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Wisconsin Badgers' history of close games against Oregon Ducks bodes well for Week 9

The Wisconsin Badgers and Oregon Ducks have faced each other seven times before, and they always turn out to be close games, even when only one team is ranked.
Lorin Cox|
Nov 16, 2024; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers safety Hunter Wohler (24) tackles Oregon Ducks running back Da'Jaun Riggs (21) during the fourth quarter at Camp Randall Stadium.
Nov 16, 2024; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers safety Hunter Wohler (24) tackles Oregon Ducks running back Da'Jaun Riggs (21) during the fourth quarter at Camp Randall Stadium. | Mark Hoffman/USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

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Wisconsin BadgersOregon Ducks

The Wisconsin Badgers aren't supposed to stand a chance against the No. 6 Oregon Ducks on Saturday.

They weren't supposed to stand a chance against the No. 1 Oregon Ducks last year, and Wisconsin led by a touchdown entering the fourth quarter before losing 16-13.

That's not to say that this year's Badgers team is going to put Oregon on upset alert, but this program has a history of playing close games against the Ducks.

Last year, this struggling Wisconsin defense found a way to keep future NFL quarterback Dillon Gabriel out of the endzone while picking him off in the process.

Before then, it was 2019 in the Rose Bowl, when Wisconsin also had a fourth quarter lead and lost on a late field goal 28-27.

Jack Coan out-threw future first-round pick Justin Herbert, though it was his legs that did the Badgers in for that game.

These two teams have played seven times in their history, and all but one game has been decided by seven points or fewer.

The only one-sided result was a 22-10 Wisconsin victory in 1977.

Oregon has won the last four matchups, but the average margin of victory has been just 3.5 points

Keeping this game close against a Top 10 team would be a massive sign of progress for the Badgers, who have not scored points in either of their last two games.

The betting spread for this game is one of the largest this team has ever seen. It would be a break from the long history of this matchup if this one ends in a blowout.

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Lorin Cox
LORIN COX

Lorin Cox is the managing editor of Wisconsin Badgers on SI. He has been covering Badgers sports since 2014, when he was an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin. He previously wrote for the Wisconsin State Journal, NBC Sports Chicago and USA Today Sports Media Group, and he is a former analyst for Pro Football Focus.

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