Wisconsin vs. Ohio State 2025 Preview: Key Players and Predictions

The No. 1 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes (6-0), travel to Madison on Saturday for a matchup against a reeling Wisconsin Badgers (2-4) team. This Week 8 contest will feature two teams at very different ends of the college football landscape. Wisconsin hasn’t been competitive against a P4 team since Week 11 of the 2024 season against Oregon. Ohio State, on the other hand, has won 10-straight games dating back to last year and is coming off a national championship in 2024. The Buckeyes have dominated everyone they have played this year, besides the defensive slugfest against Texas to start the year. Does Wisconsin have any chance of keeping this game close? Or does Ohio State shut the door early and control the game from start to finish? Let’s break it all down in our 2025 Wisconsin vs Ohio State game preview.

Wisconsin Badgers vs. Ohio State Buckeyes: Football History and Game Excerpts

This is a matchup that has historically been dominated by Ohio State, and recently, it’s been no different. Ohio State has won the last 10 contests against the Badgers and holds a record of 63-18-5 against Wisconsin. The Badgers’ last win against the Buckeyes came all the way back in 2010, a 31-18 victory at Camp Randall.

The 0-10 record against the Buckeyes in the last 10 matchups certainly isn’t the best. However, it hasn’t been all bad; there have been some highly contested and competitive matchups over the past 10 games. Five of the last 10 have been one-score matches, while three out of the last 10 were Big Ten Championship games.

The most recent Big Ten Championship appearance for the Badgers came back in 2019 against the Buckeyes. Wisconsin found themselves up 21-7 at halftime and were in complete control before Justin Fields took over and dominated the Badgers in the second half.

The past two matchups have been extremely one-sided, with Ohio State outscoring Wisconsin 76-31. This Wisconsin team has the chance to do something on Saturday that hasn’t been done in quite a while, and that’s beat the Ohio State Buckeyes.

There’s also something interesting to note ahead of this matchup. Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell is from Ohio, played at Ohio State, coached for 16 years there, and even took over in 2011 as interim head coach for the Buckeyes. He’s Ohio State through and through, and will be looking to do some damage against his alma mater.

Wisconsin vs. Ohio State 2025 Preview: Keys, Players, and Predictions

Ohio State Key Players

With all the supreme talent the Buckeyes sport, quarterback Julian Sayin has been flying under the radar to some degree. He hasn’t been recognized across the country as much as some other signal callers have. However, Sayin has been playing lights out and gives the Buckeyes another national championship caliber quarterback.

So far this year, Sayin has thrown for 1479 yards, 15 touchdowns, and three interceptions, good for a total QBR of 86.5, which ranks fourth in the country. Sayin also leads the nation in completion percentage at 78.4-percent. Due to the sheer dominance of Ohio State so far this year, they haven’t really needed to open up the playbook. The Buckeyes have been running a fairly vanilla offense the past couple of weeks and haven’t needed to put their foot on the gas as of yet.

Sayin will be a big factor in this game due to Wisconsin’s weak secondary. And, when he gets the chance to throw, he has plenty of talent to throw to.

The Buckeyes sport one of, if not the best, receiving duos in the country in Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate. Both can get open with ease, and Tate might just be the most polished route runner in the country.

Smith has caught 40 passes for 505 yards and seven touchdowns so far this season. Meanwhile, Tate has added 28 catches for 476 yards and four touchdowns. The Badgers have a weak secondary, and both Smith and Tate should be able to get open anytime they want. When defenses lock in on Tate and Smith, the Buckeyes have other options as well. Don’t sleep on Brandon Inniss and Max Klare, who both are extremely talented and can be game wreckers.

The major disparity in this game is Ohio State’s talent at quarterback and receiver. Wisconsin’s pass defense at times can be nonexistent, and the Badgers must keep everything in front if they want any sort of sustained success.

If there has been any knock or gripe on Ohio State so far this year, it’s their inability to run the ball at times. They struggle to get open lanes for running backs, but a lot of it is due to the vanilla play-calling by offensive coordinator Brian Hartline. However, they still rank in the top-20 in the country in EPA/rush and have three great running backs.

Bo Jackson and CJ Donaldson are a great 1-2 punch, and both have 58 carries so far this year. Donaldson’s more of a short-yardage bulldozer, while Jackson can take it to the house at any given moment. When those two get tired, James Peoples can step in, who has carried the rock 40 times this year. Expect Ohio State to work hard on its run game this week against an above-average Wisconsin front seven.

Defensively, coordinator Matt Patricia has been a homerun hire for them. Ohio State is first in points per game allowed at 6.8, and third in defensive stop rate. They have only given up one rushing touchdown so far this season and have allowed only two redzone touchdowns in 11 attempts. Patricia runs an NFL-style defense, and uses his three potential first-round picks in Caleb Downs, Arvell Reese, and Sonny Styles to his advantage.

Linebackers Reese and Styles lead the Buckeyes with 38 tackles each, and can be used in multiple ways. Reese can rush the passer and drop into coverage. He has totaled 4.5 sacks to go along with his 38 tackles. Styles, a former safety, can do the same when needed.

Caleb Downs is the leader in the backend and can play safety, linebacker, and even line up on the line of scrimmage as an overhang. His 28 tackles and one interception are a little pedestrian. However, teams have given up running or throwing the ball his way. He takes away half the field every play.

In obvious passing situations, edge rusher Caden Curry tees off. He leads the team with six sacks and is third on the team with 31 tackles.

Wisconsin Key Players

Before the Alabama game, we highlighted that for Wisconsin to have success, there would be no key players because everyone would need to play lights out. Saturday is no different and might even be to a higher degree.

Wisconsin has been reeling, coming off an extremely embarrassing performance last week against Iowa. Wisconsin has had question marks at the quarterback position since Week 2. However, it is even more amplified this week.

Billy Edwards Jr. is still likely out due to injury. That leaves Danny O’Neil or Hunter Simmons to take over. O’Neil played up and down when he had his chance and was ultimately replaced by Simmons after the Maryland game. Simmons held his own and played well against Michigan two weeks ago. However, last week was a different story. Reporter Ian Kenyon tweeted out on Tuesday that Simmons finished with a 0.8 QBR against Iowa. He also said that, “lining up every play and throwing the ball into the dirt 20 times in a row would yield a 0.0 QBR as a point of reference.”

There has been little indication as to who will start under center for the Badgers on Saturday. Wisconsin has been nonexistent on offense the past couple of weeks and ranks in the lower third of all offensive metrics.

Center Jake Renfro came back from injury last week, and we saw some better offensive line play. Being able to be there as a calming force and diagnose what’s going on is crucial. Ohio State disguises their defense very well, forcing an experienced quarterback or center to diagnose what’s going on. With the shaky quarterback play of the Badgers’, Renfro needs to have a good game and dissect the defense pre-snap.

Running back Dilin Jones finished with 71 yards on 16 carries last week and ran extremely hard. He was one of the Badgers’ only bright spots and needs to run with that same tenacity this week.

On the outside, Badger’s lead receiver, Vinny Anthony, needs to find a way to get open. He leads the Badgers with 274 yards and needs to have 100+ on Saturday for the Badgers to have any chance. Offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes can certainly help Anthony have success by designing plays and generating ways to get him involved. Iowa did a great job last week of designing plays to get one of their playmakers, Kaden Wetjen, the ball, and Jeff Grimes needs to do the same. If the Badgers aren’t able to stress Ohio State vertically, the Buckeyes can put eight players in the box and suffocate the Badgers.

Defensively, everyone will need to play well. However, in this game, the Badger secondary will be under a microscope. The likes of Ricardo Hallman, Omillio Agard, and Geimere Latimeer need to play their best games at corner. When OSU receivers get matched up on Badger safeties, Austin Brown and Matthew Jung need to hold up. Wisconsin has struggled mightily against good receiving cores in Alabama and Maryland, and OSU might have the best group in the country.

There were a lot of blown assignments in the backend to start the year for the Badgers, and it has improved slightly as of late. However, having no missed assignments and blown coverages on Saturday is critical for the Badgers. Wisconsin ranks in the lower third of FBS in pressure rate, scramble rate, and yards after catch defensively. Almost all defensive metrics rank Wisconsin in the bottom half. Wisconsin will need to play its best game of the year defensively to stay attached to Ohio State and keep this game close.

2025 Game Preview: Can Wisconsin win vs. Ohio State in Week 8?

Wisconsin is around a 26-point underdog at home. The over/under set at 41.5. 26 points is the largest underdog the Badgers have ever been at home. Wisconsin’s ML is also +1800, which is the highest total this weekend. That means oddsmakers are giving the Badgers the lowest chance of winning their matchup this week.

Wisconsin got flat-out embarrassed last week against Iowa. After preaching toughness and effort all throughout the offseason, it was a little concerning to see their performance against the Hawkeyes. It will be interesting to see how this Badgers team responds after four-straight losses, and if they play with any fight on Saturday. Luke Fickell is under a lot of pressure, and Saturday may very well be his last game as head coach of Wisconsin.

In terms of the game, Wisconsin will need to play complementary football to have any sort of success. If the offense can’t sustain drives, the defense will be forced to defend short fields against a high-powered offense. If the defense is reeling, it won’t give the Badger offense any time to breathe or make adjustments.

The first few minutes of the game will dictate the contest. If Wisconsin falls behind early, it could get ugly quick. The Badgers will need to play with a sense of urgency, the offensive playbook needs to be opened up, and the line needs to play their best game.

Defensively, the Badger secondary needs to play soft zone and keep everything in front. Force Ohio State to sustain drives and hope that they make a mistake or turn the ball over. Wisconsin doesn’t have the talent in the backend to play man coverage. And if they do play man, Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith will have a field day.

Realistically, expect Ohio State to work on its run game in this contest. Because of that, the Badgers will have the opportunity to get off the field on third downs. For as bad as the Wisconsin defense has been, they are top-15 in third and fourth-down success rate.

Saturday will show a lot about Luke Fickell and the heart of this team. They got embarrassed last week and are now playing the No. 1 team in the country. Is Saturday Fickell’s last game? Or does Wisconsin do enough and show some heart or fight on Saturday? Wisconsin needs to show some sort of improvement on Saturday. If they don’t, things could go south quite quickly. Wisconsin has a tall task in front of it, but crazier things have happened.