Third-ranked Penn State might be facing a tougher challenge than expected when the well-rested Nittany Lions travel to face improving Wisconsin in a Big Ten matchup on Saturday in Madison, Wis.
Penn State (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) is coming off a bye week. The Nittany Lions have not played since a wild 33-30 overtime victory at Southern California on Oct. 12, when they rallied from a 20-6 halftime deficit.
Wisconsin (5-2, 3-1) dominated Northwestern 23-3 on Saturday for its third consecutive victory following back-to-back losses to Alabama and USC.
“I think really the last three weeks, they’ve played their best football,” Penn State coach James Franklin said about the Badgers on Monday. “They’re really coming on right now. Just watching them on tape, how clean they’re playing, how hard they’re playing. It’s impressive to watch.”
The Nittany Lions have been plagued by slow starts. Penn State has outscored opponents 205-87, with 60 of the points allowed in the first half. They have outscored foes 110-27 after the break.
Penn State averages 471.2 yards per game while giving up 262.5, including just 95.0 per game on the ground.
Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar has completed 70.5 percent of his passes and is averaging 248.7 yards per game, with 11 touchdowns and four interceptions.
Tyler Warren is Allar’s top target with 40 catches for 513 yards and four touchdowns.
Penn State’s Nicholas Singleton has rushed for 434 yards in five games at 6.9 per carry. Kaytron Allen has 431 yards on the ground.
The Nittany Lions have been almost unstoppable in the red zone, scoring 26 of 28 opportunities (93 percent), including 20 touchdowns.
Wisconsin has been playing complementary football over its past three games.
“It’s the same thing I’ve said over and over probably the last few weeks,” Badgers coach Luke Fickell said Monday. “We’re continuing to get better. I think each and every week, the last few in particular, we’ve seen some steps that I think we’ve done a really good job of taking.”
In their 38-21 loss at USC, the Badgers collapsed after leading 21-10 at the half. In their three victories since, they have outscored opponents 117-16.
Badgers redshirt sophomore quarterback Braedyn Locke, who took over when Tyler Van Dyke sustained a season-ending knee injury against Alabama, has completed 59.3 percent of his passes for 1,064 yards with seven touchdowns and five interceptions. Against Northwestern, he threw for one touchdown and also scored on an 8-yard run.
Tawee Walker, who assumed the bulk of Wisconsin’s rushing workload after Chez Mellusi left the team for health reasons, has run for 418 yards and six touchdowns in the past three games.
“There’s an obvious commitment to running the football,” Franklin said. “Maybe in a different way than we’re used to seeing Wisconsin run the ball, but still very, very effective.”
Even with the blowout losses to Alabama and USC, Wisconsin is averaging 406.6 yards per game while allowing 295.7. The Badgers held Northwestern to just 209 yards, including 82 through the air, and nine first downs.
Penn State has won five straight versus Wisconsin and seven of the past eight. The Nittany Lions won the latest meeting 16-10 in 2021 at Madison, Wis.
“I hope our guys don’t look at what somebody is ranked and things like that,” Fickell said. “Obviously, I know there are things people talk to them about, but it’s just another great opportunity for us. We knew in this league, this is what we signed up for.”
