What a difference a year can make.

Last year, when Wisconsin and Fresno State squared off in Northern California, the Badgers and Bulldogs were ranked No. 10 and No. 21, respectively. The night game between the two on Sept. 13, 2008, was even billed as the biggest game in Bulldog Stadium history.

The two teams battled for 60 minutes and Wisconsin came away with a 13-10 victory, improving to 3-0 and looking like the Big Ten’s best team after USC dominated Ohio State 35-3 earlier in the night.

Fast-forward to tomorrow’s game between the two at Camp Randall Stadium.

Bret Bielema and Pat Hill each have new quarterbacks at the helm this season, but the one thing that has not changed is the importance of the game. Neither team is ranked, but both are coming off opening-game wins at home.

Still, the Badgers insist Saturday’s game is no different than any other.

“We’re going in just kind of real similar to any other week,” senior captain Chris Maragos said. “Anytime we go out there, we want to go out and get a ‘W.’ We want to win. Plain and simple.”

Despite a 28-20 victory over Northern Illinois last week, Wisconsin still has a lot to prove this week in the eyes of some fans and critics. The Badgers excelled through three quarters, but an ugly fourth quarter that featured a Scott Tolzien interception and a pair of Huskies touchdowns brought about a few issues for UW to work out this week.

After watching a lot of film in practice this week, Maragos saw a lot of positives as well as a few things to improve on against the Bulldogs.

“The thing I really liked as I watched film, we had 11 guys flying to the ball all the time,” Maragos said. “What we need to work on is just continuing with our communication. I think it’s just technique issues, you know. Making sure our eyes are in the right spot, reading our keys, continuing to play with leverage, you know, this, that and the next thing.”

One minor setback the Badgers had to deal with this week was an outbreak of flu-like symptoms. It appears most players will be healthy and ready to go Saturday for the Bulldogs, but the inability to run the week as usual is something that could affect UW.

Bielema, however, is not about to use the flu outbreak as an excuse if his team’s performance is not up to par against Fresno State.

“If your number is called and (you are) put in there, then you got to perform,” Bielema said. “I know Fresno State is not going to be concerned about any type of illnesses that we have or might be potentially an issue for us.”

Although the defense may get most of the blame for allowing 14 points in the fourth quarter, the offense’s inability to sustain drives in the period was also at fault.

In order to do so, Wisconsin will need a better performance out of John Clay and Zach Brown, who combined for just 94 yards on 29 carries (3.24 yards per carry). Likewise, another strong performance from quarterback Scott Tolzien will be important to bolster the running attack.

Tolzien will continue to split time with redshirt freshman Curt Phillips, a rotation that the offense, the quarterbacks and receivers in particular seem comfortable with so far. The junior sees his two interceptions against the Huskies as the most important thing to improve on from week one.

“Just steadily getting better, taking one play at a time,” Tolzien said of his goal. “I had two turnovers last week. I just gotta, you know, protect the ball … and then take my shots when they’re there and know when to check down.”

Senior captain Garrett Graham also hopes to help the Wisconsin offense give the defense a lot more rest Saturday, especially late in the game.

“We need to finish,” Graham said. “In the fourth quarter, I think the offense only had a handful of plays. That was the time where we really need to run the clock out and get our defense off the field, get them some rest, and put up some more points and finish the game.”

Fresno State starting quarterback Ryan Colburn threw the ball just nine times in the Bulldogs’ 51-0 win last Saturday over UC-Davis, but he completed five of his nine attempts for 161 yards, including a 92-yard touchdown pass to receiver Marlon Moore.

Junior running back Ryan Mathews also had an impressive game against the Aggies, rushing for 106 yards and a touchdown on just 11 attempts. Comparatively, the Badgers rushed for just 152 yards as a team last week against NIU on 38 attempts.

“I think we need to be more physical,” Graham said. “We need to be able to run the ball better. If we can run the ball better, I think that can open up a lot of things.”