After a bye week to rest and heal up, the Wisconsin Badgers (4-2, 1-1 Big Ten) meet the Maryland Terrapins (5-2, 2-1 Big Ten) in a cross-divisional matchup at Camp Randall Stadium on Saturday at noon ET.
Pitting one of the most consistent teams of the past decade-plus against a newcomer to the Big Ten in Maryland, this homecoming game is sure to be an interesting matchup between teams with highly contrasting styles.
Whereas the Badgers will look to set the tone with a physical run game, the Terrapins are stocked with arguably the best receiving corps in the conference and are not afraid to air the ball out as much as they can while largely ignoring the run game.
This game sets off a stretch of six games in a row to close the season, which see the Badgers travel to Rutgers and then Purdue in the following weeks. The Badgers need to win all three of these games to keep them in the running for a trip to Indianapolis and the Big Ten Championship Game.
After those three games, the Badgers return home to face fellow West Division power Nebraska. They then close their season with a trip to Kinnick Stadium to take on the Iowa Hawkeyes and end the year with a home game against the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the Battle for Paul Bunyan's Ax.
Maryland, meanwhile, is still in the thick of the East Division race, trailing just Michigan State and Ohio State and sitting one game off the pace. Maryland is in the midst of its most difficult stretch, having just taken on Ohio State and Iowa before coming to Madison.
After their game against the Badgers, the Terps travel to Happy Valley to play Penn State and then head home to face Michigan State. If the Terps can snag two wins in these games, they'll ensure bowl eligibility before heading to Ann Arbor and then facing Rutgers in a season-closing clash between this year's Big Ten debutants.
Let's take a look at the keys to victory and players to watch for both teams as well as a prediction for this week's matchup.