The Badgers have one of the tougher schedules in the country in 2025.
The Wisconsin Badgers will have a very different team when they take the field on August 28th against Miami (OH), as they infused their roster with transfers to become more experienced on both sides of the ball.
Wisconsin was very active in the transfer portal, seeking upgrades at quarterback, wide receiver, offensive line, defensive line, outside linebacker, and safety after a disappointing 5-7 season.
Now, with what they believe is a better roster, the Badgers are hoping for more success in 2025, albeit with a much more difficult schedule.
Do the oddsmakers agree with that sentiment?
CircaSports revealed its updated win totals over/unders for the Big Ten, according to On3’s Brett McMurphy, and Wisconsin’s remained the same at 5.5 wins.
That has been the line for Wisconsin for much of the offseason, with the under being favored by a number of major sportsbooks. That line makes sense when considering the difficult challenges the Badgers will face throughout the year.
Wisconsin will almost certainly be underdogs against the Alabama Crimson Tide in their Week 3 matchup on the road. The same can probably be said for contests against Michigan, Ohio State, and Oregon.
Then, there’s the difficult rivalry matchups against Iowa, Illinois, and Minnesota. All three teams have a higher projected win total than the Badgers heading into the season.
The only team Wisconsin has a higher projected win total than on their conference schedule is Maryland, whose over/under is 4.5 games.
Here is the full projected win total list for the Big Ten, via Circa:
Ohio State 10½
Oregon 10½
Penn State 10½
Indiana 8½
Michigan 8½
Illinois 7½
Iowa 7½
Nebraska 7½
USC 7½
Washington 7½
Minnesota 6½
Rutgers 5½
UCLA 5½
Wisconsin 5½
Maryland 4½
Northwestern 4
Purdue 3