The Wisconsin Badgers bounced back from their 17-7 loss to the UCLA Bruins in a big way on Saturday, upsetting the No. 16 USC Trojans 24-7 in a dominant defensive performance to improve to 5-2 on the season and 3-1 in conference play.
It was a great game from Wisconsin’s defense from the start, as the Badgers forced two early interceptions of Jayden Maiava, and they held USC to just seven points, which the Trojans had to earn.
On a day when the offense had just 58 passing yards, it was as good as it could’ve
come for the Badgers, who got another marquee win under Luke Fickell.
Here are three quick takeaways from Wisconsin’s 24-7 win over USC on Saturday.
Turnovers set the tone
Heading into the game, one of my top keys/predictions was that Wisconsin was going to need turnovers to win this game and disrupt the USC passing attack. Well, that’s exactly what happened.
Maiava looked flustered from the jump, with Wisconsin’s pass rush doing a great job creating havoc, forcing the star quarterback into two rough throws that the Badgers picked off. Bryce West got a pick off a deflection from a Javan Robinson pass breakup, while Maiava threw a ball right to Cairo Skanes while trying to avoid pressure.
While Wisconsin only scored three points off the two turnovers, the defensive performance set the tone going forward. Wisconsin’s run defense was stellar, and the pass rush sacked Maiava five times.
Wisconsin was going to need to create havoc plays, something they had been doing but wanted to be more consistent at. Saturday was a good start.
Run game is the difference maker
Heading into the game, I also said in our predictions that it was going to be hard for either side to run the ball. So, it would be a difference maker.
Wisconsin averaged just 3.3 yards per carry. USC got -17 rushing yards as a team. So, looking just at the numbers, it may not have been the most inspiring performance on either side.
But understanding their opponent’s flaws, the Badgers committed to the run game, rushing 43 times versus 14 passes. Abu Sama went for 71 yards on 17 carries. With Darrion Dupree not playing, Bryan Jackson had seven carries for 38 yards and a touchdown against his old team.
The run game was the difference maker in this one. USC’s defense could not stop the run effectively enough, and the Badgers completely shut down USC’s run game, making it one-dimensional.
Mental toughness is becoming a thing
Over the past few years, mental toughness has been a struggle at times for Luke Fickell’s group. With a 5-2 record back in 2024, the Badgers stumbled and lost their last five games. That included losses to Nebraska, Iowa, and Minnesota, all by double digits.
In that stretch, it felt like every time the Badgers bounced back, they struggled again. After a Penn State game that was close going into the fourth quarter, Wisconsin lost 28-13. Players admitted some of the overarching problems bled over into the next game, and the Badgers were embarrassed 42-10 the following week.
Wisconsin then put up a great performance against Oregon, holding them to three, but they lost again. The week after? A 19-point blowout loss to Nebraska.
Last season, Wisconsin struggled to pick itself up during its six-game losing streak, and they had some rough games after playing a few opponents close. Now, we’ll see how this team responds, but we’re already seeing the mental fortitude that hadn’t always been there last year in Week 7.
That’s a huge part of the Big Ten in the Big Ten, and a part of the reason why Wisconsin has a huge chance ahead of them this season.
