In their 2025 home opener, the Wisconsin Badgers men’s soccer team fell 1-0 to the North Florida Ospreys.
The Badgers enter their third season under coach Neil Jones and are looking to improve from their 7-5-3 record last year. After losing several key players to the MLS draft and NCAA transfer portal, Wisconsin brought in five new transfers to round out a retooled squad.
The Badgers struggled early, failing to create chances or even create long possession sequences. Wisconsin felt a little rusty, and things didn’t click as well as they usually do later in the season. In the first half, the Badgers only recorded a single shot in the 40th minute and a few set pieces that did not cause North Florida’s defense much trouble.
North Florida opened the scoring right at the end of the first half, converting on a fastbreak leaving Wisconsin goalkeeper Matisse Hebert helpless. In a nutshell, the Badgers did not leave much for fans to sink their teeth into in the first half.
However, the second half was a completely different story. Head coach Neil Jones must have said something at half time to create an electroshock, as the Badgers immediately put pressure on North Florida’s defense by pressing high and creating fast pass sequences.
In the second half, Wisconsin’s wingers were more involved, and their fullbacks overlapped more. This created more space for the Badger offense to set up and create crosses, which resulted in a staggering 17 corner kicks. The Badgers even hit the post once. Wisconsin had possession of the ball for most of the second period, living in North Florida’s half.
Despite the increased pressure on the Ospreys, the Badgers only amassed five shots on goal and were missing a presence in the box. The absence of last year’s Big Ten All Freshman, Dean Boltz, who Wisconsin lost to the MLS Draft, was severely missed.
As the end of the game approached, the Ospreys settled into a low block with hope to clinch an upset. With no intention to take risks on offense, this left their defense exposed to counter attacks. Despite their last efforts, the Badgers were goalless by the final whistle.
Only one game into the season, it may be too early to sound the alarm on this year’s team. But a loss to a mid major program in North Florida already jeopardizes the Badgers hope for an NCAA tournament appearance. The Badgers will now take on Bradley at home. This should be a good bounce back opportunity for Neil Jones and his squad as Bradley has yet to score a goal this season.
