Some in the media see a resurgent season for the Wisconsin Badgers in 2024. Others do not.
CBS Sports’ Chip Patterson fits into that second category. In his outlet’s recent 2024 Big Ten preview, he tabbed Wisconsin as the “most overrated team” in the conference
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“This isn’t a huge gripe for me,” Patterson wrote. “I’m just two spots lower than where the Cleveland.com media poll had Wisconsin (No. 7), but I would rather have a couple of teams ahead of the Badgers given some of the uncertainty heading into the year.”
Patterson went on to address Wisconsin’s quarterback situation with Miami transfer Tyler Van Dyke starting under center and the Badgers’ challenging conference schedule with games against Penn State, Oregon, USC, Iowa and Nebraska.
Wisconsin was listed in the overrated category along with Michigan and USC. The latter two are both ranked in the preseason AP Poll (Michigan at No. 9 and USC at No. 23), while the Badgers were only receiving votes.
Big Ten expert picks 2024: Most overrated and underrated teams, projected order of finish, bold predictionshttps://t.co/7RbPPHGKYK
— Tom Fornelli (@TomFornelli) August 20, 2024
Every CBS analyst picked Wisconsin to finish ninth in the conference except for Tom Fornelli, who picked the Badgers 14th. The outlet slotted Nebraska, Rutgers, USC and Iowa ahead of Wisconsin, in addition to the obvious top tier of Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State and Michigan.
The national sentiment, at least from this collection of analysts, is much lower on Wisconsin’s chances this season than anybody locally.
Most around the team recognize its clear improvements after Luke Fickell’s disappointing debut season in 2023. While the regular-season record may still finish at 8-4 or 7-5, the team is expected to take a significant step forward as the Big Ten enters its new era.
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