Wisconsin is somehow on the rise in the latest ESPN SP+ rankings after its 27-13 Week 2 win over South Dakota.
Despite the team allowing the FCS opponent to hang around late into the second half, the Badgers’ performance increased their overall, offensive and defensive rating.
Related: Big Ten Power Rankings after Week 2: Are we concerned about Oregon?
SP+ works to be predictive, attempting to judge teams solely based on their quality and not by their resume. It differs more from ESPN FPI in that regard — FPI is a metric that currently has Wisconsin plummeting toward the bottom of the Big Ten.
So, maybe it’s good news that SP+ sees something in the Badgers after two weeks. It has seen enough to return the team to the top 30:
- Overall: 10.3 (No. 29 overall) — Up from 8.9 (36th)
- Offense: 24.0 (90th) — Up from 23.4 (88th)
- Defense: 13.8 (8th) — Up from 14.5 (8th)
Here are SP+’s full rankings after a busy Week 2 across college football.
The big story remains the gauntlet schedule ahead. Wisconsin now enters the top-30, but it will face several of the nation’s top-ranked teams. Here is where each of Wisconsin’s upcoming opponents rank after Week 2:
- Alabama: No. 3 overall (30.4)
- USC: No. 12 (17.2)
- Purdue: No. 58 (3.0)
- Rutgers: No. 38 (8.0)
- Northwestern: No. 81 (-3.5)
- Penn State: No. 8 (22.0)
- Iowa: No. 22 (13.6)
- Oregon: No. 9 (21.3)
- Nebraska: No. 28 (10.3)
- Minnesota: No. 39 (8.0)
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