That visitor was UW Athletic Director and former football head coach Barry Alvarez, whose Badgers toppled the Buckeyes five times during his time at the helm.
“Everybody was ready to play the game after he talked to us,” defensive end O’Brien Schofield said. “It got us real amped up just to hear the history and the motives. He told us how to beat them. … You’ve got to play smart football. You can’t beat yourself. We’ve really been thinking about those things while we’ve been practicing this week.”
Wisconsin (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) heads into Ohio Stadium this week to face No. 9 Ohio State (4-1, 2-0) for what appears to be its most important game so far this season.
It also is the Badgers’ first afternoon start of the season, with the game set to kickoff at 3:30 p.m. in Columbus. The game will be aired nationally on ABC, giving Wisconsin an opportunity to show the nation just how good it is this season.
“It’s a beautiful thing … you know, national television, ABC, 3:30, at Ohio Stadium … I mean, what more could you ask for?” linebacker Jaevery McFadden said. “Everybody’s going to be watching you, everybody’s going to be watching the game. … It’s everything you dream of when you come up to a Big Ten school, to play against teams like this.”
The Badgers remain focused on the task at hand, of course, which is to win their sixth straight game to start the season and third consecutive in the Big Ten. In order to do so, they know they’ll have to overcome a strong defense and shut down quarterback Terrelle Pryor.
The first of those keys — the defense – has been the Buckeyes’ strong point through five games. They rank second in the conference in scoring defense, allowing just 11.8 points per game, and they have allowed just 29 points in their last four games, which includes back-to-back shutouts against Toledo and Illinois.
“Moving the ball and scoring points,” offensive coordinator Paul Chryst said of Saturday’s biggest challenge. “They’re a real good defense and it’s a great challenge, (but) along with challenges come good opportunities.”
Playing in front of more than 105,000 fans does not make it any easier to find success against the Ohio State defense, of course. In order to prepare for the atmosphere, the Badgers have practiced with simulated noise throughout the week.
“We used it all week in the Minnesota preparation (and), you know, just because — simple math — there’s 50,000-whatever at Minnesota and there’s going to be 100,000 there, so it could be twice as loud,” Bielema said. “I think it’s very important when you’re going into a hostile environment — just from a mental aspect.”
Ohio State also will provide the toughest challenge yet for first-year starter Scott Tolzien, who has exceeded expectations so far. Based on his post-practice demeanor this week, however, it does not appear Tolzien is letting the pressure get to him.
If anything, Tolzien appears ready for the biggest challenge of his career.
“They’ll be the best defense we’ve faced to date,” Tolzien said. “They’re really talented, and it should be a good challenge for us.”
Of course, outside of USC, the Wisconsin offense is likely to be the best the Ohio State defense will have faced this season. UW leads the Big Ten in both scoring offense at 35 points per game and rushing with 217.2 yards per game on the ground.
And with Wisconsin’s balance between running and passing (216 yards per game), the Buckeyes will have trouble focusing on any one aspect of the Badgers’ attack.
“I expect big things out of the offense,” wide receiver Nick Toon said. “I think you’ve got to expect big things every week. We have a lot of talent in the receiving corps, and I think we have a shot to be real successful this week.”
On the other side of the ball, Pryor is the clear focus and the lack of running back Chris “Beanie” Wells makes things entirely different than last season for the OSU offense.
Ohio State remains a strong running team, however, averaging 187 yards per game, which ranks third in the Big Ten. Still, the Wisconsin defense knows its responsibility is more clear cut than a year ago.
The Wisconsin defense has been focusing mostly on not allowing Pryor to beat them in Saturday’s game, especially after his game-winning touchdown last year in Madison.
“You’ve got to focus on Terrelle Pryor; he’s the gas to their engine basically,” safety Jay Valai said. “And there’s no Beanie. That’s a big guy to miss right there.”
