The UW defense is exuding a no-fear attitude in anticipation for this Saturday’s matchup with OSU at Camp Randall stadium.

Never mind that the visiting Buckeyes are the No. 3-ranked team in the nation by both major polls. Never mind that the Buckeyes have scored on 18 of their 19 opportunities in the red zone this season. Never mind that quarterback Craig Krenzel, who has lost only once in his college career as a starter, is back after spending a couple weeks on the bench with a banged-up right elbow, or that the Buckeyes seem to have a knack for winning close games, or that OSU boasts an outstanding receiving corps to contend with a Badger secondary that gave up 379 yards to an unheralded and probably unworthy Nittany Lion air attack last week.

Regardless of any of that, there isn’t a glimmer of fear in the eyes of the Badger defenders.

“You can’t make them out to be something they’re not,” UW captain Jim Leonhard said. “They’re still just a football team, and they’re not unbeatable. If you come out thinking: Ohio State, national champions, best team in the nation, 19-game winning streak and all of those types of things, you’re done. You can’t think like that. We know they can be beaten. We just have to go out there and do it.”

That’s not to say the Badgers are treating this as if it is any other game.

“We had a close game with them last time,” UW cornerback Scott Starks said. “After that they went on to win the national championship. They’re one of the elite teams in the nation, so going out to play with them is exciting because we can prove that we’re one of the elite teams in the nation.”

Asked whether the game would affect the rest of the Badgers’ season, Starks responded, “It’ll probably have a snowball effect … if we go out and perform well as a defensive unit in this one, the momentum could last us the rest of the season.”

The Buckeyes present a variety of challenges for UW’s defense. Split ends Michael Jenkins, who is an early contender for the Biletnikoff Award (given to the nation’s top receiver), freshman Roy Hall, flanker Drew Carter and tight end Ben Hartsock give Krenzel ample means to spread the ball out on offense.

“They have that capability: to spread us out and throw the ball all over the place,” Leonhard said. “That makes it tough to prepare, because we have to prepare for everything.”

Coming off a bye week, Ohio State’s offensive attack figures to be even more difficult to defend.

“I wouldn’t doubt that we’ll see some things they haven’t shown before,” Starks said. “But Coach has prepared us for anything. If there’s something we haven’t seen, we’ll just line up and play it as it comes. We’re prepared well enough that we don’t have to worry too much about that.”

“I’m sure we’ll see some new sets,” Leonhard added. “Everything that’s been giving us problems defensively, I’m sure they will come out and challenge us on. They’ve had extra time to prepare for us, and that gives them an advantage. But that just means we have to go out in practice this week and work even harder to catch up with them.”

While the Badgers are prepared to see an atypical Ohio State willingness to spread the ball with the pass, they still expect the game to come down to a hard-nosed ground battle. “We definitely think they’re going to come out and run the ball, mainly,” Leonhard said. “That’s the type of team they are. They’re a big, physical team.”

While the Buckeyes’ offense relies heavily on the running game, the return of quarterback Craig Krenzel creates a new dimension for OSU’s attack.

“The only way you can prepare for a guy like that is to be right on top of your responsibilities,” Leonhard said. “He doesn’t make very many mistakes. He always puts his team in a position to win. But the very few mistakes that he does make, you have to take advantage of those. You have to get an interception when he throws that one bad ball. Particularly in the fourth quarter — and we all know this one will come down to the fourth quarter — he becomes a very dangerous player.”

According to Lewis, playing this marquee matchup at home will be an important element for the Badgers’ defenders.

“It’s very important to have our fans behind us. It’ll give us momentum when we need it,” he said.

If UW’s defense can gain that momentum, the Buckeye offense might find it has more reason to be scared of the Badgers than the Badgers have to be scared of it.