.

The Buckeyes' embarrassment of riches at wide receiver makes him all the more difficult to defend. They have too many weapons to feel good about doubling any pass catcher. Harrison is going to get his — all you can do is try to limit the damage.

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