Wisconsin score prediction:
Lorin Cox: Wisconsin 48, Purdue 6
The Badgers’ late-season cakewalk continues through West Lafayette, and we should see plenty of backups in the game by the fourth quarter as Wisconsin has the game in the bag by the end of the first quarter.
Ben Pickman: Wisconsin 45, Purdue 10
UW’s vaunted stretch of October games is a mere memory as the Badgers look forward to yet another matchup against a Big Ten bottom-feeder. The Badgers’ defense is one of the best in the nation. The Boilermakers’ offense, well, let’s just say it isn’t one of the best.
Bobby Ehrlich: Wisconsin 48, Purdue 6
Similar to Evanston, West Lafayette, Ind., isn’t exactly the most exciting place to play a college football game. Wisconsin will again have to bring its own energy, but this team seems to be pretty immune to trap games. The Badgers get up early and continue to roll, and the defense pitches a shutout through three quarters, only allowing points in garbage time.
Wisconsin player that will have most yards per carry:
Lorin: Jazz Peavy
If Purdue does anything well, it’s stopping the running game So the Badgers may find more ground success with the jet sweep game to Peavy, the way they did a few weeks ago at Northwestern.
Ben: Bradrick Shaw
Freshman Bradrick Shaw might not have the same notoriety as the other Badger running backs, but Shaw has proven as of late that he is an equally viable option. The Birmingham, Ala., native has shown that he is an explosive back, and UW has recently worked to get him more touches. A blowout against Purdue should give him more chances. Shaw will take advantage of them.
Bobby: Dare Ogunbowale
Dare Ogunbowale racked up 14.7 yards per carry last weekend against Illinois. He’s facing another Big Ten cellar dweller and could explode for another impressive day. If Ogunbowale can bust out a couple big runs, he will lead the Badgers in yards per carry.
Big Ten East Division winner:
Lorin: Penn State
Michigan lost its starting quarterback for the year, which should be enough for Ohio State to beat them head-to-head. That clears the path for the Nittany Lions to make it to Indianapolis to potentially play Wisconsin for the Big Ten Championship.
Ben: Michigan
Michigan might now have issues at the quarterback position, but issues under center haven’t hurt Wisconsin that much yet. Head coach Jim Harbaugh has recently turned to wearing glasses during games, maybe that will help him see a solution to this new problem. My guess is that it will.
Bobby: Michigan
Quarterback Wilton Speight might be out for the season, but I’m going to put my blind faith in Jim Harbaugh anyways. The man loves SpongeBob and there’s really no better quality a person can have than being a SpongeBob fan. He will lead the Wolverines past Ohio State and into the Big Ten Championship and then treat his players to a victory meal at the Krusty Krab.
