Does Wisconsin football play today? Badgers’ next game after bye, schedule, Big Ten standings

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Does Wisconsin football play today? Badgers' next game after bye, schedule, Big Ten standings

Journal Sentinel beat writer breaks down Wisconsin’s loss at Oregon

The Badgers’ 21-7 loss to Oregon extended their losing streak to six games. Here are Journal Sentinel reporter Mark Stewart’s takes on the game.

Wisconsin football has reached new lows not seen in decades.

The Badgers are in last place in the Big Ten, haven’t won a conference game all season or any game in almost two months, have the second-worst offense in all of college football and the alumni are beyond frustrated.

With the season now in its final month, Luke Fickell and his players have just four games left to figure out if they will salvage anything from 2025.

And with the team on a bye this week, the Badgers (2-6 overall, 0-5 in the Big Ten) have extra time to take a good look at themselves in the mirror in what has been a disastrous period for a once proud program.

For starters, it will be hard to get any worse than the previous four weeks went following their first bye.

Wisconsin went into that first bye in late September also in a rough spot. The Badgers had just been blown out at home by Maryland in the Big Ten opener and chants to fire Fickell rang throughout Camp Randall Stadium.

Since then, the chorus of fed-up fans has only grown and crowds are shrinking at home games. On the field, the Badgers aren’t competitive. They suffered four more double-digit losses and they were outscored by a combined, 116-17. The Badgers were shut out twice, both times at home, by a combined 71-0 to Iowa and Ohio State.

And during these last four games between the two byes, Wisconsin had a stretch of 14 straight quarters without scoring a touchdown. The Badgers only found the end zone twice in the last 16 quarters.

It has to improve in these final four games, right? Not necessarily. Wisconsin hasn’t shown its fans a turnaround might even be in the cards based on its play.

Here’s what to know about Wisconsin’s schedule, its next game and Big Ten standings as the second half of the conference season continues to play out.

When does Wisconsin football play today? What time do the Badgers play?

Wisconsin does not play today. The Badgers are on their second bye of the season. Two byes were implemented last season when the conference expanded to 18 teams.

Wisconsin can use these two weeks to determine where it goes from here at the quarterback position. Of the many problems in 2025, the QB spot is at the top of the list.

The Badgers had three transfers enter the program for this season. And it hasn’t worked out for anyone. Senior Billy Edwards Jr., who came over from Maryland after three years in College Park, was the starter coming out of camp. But he injured his knee early in the season opener. He returned briefly against Maryland three weeks later on Sept. 20 but had to leave the game as he still felt the effects of the injury and hasn’t played again.

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His replacement, Danny O’Neil, who transferred from San Diego State, was turnover-prone and lost the job following the first bye.

Simmons, who transferred to Wisconsin from the lower-level Southern Illinois University of the Football Championship Subdivision, is also struggling. In six games and four starts he’s completing just 50% of his passes and has two TDs to five interceptions. Whether he’s still the signal caller after the second bye remains to be seen.

One of the positives to come from Wisconsin’s last game was the play of the defense. It held an explosive Oregon offense that was averaging over 40 points per game to just 21. Can it continue to provide a spark to a team that desperately needs something to feel good about? It will be a challenge with two of the Big Ten’s top offenses on the docket following the bye in consecutive weeks in Washington and Indiana.

Wisconsin football’s next game

Following its second bye of the 2025 season, Wisconsin plays host to Washington, which is in its second year in the Big Ten after coming over from the since-disbanded Pac 12.

Wisconsin is 0-4 all-time against the Huskies but the two teams haven’t played each other since 1992.

Washington, coming off an impressive 42-25 win over Illinois last week, is having a solid year after stumbling through a disappointing 6-7 season in 2024.

The Huskies (6-2, 3-2) will bring some of the league’s top playmakers to Camp Randall Stadium.

It starts with sophomore quarterback Demond Williams Jr., an athletic player who can sling it down field or use his legs to keep defenses on their heels. He has completed 73.1% of his passes (second in the conference) with 14 touchdowns and four interceptions. His 264.6 passing yards per game are fourth in the league. Williams also has 429 rushing yards on 89 carries and four rushing TDs.

When Williams isn’t making plays himself, handing it off to Jonah Coleman is a fine option, too. The senior running back leads the Big Ten with 13 rushing touchdowns and he’s fourth in rushing yards at 643 yards.

Denzel Boston tops the receivers with 668 yards (fourth in the Big Ten) on 44 receptions and his seven touchdowns are tied for second.

Washington is averaging 35.5 points per game, fifth in the Big Ten, whereas the Badgers’ 12.5 points are last of the 18 teams. The Huskies are fourth in total yards at 438.6/game, while the Badgers are last again with 261.9 yards.

Big Ten football schedule today

Six games are on the Big Ten schedule on Saturday, Nov. 1. Six teams have byes, including the Badgers’ opponent next week, Washington.

Penn State at Ohio State (1), 11 a.m., Fox
Rutgers at Illinois, 11 a.m., NBC
Indiana (2) at Maryland, 2:30 p.m., CBS
Michigan State at Minnesota, 2:30 p.m., BTN
Purdue at Michigan (21), 6 p.m., BTN
USC at Nebraska, 6:30 p.m., NBC

Byes: Iowa, Northwestern, Oregon, UCLA, Washington, Wisconsin

Wisconsin football schedule 2025

Wisconsin has four more games in the 2025 season after returning Nov. 8 from its second bye. Will the Badgers win any of those games to avoid going winless in the Big Ten for the first time in 35 years? Or the better question might be will any of the games be competitive? In their 10 consecutive Big Ten losses dating back over a calendar year, Wisconsin has lost nine of them by double digits. In this season’s six-game overall losing streak they’re losing by an average of 23.3 points.

Thu. Aug. 28: Wisconsin 17, Miami (OH) 0 | Box score | UW, 1-0
Sat. Sept. 6: Wisconsin 42, Middle Tenn. 10 | Box score | UW, 2-0
Sat. Sept. 13: Alabama 38, Wisconsin 14 | Box score | UW, 2-1
Sat. Sept. 20: Maryland 27, Wisconsin 10 | Box score | UW, 2-2 (0-1)
Sat. Oct. 4: Michigan 24, Wisconsin 10 | Box score | UW, 2-3 (0-2)
Sat. Oct. 11: Iowa 37, Wisconsin 0 | Box score | UW, 2-4 (0-3)
Sat. Oct. 18: Ohio State 34, Wisconsin 0 | Box score | UW, 2-5 (0-4)
Sat. Oct. 25: Oregon 21, Wisconsin 7 | Box score | UW, 2-6 (0-5)
Sat. Nov. 8: Wisconsin vs. Washington; Time, broadcast TBD
Sat. Nov. 15: Wisconsin at Indiana; Time, broadcast TBD
Sat. Nov. 22: Wisconsin vs. Illinois; Time, broadcast TBD
Sat. Nov. 29: Wisconsin at Minnesota; Time, broadcast TBD

Big Ten football standings

Indiana and Ohio State are the only undefeated teams left in the Big Ten. They not only sit atop the conference standings but they are the top two teams in the country in the major polls. Ohio State is ranked No. 1 and Indiana is No. 2 in the latest top 25 US LBM Coaches Poll. The Buckeyes and Hoosiers do not play each other in the regular season. Oregon, which beat the Badgers, 21-7, last week is also ranked in the top 10 coming in at No. 6 overall.

Wisconsin is joined by Penn State, Michigan State and Purdue as the other winless teams in the Big Ten.