Will Wisconsin win another game? Ranking Badgers' remaining opponents by difficulty

The Wisconsin Badgers sit at 2-2 through the first month of the college football season, but they have plenty more challenges ahead after the Week 5 bye.

Five of the Badgers' remaining eight games come against ranked opponents, along with a pair of rivalry games.

Given Wisconsin's shortcomings, it's tough to tell where its next win will come, if it comes at all.

Still, the Badgers have a few games they could win if they can make some adjustments coming out of the bye.

Here are the toughest remaining opponents, ranked from easiest to hardest.

8. at Minnesota Golden Gophers

The Battle for Paul Bunyan's Axe has been anything but easy recently. Wisconsin has lost three of the last four meetings and four of the last six. 2025 provides an opportunity to get back into the win column.

Minnesota struggled with Buffalo in their season opener and then lost to California by two scores in Week 3. The Golden Gophers are more than gettable this season, with redshirt freshman Drake Lindsey under center and a not-so-great defense.

Wisconsin still has a shot to win outright, which feels wrong to say at this point in the season.

7. vs Iowa Hawkeyes

In a classic "stoppable force meets movable object" matchup, Wisconsin's absent run game and Iowa's ugly passing game will go toe-to-toe in Madison on Oct. 11.

If the Badgers don't give up a defensive or special teams touchdown, and the offensive line is serviceable, it's a very winnable contest.

6. vs Illinois Fighting Illini

Illinois hasn't quite looked like its 2024 version this season, struggling against Duke in Week 2 before a flurry of Blue Devil turnovers shifted the momentum. Then they were battered by Indiana in Week 4.

The Fighting Illini offensive line has struggled to keep Luke Altmyer on his feet, and open rushing lanes have been few and far between.

This should be a low-scoring game in which one or two mistakes could be the difference. That is all it takes for Wisconsin to have a shot.

5. vs Washington Huskies

Wisconsin is 0-4 against Washington all-time. They'll have a chance to upend the Huskies on Nov. 8 if they can shut down a potent offense led by sophomore Demond Williams.

It won't be an easy task, but it's one of the easier ones on the Badgers' schedule.

4. vs Michigan Wolverines

This is a classic Michigan team, playing suffocating defense with a strong run game. Wisconsin has a chance in this one if they can stop the run — something they've been able to do through four games in 2025 — and merely keep up on offense.

The issue is how the Badgers offensive line will fare. Michigan sacked Dylan Raiola seven times in Week 4 and could feast on Wisconsin's underperforming front. That would likely spell disaster.

3. vs Ohio State Buckeyes

OSU holds the No. 1 spot in the AP Top 25, but they haven't looked the part of the best team in the country. Led by an elite defense, the Buckeyes are propped up by a win over Texas, who has underwhelmed since.

Wisconsin will have a difficult time scoring and slowing down Jeremiah Smith and Cornell Tate.

2. at Indiana Hoosiers

Indiana just beat Illinois 63-10 and have a potential Heisman candidate in quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

Head coach Curt Cignetti has the Hoosiers humming on both sides of the football and playing with an elite level of intensity. It'll be a mountainous task for the Badgers in Bloomington.

1. at Oregon Ducks

The Ducks are a juggernaut. Dante Moore has been excellent, they're averaging 6.7 yards in the run game and their starting defense has allowed just one touchdown through four games.

Even if Wisconsin turns things around before their Oct. 25 matchup with the Ducks, they'll struggle to stack up in any area. Plus, the game is in Eugene.

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