Game Preview: Wisconsin Badgers vs. Penn State Big Ten Championship Football

WISCONSIN -- Wisconsin’s stellar season culminates with the Badgers squaring off with Big Ten East champion Penn State on Saturday night in the Big Ten championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

Winners of the Big Ten West division, Wisconsin is battling to be among the four teams selected for the College Football playoff. A win over Penn State doesn’t guarantee a selection, but an 11-2 Badgers team that can boast victories over LSU, Iowa and Nebraska along with narrow losses to Ohio State and Michigan has a resume that stacks up with the best teams in the nation.

Kickoff time: 7 p.m.

CDTTV and radio: Fox, Badger Radio Network

Point spread: Wisconsin is favored by 3, according to scores and odds.

Tickets: Tickets are available at secondary sites like Stubhub.com.

Both teams enter this matchup on a hot streak, as Wisconsin has prevailed in its last six games while the Nittany Lions have won eight in a row. During that stretch, Penn State has averaged over 40 points per game, while the Badgers have allowed only 12 points per contest. In their last outings on Saturday, Penn State manhandled Michigan State 45-12 as the Nittany Lions scored 35 straight points after halftime. Wisconsin took down a quality Minnesota team 31-17 as the Badgers held the Golden Gophers to 286 total yards. It was the third straight game Wisconsin held an opponent to under 300 yards.

The key to Saturday’s matchup is whether the Badgers’ defense can continue its stifling ways and shut down Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley, who threw for 376 yards and four touchdowns against Michigan State. The Nittany Lions’ rushing attack will have to improve on its performance against the Spartans as Penn State managed only 77 yards on 33 carries, good for 2.3 yards per attempt. That’s a tall order against this Wisconsin squad, however, which could put the onus on McSorley.

Wisconsin’s defense always shows up, so the question is whether the Badgers’ two-quarterback system can muster enough points to outscore Penn State. Quarterbacks Bart Houston (123 yards, 0 touchdowns) and Alex Hornibrook (29 yards, 0 touchdowns) didn’t impress against Minnesota and will probably be forced to throw more against the Nittany Lions. The Badgers were effective on the ground, however, as they rushed for 210 yards on 47 carries (led by Corey Clement’s 100-yard effort), for a 4.5 average. They also scored four rushing touchdowns.

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