Wisconsin vs. Washington Preview: Will the Badgers defense step up again?
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The Wisconsin Badgers take on the No. 23 Washington Huskies at Camp Randall Stadium this Saturday. Kickoff is at 3:30 p.m. on the Big Ten Network, and the Huskies are 11.5-point favorites.
The Badgers are coming off their second and final bye week of the season. They needed it. While the defense showed up in a 21-7 loss to Oregon in Eugene, the offense was, once again, abysmal. After another poor showing by quarterback Hunter Simmons, questions arose whether Luke Fickell should start freshman quarterback Carter Smith.
Quarterback worries aside, what should Badgers fans know about the Washington Huskies?
Opponent Preview
Head coach Jedd Fisch and Washington are also coming off a bye week. The Huskies clinched bowl eligibility with an impressive win at home over then-23rd-ranked Illinois, 42-25. Sophomore quarterback Demond Williams Jr passed for 280 yards and four touchdowns in Washington’s win.
Williams is one of college football’s best dual-threat quarterbacks. Not only has the sophomore quarterback passed for 2,117 yards and 14 touchdowns so far, but Williams is the second-leading rusher on Washington’s team with 429 yards on the ground and four rushing touchdowns. Those 429 rushing yards are the most by a Big Ten quarterback this season.
At running back, Jonah Coleman leads the Huskies with 643 rushing yards. Despite being 5-foot-9, Coleman is a powerful running back at 228 pounds and leads the Big Ten with 13 rushing touchdowns in 2025.
Denzel Boston, at 6-foot-4, is the Huskies’ go-to wide receiver. Boston is seventh in the Big Ten with 668 receiving yards and is tied for fourth with seven receiving touchdowns, along with Ohio State’s Carnell Tate. Against Illinois, Boston had his best game of the season with 153 receiving yards, one touchdown catch, and even a touchdown pass against the Illini.
Another wide receiver to keep an eye on is freshman Dezmen Roebuck, who had his first career multi-touchdown game against the Illini. Roebuck is second on the team with 394 receiving yards and four touchdown catches.
Northern Arizona transfer safety Alex McLaughlin leads Ryan Walters’ defense. McLaughlin leads the Huskies with 62 total tackles and is tied for the team lead with two interceptions. The other two Huskies with interceptions are Makell Esteen and Tacario Davis. Edge rusher Jacob Lane leads Washington with three sacks on the season.
Score Prediction
Washington is a solid team, but there are question marks on the road. The Huskies are 2-1 on the road, but those three games include 1) a win over Washington State in-state, 2) a 20-point second-half comeback at Maryland, and 3) a 24-7 loss at Michigan, where Williams Jr. threw three interceptions.
The Badgers might catch the Huskies napping on Saturday if Washington comes into Madison rusty. We saw two weeks ago that Wisconsin can play defense well enough to win, but they have not shown anything close to a competent offense in Big Ten Conference games.
Prediction: 26-10 Washington
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