Last season, the Wisconsin football team had one of the strongest defenses in the game, but it had one major flaw.
Badgers recorded 29 sacks this season ago which put them at the bottom of the Big Ten Conference in pressure. You can generate pressure without recording sacks, but the Wisconsin Badgers struggled to do both a season ago. With three of last season’s five sack leaders gone and a tough first performance against Western Michigan, Wisconsin will need to get some sacks against South Dakota.
Wisconsin football team needs to keep the pressure on, send more blitzes into the future
The Wisconsin Badgers football team is scheduled to play the Alabama Crimson Tide in two weeks, with another warmup before then. Wisconsin will play South Dakota this Saturday in a game the Badgers should easily win. While Wisconsin shouldn’t try anything novel or different and risk a potential loss, the Badgers’ staff certainly needs to apply more pressure.
The Wisconsin football staff blitzed minimally in the season opener against the Western Michigan Broncos, blitzing 27.27 percent of the time. Wisconsin doesn’t necessarily have the firepower up front to simply send three or four rushes throughout the game and bring down the quarterback. Instead, the Badgers need to utilize their linebackers to create enough pressure to impact the opposing offense.
Wisconsin allowed just 29 sacks last season, which ranked eighth in the Big Ten Conference and outside the top 50 schools in the country. The Badgers had a pretty stout defense last season, allowing 20.15 points per game and 33 total touchdowns. If Wisconsin can keep the pressure up, their defense could be one of the best units in the country.
Will the Wisconsin Badgers football coaching staff find a way to fire Jalen Milroe?
The Wisconsin football team faced an SEC opponent last season when they faced the LSU Tigers. The Tigers won the ReliaQuest Bowl with backup quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, but there was a lot to learn from the 35-31 loss. Wisconsin had no problem passing against one of the worst defenses in the country last season, but they couldn’t get anywhere near Nussmeier.
The Tigers had five sacks of 30-plus yards compared to the Badgers, who had zero sacks against a talented offensive line. Wisconsin couldn’t generate pressure, and that ultimately led to Nussmeier tearing apart a good, balanced defensive unit in the Badgers. When Wisconsin plays talented quarterbacks like Nussmeier, creating pressure and recording sacks becomes incredibly valuable.
Smart quarterbacks won’t let themselves get stopped in the air because they’ll find an opening once the defense lets up. Some quarterbacks, like future Wisconsin tackle and Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe, will create plays with their legs. Milroe is one of the best quarterbacks in the country and can hurt defenses in a variety of ways.
The Wisconsin football team will need to pressure Milroe as much as possible to force him into the read. If Milroe is given enough time to go through all of his progressions, the quarterback will certainly find a potentially huge play. The Badgers will need to work on their blitz skills against South Dakota to have their defense ready for the Alabama clash.
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