The Biggest Issue Wisconsin Football Must Solve to Upset No. 16 USC

If the Badgers want to topple the Trojans, they need rapid improvement in one key area.

UCLA Bruins quarterback Ty Dieffenbach (14) is defended by Wisconsin Badgers linebacker Cooper Catalano (44). | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

If you had told me Wisconsin was going to walk into the Rose Bowl, hold UCLA to 17 points and its lowest rushing output all season while winning the turnover battle 2-0, I would assume the Badgers won.

Instead, despite handicapping the Bruins' ground game — the heartbeat of their entire team — Wisconsin repeatedly shot itself in the foot with penalties, an inability to get off the field on third down and an inability to move the ball through the air.

The biggest surprise was the Badgers' ineptitude against UCLA's backup quarterback Ty Dieffenbach. Getting his first start at the FBS level, he tossed for 264 yards on 67% completion (with a meaningless interception before halftime). That's a solid if not eye-popping stat-line, but Dieffenbach was on the money when it mattered most. On 3rd down, he was 8-of-13 passing for 150 yards.

Time and time again, Wisconsin allowed the Bruins to get into a third-and-manageable (their averaged distance to go on third down was 6.1 yards), at which point Dieffenbach would find the soft spot in the Badgers' defense and move the chains. It was pretty surprising to watch unfold, considering Wisconsin's secondary was statistically one of the best in the country (and still is, checking in at No. 20 in passing yards per game allowed).

"We’ve gotta be able to have a little more variety. Give them a lot of credit, they made some plays and made some scheme things that were pretty good on man coverage stuff. We’ve gotta get better at it, we’ve gotta be aware of the things that people are attacking us with," head coach Luke Fickell said this week.

Wisconsin needs to clean up its pass defense, and it needs to find those answers soon; USC week is not the time to have questions about your secondary.

Badgers gear up for Trojans' arial assault

Southern California Trojans wide receiver Trent Mosley. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

USC is one of the best passing teams in the country. Its quarterback, Jayden Maiava, has thrown for a whopping 2,045 yards, 18 touchdowns and three interceptions on 68% completion. Yardage-wise, that's tops in the Power Four and second only to Oregon State gunslinger Braden Atkinson.

The Trojans break off big chunks of yards through the air, as their yards-per-completion of 13.2 ranks No. 16 nationally. They have a bevy of dangerous eligibles, and three of their top four pass-catchers are true freshmen (wideouts Kayden Dixon-Wyatt and Trent Mosley, plus tight end Mark Bowman). Seven pass-catchers on this offense have surpassed 100 yards receiving.

“They have thrown the ball exceptionally well, and I don’t know that that would surprise you. (Maiava) does a helluva job," Fickell said.

"His connection with the wideouts, his ability to move in the pocket, his ability to even create, not maybe run as much when he creates, but always keeps his eyes downfield," he added. "He’s got a lot of trust in his wideouts, and for good reason. So I think there’s a great combination of his ability to throw the football but also his ability to extend plays with a really talented receiver group.”

Wisconsin is going to need its secondary to improve rapidly if it wants to have any shot in this game. The Badgers aren't equipped to get into a shootout; their only chance is if they rattle the Trojans' offense and keep this game low-scoring and defensive oriented.