Badgers news: Best, worst and most likely scenarios vs. Penn State

After a nightmarish opening two games in which the Wisconsin Badgers lost brutal duels to the Alabama Crimson Tide and the USC Trojans (as well as their starting quarterback), things seemed a bit bleak for a successful 2024 season. Many saw three or four wins (or less) as the team's ceiling going forward.

But after back-to-back impressive games in which they outscored Purdue, Rutgers and Northwestern by a combined 117-16 to reach 5-2, Wisconsin's prospects are suddenly looking much brighter.

Next up is the No. 3 Penn State Nittany Lions, who are 6-0 and are having a very impressive season and are poised to be on the safe side en route to a Big Ten title. They'll walk into Camp Randall on Saturday as favorites and will likely be feeling very confident. So what can we expect?

Best case: Despite an objectively impressive season so far, I'm not 100% convinced that Penn State and their former five-star quarterback Drew Allar are truly elite. Their ESPN strength chart is a close 70th nationally, and their most celebrated win came in overtime over now-struggling USC.

So in the best case scenario, the Badgers come into the game with an impressive game plan, run effectively, cause turnovers and simply beat the Nittany Lions (who may play Ohio State in Happy Valley next week) on the field. The path led to a 26:23 -Surprise and Luke Fickell's first win as Wisconsin coach.

Worst case: Look, Penn State's game plan was softer than PJ Fleck's in his bedroom after losing an Ax game, but the reality is that they are still a very talented and well-coached team.

While it's unlikely, it's possible that Penn State simply overwhelms the Badgers by being better in all three phases of the game and the name Tyler Warren has been floating around among Wisconsin fans for weeks after a 33-13 record.

Most likely: Wisconsin comes hungry, motivated and plays good football all night, trading blows with Penn State. As much as I want to call a Badger win here (and that's exactly what I did on my Scary Alvarez Podcast this week by picking a Bucky win), this is about what is most likely, It's not about what my personal feelings are.

And objectively speaking, this is a game the Badgers should probably still lose. So here Penn State escapes 27-20. A moral victory for us, but not one person in the Wisconsin locker room will see it that way.