4 Things We Learned About Wisconsin After Badgers Make USC Look Ordinary

I'll admit it, I'm still trying to figure out exactly what Wisconsin is. The Badgers have shown they can beat a ranked team on the road, but we've also seen them score seven points in a loss to UCLA. Then No. 16 USC comes to Madison and Wisconsin beats the Trojans 24-7.

Maybe that's just who this team is right now. Wisconsin isn't going to put up 500 yards every week, and I'm not sure it needs to. Against USC, the Badgers played great defense, ran the football and didn't make many mistakes. It wasn't flashy, but it worked.

And maybe we're starting to figure out what Wisconsin looks like when it's playing its best.

Here are four things I took away from Saturday.

This defense might be good enough to carry Wisconsin

Wisconsin linebacker Mason Posa (8) stuffs Michigan State quarterback Cam Fancher (2) on fourth down during the third quarter of their game Saturday, October 3, 2026 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

USC finished with minus-17 rushing yards, and I'll admit I had to look at that number a couple of times. Wisconsin's five sacks obviously had a lot to do with it since sacks count against rushing totals in college football, but even when USC tried to run it, there wasn't much there.

The Badgers also picked off Jayden Maiava twice and held USC to 241 total yards on 75 plays. More than anything, USC just never looked comfortable. Every time it seemed like the Trojans might get something going, Wisconsin's defense had an answer.

That's a pretty big deal for this team because I'm still not convinced the offense is going to give Wisconsin 30 points every Saturday. We saw against UCLA what can happen when the Badgers can't get much going. But if this defense keeps playing anywhere close to what we saw against USC, 30 points might not be necessary very often.

I didn't expect Wisconsin to make USC look that ordinary offensively. That's probably what impressed me most about the entire game.

Colton Joseph doesn't need to be Superman

Colton Joseph threw for 58 yards Saturday, which isn't exactly a number you normally lead with after beating the No. 16 team in the country by 17 points.

But I actually came away liking how he played.

Joseph completed 12 of 14 passes, threw a touchdown and didn't turn it over. He also gave Wisconsin something with his legs, and there weren't many moments where it felt like he was trying to do too much.

Why would he?

The defense was giving USC fits, and Wisconsin was able to keep leaning on the running game. There was no reason for Joseph to start forcing throws just to get his passing total over 100 yards. Get the ball where it needs to go, don't give USC anything cheap and let the defense keep doing what it's doing.

Eventually, Wisconsin is probably going to need more from him. There will be a game where the Badgers are behind in the fourth quarter and Joseph has to go make some throws to win it. I'm curious to see what he looks like when that happens.

Against USC, he didn't need to be that guy.

Wisconsin might be figuring out how it needs to win

Wisconsin Badgers running back Bryan Jackson II. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

I keep coming back to the 43 rushing attempts.

Wisconsin ran for 142 yards, so it's not like the Badgers were ripping off eight yards every time they handed it off. Abu Sama III had 71 yards on 17 carries, Bryan Jackson II added 38 and a touchdown, and Joseph chipped in another 32. Wisconsin just kept at it.

That's the part I liked.

Against UCLA, the running backs combined for only 12 carries. Against USC, Wisconsin didn't get impatient and abandon the run because it wasn't producing huge plays. The Badgers kept handing it off, controlled the ball for more than 32 minutes and let their defense handle the rest.

Maybe it's not complicated. Run the football, don't turn it over and play really good defense.

Sounds a lot like Wisconsin football, doesn't it?

I still need to see more from the offense

Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Colton Joseph. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Here's the part where I pump the brakes a little.

Wisconsin beat the No. 16 team in the country by 17 points and finished with 200 yards of offense. The Badgers averaged 3.5 yards per play, Joseph threw for 58 yards and they never really had to open things up because the defense kept USC from putting any pressure on them to score.

That's great when the game plays out that way. I'm just not convinced every game will.

What happens if Wisconsin gets down 14-3? What happens when somebody slows down the running game and Joseph has to throw it 25 or 30 times? At some point, I think the Badgers are going to need the offense to go win one instead of simply staying out of the defense's way.

Maybe we get some of those answers Saturday at Iowa. The Hawkeyes have beaten Wisconsin four straight times, including 37-0 last season, so I'm definitely not looking at one win over USC and deciding all the questions I had about this team are gone.

They're not.

But I'll say this: Wisconsin has my attention now. I wasn't sure what to make of the Badgers before Saturday, and I'm still not completely sure.

I'm just a lot more interested in finding out.

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