The wait is officially over for Wisconsin: The Badgers will
face No. 16 Tennessee in the Outback Bowl.

After accepting a bid to the Jan. 1 bowl Wednesday, the
football team had to see how this past weekend’s Southeastern Conference Championship
game shook out before learning the identity of their foe.

After falling to LSU 21-14 in the SEC Championship Saturday,
University of Tennessee officials accepted the Outback Bowl selection
committee’s invitation for the game.

"We had a tremendous time down there last year … in Tampa,
and we look forward to returning and representing the Southeastern Conference,"
Tennessee Director of Athletics Mike Hamilton said Sunday in a conference call
with reporters.

Tennessee (9-4, 6-2) tied for the SEC East division with No.
4 Georgia, but won the tiebreaker thanks to a 35-14 victory over the Bulldogs
earlier in the season.

"A play here or there and they would have been in the thick
of it with the BCS," Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema said.

After losing two of their first three games to open the
season, the Volunteers rode an explosive offense to win eight of their last
nine games and set up the championship game berth.

The Volunteers feature a uniquely balanced offense, which
has both a 1,000-yard receiver (junior Lucas Taylor) and a 1,000-yard rusher
(junior Adrian Foster), along with quarterback Erik Ainge.

"I know that they’ve got very talented players — their
quarterback is very gifted, a wide receiver and a running back that bring a lot
to the table," Bielema said.

Ainge threw for 29 touchdowns against only 10 interceptions
on the season and averages 242 yards per game through the air. Even more
impressive is that the Tennessee offensive line has allowed only four sacks all
season.

"That jumped out right away. … Anytime your offensive line
protects the quarterback the quality that Ainge is, you get concerned," Bielema
said. "Obviously not many people are getting to him and making him feel
pressure."

With the opponent now known, Wisconsin will construct to
gameplan and prepare for Tennessee.

"We’ve got our work cut out for us, but it should be a
classic Big Ten-SEC matchup, something we’ve fared on the good side of the last
two years beating Arkansas and Auburn in the Capital One Bowl," Bielema said.
"We look forward to continue the tradition in Tampa."

Wisconsin has faced an SEC team in each of the past four
bowl games, including a 24-21 loss to Georgia in the 2005 Outback Bowl.

Unlike some potential SEC opponents, Wisconsin doesn’t have
much of a history against Tennessee. The two schools have played just one time,
a 28-21 Tennessee victory in the 1981 Garden State Bowl.

"We’ve only met Tennessee one time in 1981; I was 11 years
old so I didn’t catch the game," Bielema said.

Badgers move up