COLUMBUS – The third-ranked Buckeyes will be attempting to remain unbeaten Saturday when they visit Wisconsin as a two-touchdown favorite.
(3) Ohio State (7-0, 4-0) vs. Wisconsin (5-2, 3-1); Camp Randall Stadium, Madison, Wisc.
Saturday, Oct. 28, (7:30 p.m./NBC)
Both teams are coming into this game with momentum. Ohio State won 20-12 over Penn State last week in a matchup of top-10 teams and coach Ryan Day is making sure the Buckeyes keep that momentum when they travel to Madison.
“We can’t let last week affect this week…championship teams bring it every week. They don’t have ups and downs and letdowns so we’re not allowed to have a letdown,” he said.
Wisconsin rallied from a 21-7, fourth-quarter deficit to win 25-21 at Illinois last week in quarterback Braedyn Locke’s first career start.
Ohio State has won its last nine meetings with Wisconsin, including a 52-21 blowout in Columbus last season. But the last two matchups in Madison both went to overtime. The Buckeyes won 30-23 in 2016 and 21-14 in 2012.
Wisconsin’s last win over Ohio State came in 2010, when the 18th-ranked Badgers beat the top-ranked Buckeyes 31-18 in Madison.
Familiar face
Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell (right) is a Columbus native and a graduate from DeSales High School who started 50 straight games for Ohio State from 1994-96 before spending the 1999 season there as a graduate assistant and was an assistant for the Buckeyes from 2002-16.
He posted a 6-7 record as Ohio State’s interim head coach in 2011 and was an assistant on Urban Meyer’s staff during two national championship team seasons.
This is the third time Fickell has been on the coaching staff of a team that faced his alma mater. He coached Akron’s defensive line when the Zips fell 28-14 to Ohio State in 2001 and was Cincinnati’s head coach for a 42-0 loss at Ohio State in 2019.
Henderson, Ebuka expected to play
Without star back TreVeyon Henderson, the Buckeyes continue to struggle in the run game.
Day said Henderson could be back this week. So could receiver Emeka Egbuka, who has missed two games with an injury.