When teams lose by large margins, sometimes the memory of the game stays with a team for a long while.
If the blowout happens to a youthful team, such as this year's Wisconsin Badger squad, its character is tested.
How the team responds to adversity will display the leadership and mental toughness of a football squad.
For defensive lineman and senior captain Wendell Bryant, last week was a memory, not to be seen by anyone. The only thing Bryant is concentrating on is Ohio State.
'Indiana's done; we're not talking about Indiana anymore,' Bryant said. 'That's one game. It's over. Now it's Ohio State and the rest of the season. That's all that's going on.'
This attitude has been brought over to the entire team as it travels to Columbus, Ohio this weekend to face a fundamentally sound Ohio State squad.
In fact, the next two weeks will prove to be pivotal to the remainder of the 3-3 Badgers' Big Ten season.
After facing the Buckeyes, the Badgers head to Champaign, Ill., and take on an Illinois squad that is much improved from the last time Wisconsin played them.
The confidence of the defense, in particular for Bryant, a preseason All-American lineman, is extremely high about the next two ball games.
'We can win at any time that we feel like winning,' Bryant said. 'We just have to not be ourselves and go out there and play our football game. We have to play the defense that we know how to play, and that's hard-nosed football.'
But for right now, Ohio State is on the docket for Wisconsin.
'The goal right now is to beat Ohio State, to go up there and play our best football,' Wisconsin running back Anthony Davis said.
While the Buckeyes' offense has struggled at times this season, they seem to be hitting their stride after an emotional victory over then 16th-ranked Northwestern Wildcats.
Bryant, for one, has a lot of respect for the Buckeyes' offense, which starts with their talented offensive line.
'They have a great offensive line, starting with their Outland Trophy candidate, Mr. LeCharles [Bentley],' Bryant said. 'It goes back to Jamar Martin, their fullback, and then it goes to [running back Jonathan] Wells, a big carrier of the ball.'
The Badgers, for their part, are excited to play in front of another road crowd of over 100,000 people in fabled Ohio Stadium, commonly called the 'Horseshoe.'
'I think it's going to be a great game,' Davis said. 'I look forward to traveling.'
