The Wisconsin Badgers dropped their season-opener 16-10 to the Penn State Nittany Lions yesterday, starting the 2021 season with shades of what saw them struggle throughout 2020.
The day started on a down note as starting linebacker Leo Chenal announced he had tested positive for COVID-19. Then, when the game began, the negative tone continued as the Badgers struggled to finish drives, made mistakes at crucial moments and lost an easily winnable football game.
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It wasn’t the 2021 debut Badger fans wanted after last year’s struggles. As I’ll outline throughout the week, though, this game will not define their season if the team can fix the issues and beat their Big Ten West rivals.
But it is a tough start to a 2021 season with high expectations. Here are my five takeaways from the contest: