Wisconsin vs. Michigan football: 3 keys to victory, who is a key on offense for the Badgers and a prediction

When the Badgers have the ball

The Badgers don’t have much of an identity on offense through three games. The running game has been hit and miss behind an offensive line that can’t seem to string together good plays, and quarterback Graham Mertz is struggling with accuracy and turning over the ball too frequently for the Badgers to find a rhythm.

1. Find Dike: The Badgers need offense in a bad way, and they haven’t been able to get one of their best receivers involved in the action so far this season. Sophomore Chimere Dike, who showed flashes of big-play ability last season after stepping into a starting role as a true freshman, has four catches for 39 yards and was held without a catch against Notre Dame. Senior Jack Dunn played 18 more snaps than Dike did against the Irish, according to Pro Football Focus. Quarterback Graham Mertz missed Dike for a deep connection down the sideline against Notre Dame, but the Badgers can’t afford another week without getting a player who was supposed to be key contributor involved.

2. Respect Hutchinson: Remember in 2019 when the Badgers played Ohio State and attempted to block Chase Young with tight ends on multiple occasions? Don’t make that mistake again with star defensive end Aidan Hutchinson. While he’s not the superfreak athlete that Young is, Hutchinson is incredibly skilled and has a relentlessness to his game that gets him around the ball more often than not. UW right tackle Logan Bruss probably should be the only player trusted to be singled up with Hutchinson. Otherwise, side protection to him when needed, or use tight ends to chip. Mertz has enough to worry about without Hutchinson breathing down his neck.

1. Quick throws: UW’s linebackers and defensive linemen are getting pressure, and fast, on opposing quarterbacks. With delayed blitzes and stunts up front, quarterbacks don’t have time to sit in the pocket and wait. That’s by design, but opponents can game plan for it with quick passes to the outside, like Notre Dame did. The Wolverines need QB Cade McNamara to get rid of the ball quickly, whether they’re deep down the field to give a receiver a chance for a big play or a pass interference, or underneath to move the chains.

2. Force LBs to cover: The one nit-pick with the Badgers front seven is that the linebacker corps can be vulnerable against the pass because so often they’re faking rushes or playing close to the line. That can surrender some windows in the intermediate areas of the field, and it’s in these spaces that the Wolverines need to attack, particularly with their depth at tight end. Michigan has taken advantage of teams keeping too many big bodies on the field when it deploys 12 or 13 personnel, and the Wolverines should try to make the Badgers linebackers cover space in the passing game when possible.

Series: UW trails 17-51-1

First meeting: UW lost 10-6 at home in 1892

Colten's pick

It’s hard to imagine the Badgers offense being able to play a clean game and score enough points to beat a Michigan team that’s started the season hot. UW has lost the benefit of the doubt on that side of the ball at this point. This has the makings of so many of the Badgers’ losses to ranked teams in this stretch — the defense plays well enough to keep UW alive, but the offense can’t pay off the effort down the stretch.