Wisconsin Football vs. Indiana: Three Things to Watch For

Coming off of a hard-fought loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes, the Wisconsin football program is set to take on the Indiana Hoosiers. The Badgers, currently 5-3 on the season, are looking to bounce back and stay within fighting distance for the Big Ten West crown.

Here are three things to watch for in Saturday’s clash between Wisconsin and Indiana.

Will Wisconsin Football Be Able to Establish the Run if Braelon Allen Can’t Go?

There isn’t a bigger storyline heading into this game than Braelon Allen’s injury. The junior tailback left just before halftime of last weekend’s matchup before quickly being ruled out. Allen would return to the sideline in the second half in street clothes with a walking boot. Luke Fickell told reporters that the Badgers RB1 “couldn’t do much of anything” during practice the next day. With his availability up in the air, Wisconsin will prepare to have Jackson Acker and Cade Yacamelli to carry the load on the ground.

Acker moved up to No. 2 on the depth chart following Chez Mellusi’s injury early in the season. He has been serviceable in his role, logging 35 carries and 145 yards on the season, but he’ll now be expected to take a bulk of the carries if Allen can’t go. Though Acker has shown flashes of potential, it’s hard to know exactly what UW has in the sophomore at this point.

Cade Yacamelli has appeared in one game thus far and logged two offensive snaps. The converted safety has yet to see any meaningful time in the backfield, so Yacamelli is seemingly a wildcard here. Reports coming out of spring and fall camps indicated the redshirt freshman had shown some flashes of potential. The mystery surrounding Yacamelli intrigues me, and I’d like to see him get some snaps if Allen is unable to go.

This game will be significant for the future of the running back room. Acker and Yacamelli could get some meaningful reps, and Wisconsin will see exactly what they have in the young duo. 

Can Badgers QB Braedyn Locke Keep Up the Positive Trend?

Though moral victories are only worth so much, I’d say Wisconsin has a lot to feel good about in their current QB1. Locke’s stats against Ohio State don’t jump off the page, but it doesn’t reflect his actual performance. The redshirt freshman showed a tremendous amount of poise for his second career start. There was confidence in his throws, and he was timely. It was just a matter of whether his receivers could hold on to the ball, which, unfortunately, was an issue against the Buckeyes. Either way, I walked away from last weekend’s matchup with a lot of confidence in No. 18.

Indiana isn’t a great defense to go up against when looking to continue building on a good streak, considering their secondary ranks 25th in the nation in passing yards allowed per game. Still, the Hoosiers allowed Drew Allar to pass for 210 yards and three touchdowns last week. I’m not claiming the Badgers offense is Penn State’s offense, but I say this to point out that Indiana is vulnerable.

If Allen isn’t available on Saturday, I’d have to think Wisconsin football will rely on the passing game a bit more, which would be beneficial for Locke. A 2-6 Indiana team is just what the redshirt freshman needs after facing a juggernaut like Ohio State.

Can Wisconsin Football Figure Out These Special Teams Mistakes?

Of course, just a week after I wrote about how the special teams unit had been the unsung heroes for the Badgers early in the season, they hit a cold streak. Wisconsin’s special teams have been a bit of a mess for a couple of weeks now, with a few small mistakes and some that have been consistent since the start of the season.

Yet another kickoff sailed out of bounds in the matchup against Ohio State. By my count, that’s now six kickoffs that have gone out in eight games. You could potentially pin some of these kicks on the wind, but the vast majority have just been plain inaccurate.

Atticus Bertrams is coming off a poor performance in which he had punts of 29 and 34 yards, both of which led to Buckeye touchdowns. The Australia native has been on a bit of a downtrend after a solid start to the season. Though he’s in a slump now, I believe he’s shown enough to have the ability to get back on track.

The special teams unit’s mistakes were costly in the last few weeks, so this week will need to be a “get right” game for the third phase.

The Wisconsin football program will kick off against the Hoosiers at 11:00 am CST on Saturday.

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