Long memories motivate No. 20 Badgers against Northwestern

Published Nov. 11, 2021 12:42 p.m. ET

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MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin vows it won’t overlook Northwestern as the 20th-ranked Badgers attempt to earn their sixth straight win and move a step closer to a Big Ten championship game berth.

The wounds from their

“I don’t think I can brush it under the rug, you know what I mean?” Wisconsin outside linebacker Nick Herbig said. “I still have a bitter taste in my mouth about it.”

Wisconsin was ranked 10th last year before losing to then-No. 19 Northwestern. That result sparked Northwestern to a Big Ten West Division title while starting a three-game skid for Wisconsin.

The situation facing both teams is a bit different heading into Saturday’s rematch.

Northwestern (3-6, 1-4 Big Ten) hasn’t recaptured its 2020 magic as the Wildcats can’t stop the run and can’t settle on a starting quarterback. Wisconsin (6-3, 4-2) has bounced back from a slow start and is in a four-way tie for the West Division lead, though

“The way that the Badgers are playing right now, it’s going to be a huge challenge,” Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald said.

Wisconsin enters Saturday’s game as a 24 ½-point favorite,

Northwestern has won eight of its last 15 meetings with Wisconsin, though the Badgers have won six of the last seven matchups at Camp Randall Stadium.

“Both programs are really well coached,” Wisconsin linebacker Jack Sanborn said. “Both want to play physical football. It’s kind of like a little bit of a rivalry. It might not be a trophy game, but it’s a rivalry game with it being a Big Ten West game, a lot of implications usually on the line.”

MISSING MELLUSI

Wisconsin will be playing its first game since losing Mellusi, who ranked fifth in the Big Ten in

The Badgers still have one of the nation’s more physical running backs in 6-foot-2, 238-pound freshman

MARTY TIME

Whether it’s because of the quarterback play or issues elsewhere, Northwestern continues to struggle on offense.

“We’ve got three more weeks to go in the season,” Fitzgerald said. “Before I make any statements on what we need to do and where we need to go, I’m gonna let the final three chapters — and hopefully one more — be written. I’ll hold off until then.”

Marty, who replaced Hilinski during a

RUN DEFENSE DIFFERENCE

Wisconsin is allowing just

No Football Bowl Subdivision team has finished a season having allowed fewer than 55 yards rushing per game or 2 yards per carry since TCU’s 2008 squad accomplished both feats.

By contrast, Northwestern is giving up 224.9 yards rushing per game to rank 124th out of 130 FBS teams. The Wildcats give up 5.4 yards for carry, which is 121st nationally.

TAKING THEM DOWN

Linebacker Chris Bergin has been a bright spot for Northwestern. A team captain and a former walk-on, the senior leads the nation in both

TURNOVER TURNAROUND

During its first six games of the season, Wisconsin committed 15 turnovers and produced just four takeaways. Twelver of those turnovers came during the Badgers’ 1-3 start. Over their last three games,

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AP Sports Writer Andrew Seligman contributed to this report.

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Jack Sanborn

Chris Bergin

Andrew Marty

Northwestern Wildcats

Wisconsin Badgers