Rutgers @ Wisconsin preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 1, 2014 ) Wisconsin 37, Rutgers 0

A rough stretch during the heart of Big Ten play last year was about the only thing that kept Rutgers from posting only its third 10-win campaign in school history. Among the most humbling of the Scarlet Knights’ setbacks over that span was a 37-0 home loss to Wisconsin – a defeat they will try to avenge on Saturday when they travel to Madison to face the Badgers.

Rutgers rolled to a 5-1 start in 2014 and closed with a 3-1 flurry, but a three-game slide that began with road defeats at Ohio State and Nebraska and ended with its first shutout loss since 2002 put a bit of a damper on the program’s first year as a member of the Big Ten. A similar scenario could play again this season as the Scarlet Knights, who visit No. 17 Michigan next week, are coming off a 49-7 home defeat versus top-ranked Ohio State last weekend. The Badgers haven’t been overly impressive during league play, but downed Illinois 24-13 their last time out for a third straight victory and appear to be the only team capable of taxing undefeated Iowa in the Big Ten West. While Wisconsin lost at home to the Hawkeyes for its only conference loss, its defense has been dominant in Madison – giving up a total of 20 points in five outings.
TV: Noon ET, Big Ten Network. LINE: Wisconsin -20.5

ABOUT RUTGERS (3-4, 1-3 Big Ten): The Scarlet Knights rely heavily on record-setting wideout Leonte Carroo, who already holds the school’s mark for career receiving touchdowns (28) and needs only one more in 2015 to match the program record for most in a single season (10). Three running backs have at least 341 rushing yards – led by Robert Martin’s 480 – resulting in the conference’s fifth-best rushing attack and helping the team rank fourth in the conference in total offense (426.6 yards). Sophomore quarterback Chris Laviano is completing 67.2 percent of his attempts and Rutgers has a passer efficiency rating of 150.2 – both marks are the best in the Big Ten.
ABOUT WISCONSIN (6-2, 3-1): Starting center Dan Voltz (knee) will miss the rest of the season, second-leading receiver Robert Wheelwright (leg) has an “outside chance” of returning before the end of the season and quarterback Joel Stave is going through concussion protocol; all three were injured versus Illinois. Bart Houston stepped up in relief after Stave’s first-quarter departure, going 27-of-33 for a career-high 232 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions and will draw the start under center if Stave cannot go. Running back Corey Clement (sports hernia), who was expected to take over for Melvin Gordon this season but has been sidelined since Wisconsin’s season-opening loss to Alabama, is listed as questionable for this contest.

EXTRA POINTS
1. Wisconsin is 4-2 this season in games in which it has attempted 35 or more passes. Entering 2015, the Badgers were 0-23-1 in such contests dating back to 1990.
2. Rutgers, which has played more games than any other team in major college football (1,308), will make its first trip in program history to Wisconsin this weekend. 3. The Badgers have used five different starting combinations on their offensive line through the first seven games after utilizing the same starting combination in all 14 games last year.

PREDICTION: Wisconsin 24, Rutgers 21