Meet the Wisconsin Badgers, the first Big Ten opponent Ohio State football plays in 2022

Joe Harrington, The Columbus Dispatch
·6 min read
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The Ohio State football team will face the Wisconsin Badgers for the first time since the 2019 season, when Ohio State beat the Badgers twice en route to an undefeated regular season and a College Football Playoff appearance.

The matchup on Sept. 24 at Ohio Stadium is also the Big Ten opener for both the Buckeyes and Badgers.

Since beating Wisconsin 34-21 in the 2019 Big Ten Conference Championship game, Ohio State has won 18 games while the Badgers have fallen short of their program goals the last two seasons.

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One of the signature programs in the Big Ten West, Wisconsin failed to win their division in 2020 (4-3 overall) and 2021 (9-4).

The Badgers have reached the Big Ten Championship Game six times and won the first two ever played, but haven't won one since. Wisconsin had never missed back-to-back conference championship games since 2011, when the Big Ten Championship Game was first played.

Wisconsin did win its bowl game last season, the sixth win under coach Paul Chryst, when it beat Arizona State 20-13 in the Las Vegas Bowl, so 2021 wasn't a complete wash.

The Badgers are expected to enter the season ranked in the top 15 in many preseason polls, and ESPN ranked them at No. 10 in a June preseason poll.

Here's what to know about the 2022 Wisconsin Badgers.

Buckeyes vs. Wisconsin all-time record

Ohio State has won eight straight games against Wisconsin and leads the all-time series 61-18-5. The last time Wisconsin beat Ohio State was in 2010, a 31-18 win for the Badgers in Madison.

That game featured future NFL star Russell Wilson quarterbacking the Badgers to a win over then undefeated Ohio State.

The Buckeyes didn't lose again in what was Jim Tressel's final season at Ohio State.

Has Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst ever beaten the Buckeyes?

This is Chryst's eighth season as the coach of Wisconsin and he has never beaten Ohio State in four tries.

But Chryst is a former Badgers quarterback who went 1-for-4 for four yards passing in a 26-24 Badgers win in 1987. He was a backup on that team.

On the loss, Ohio State star Chris Spielman said: “We’re in a state of shock. It’s hard to face. It’s kind of embarrassing. It’s the lowest point of my career.”

Wisconsin finished 3-8 in 1987 and Ohio State would later replace coach Earle Bruce John Cooper following the 1987 season.

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What did Wisconsin football do in 2021?

Wisconsin lost its marquee Week 1 matchup to Penn State 16-10 and found itself 1-3 at one point.

Wisconsin then finished the season 8-1, handing then-No. 25 Purdue a 30-13 loss followed by beating then No. 9 Iowa a 27-7 in Camp Randall Stadium the next week.

Wisconsin's lone loss after the 1-3 start was to rival Minnesota, 23-13.

The Badgers beat Arizona State in the Las Vegas Bowl 20-13.

What does the Wisconsin football schedule 2022 look like?

Ohio State plays its first five games at Ohio Stadium and Wisconsin is the first Big Ten opponent to visit Columbus. This matchup figures to be one of the biggest games in September in college football.

If, of course, Ohio State and Wisconsin can avoid being upset before then.

Here's what Wisconsin's schedule looks like:

  • Sept. 3: Illinois State

  • Sept. 10: Washington State

  • Sept. 17: New Mexico State

  • Sept. 24: at Ohio State

  • Oct. 1: Illinois

  • Oct. 8: at Northwestern

  • Oct. 15 at Michigan State

  • Oct. 22 Purdue

  • Nov. 5 Maryland

  • Nov. 12 at Iowa

  • Nov. 19 at Nebraska

  • Nov. 26 Minnesota

Yes, Wisconsin has another star running back in Braelon Allen

For decades Wisconsin has produced talented running backs and Braelon Allen is yet another example. As a true freshman, and just 17-years-old in 2021, the former 4-star recruit rushed for 1,109 yards and 12 touchdowns. He averaged 7.1 yards per game and averaged 100 yards rushing in the 11 games he played in.

Allen, from Fond du Lac, Wis., was named second team All-Big Ten and a member of the Walter Camp Freshman All-American team.

Here are just a few of the All-American running backs to come from Wisconsin since 1999:

  • Jonathan Taylor

  • Melvin Gordon

  • Montee Ball

  • John Clay

  • P.J. Hill

  • Brian Calhoun

  • Ron Dayne

Wisconsin has a new offensive coordinator in Bobby Engram

From 2015 to 2021, Joe Rudolph coached the Wisconsin offensive line and was the offensive coordinator. He left Madison for a job with Virginia.

Replacing him is Bobby Engram, the former three-time All-American and 1994 Biletnikoff Award winner at Penn State. Engram joins Wisconsin after serving as the Baltimore Ravens tight end coach from 2019-2021 and before that as the receivers coach from from 2014-2018.

Engram was a star in the NFL, carving out a place in Seattle Seahawks history, when he was named to Seattle's 35th anniversary team in 2011. His career ended as member of the Cleveland Browns in 2010.

Graham Mertz returns as the Wisconsin quarterback

Graham Mertz will be a three-year starter for Wisconsin this season. He redshirted in 2019 and has started every game for Wisconsin since 2020 (20 games). He enters the season with 3,132 career passing yards with 1,821 of them coming in 2021 when he also threw nine touchdowns.

Mertz also threw 10 interceptions in 2021 and for his career has thrown 15 interceptions while completing 60% of his passes.

Who are the best NFL 2023 Draft prospects for Wisconsin?

Some of Wisconsin's best draft prospects aren't eligible for the 2023 draft, like Allen, but ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. does list two Badgers on his top-10 position list.

Center Joe Tippmann is No. 6 on Kiper's center list while defensive tackle Keeanu Benton is No. 8 for defensive tackles.

Ohio State football schedule 2022

  • Week 1: Ohio State vs. Notre Dame, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 3, in Columbus, Ohio

  • Week 2: Ohio State vs. Arkansas State, Sept. 10, in Columbus, Ohio

  • Week 3: Ohio State vs. Toledo, Sept. 17, in Columbus, Ohio

  • Week 4: Ohio State vs. Wisconsin, Sept. 24, Columbus, Ohio

  • Week 5: Ohio State vs. Rutgers, Oct. 1, Columbus Ohio

  • Week 6: Ohio State vs. Michigan State, Oct. 8, East Lansing, Mich.

  • Week 7: Ohio State vs. Iowa, Oct. 22, Columbus, Ohio

  • Week 8: Ohio State vs. Penn State, Oct. 29, State College, Pa.

  • Week 9: Ohio State vs. Northwestern, Nov. 5, Evanston, Ill.

  • Week 10: Ohio State vs Indiana, Nov. 12, Columbus, Ohio

  • Week 11: Ohio State vs. Maryland, Nov. 19, College Park, MD.

  • Week 12: Ohio State vs. Michigan, at noon Nov. 26, Columbus, Ohio

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State football schedule 2022: Buckeyes vs. Wisconsin