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This stretch of Wisconsin Badgers football schedule could make or break 2025 season

Luke Fickell and the Wisconsin Badgers won't have many opportunities to take it easy against lesser opponents, and one particular stretch in the middle of the schedule could be the deciding factor in this season's success.
Lorin Cox|
Nov 2, 2024; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; The line of scrimmage between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Wisconsin Badgers during the fourth quarter at Kinnick Stadium.
Nov 2, 2024; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; The line of scrimmage between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Wisconsin Badgers during the fourth quarter at Kinnick Stadium. | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

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Wisconsin Badgers

This season's Wisconsin Badgers football schedule is going to be tough, pretty much from start to finish.

Luke Fickell and his team won't have many opportunities to slow down and take it easy against lesser opponents, and one particular stretch in the middle could be the deciding factor in whether this year is a success or not.

Sports Illustrated senior college football writer Pat Forde shared his observations across the college football schedule, and he made note of the toughest stretch for the Badgers.

Wisconsin plays seven potential playoff teams, four of them on the road. The October gauntlet could be decisive: at Michigan, Iowa off an open-date disadvantage, Ohio State and at Oregon.
Pat Forde, Sports Illustrated

Forde also listed Fickell among four "hot-seat coaches facing tough schedules," along with Sam Pittman from Arkansas, Brent Venables at Oklahoma and Florida's Billy Napier.

Wisconsin will be desperate to pick up a win against Iowa, knowing back-to-back games against Ohio State and Oregon are up next.

Pulling off an upset against Michigan right before that would also go a long way toward soothing the potential pain from top ranked opponents like the Buckeyes and Ducks.

The Badgers can manage with some losses to the best of the best on their schedule, but some of Fickell's job security will be tied to how Wisconsin fares in the games that should be a bit less one-sided.

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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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