Wisconsin’s Week 2 road trip to Washington State obviously didn’t go as planned. The Badgers fell 31-22 in a mistake-filled performance, dropping to 1-1 at the time in the first year under head coach Luke Fickell.
The loss was obviously glaring. Fickell was brought in to redirect the program after a rough 2022, and the performance made it seem that maybe more time was needed to accomplish that goal.
But Week 4 for Wisconsin and around college football made that loss a lot more palatable for Badger fans.
Related: Big Ten Power Rankings after Week 4: The Big Ten West is really, really, bad
First, the Badgers entered West Lafayette, Indiana and took care of division rival Purdue. The 38-17 win saw the offense improve its consistency, the defense continue to take the football away and QB Tanner Mordecai yet again excel using his legs.
Second, and almost as important, Washington State looks like a really good football team. The Cougars defeated a terrific No. 14 Oregon State team 38-35 thanks to a 404-yard, four-touchdown performance from QB Cam Ward.
The Cougars are now 4-0 with wins over Colorado State, Wisconsin, Northern Colorado and Oregon State. They sit atop a loaded Pac 12 conference, with big matchups against UCLA, Oregon, Colorado and Washington looming.
There is a real chance we get to the end of Wisconsin’s 2023 season and look back at Washington State as the second-best team Wisconsin played — behind Ohio State. If the Badgers run away with the West and the Cougars continue to win, that loss will continue to look better and better.