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Check out FanDuel’s 2022 college football over under win total odds, including the Wisconsin over under win total prediction, part of our college football odds series.
The Wisconsin Badgers have been a noticeably consistent program ever since Barry Alvarez authored a remarkable turnaround in the early 1990s. Since Alvarez guided the Badgers to the 1993 Big Ten championship and a Rose Bowl win over UCLA, Wisconsin has been here to stay. The Badgers — since that time — have rarely missed bowl games. They have rarely finished in the lower half of the Big Ten. They have rarely failed to win nine games per season (eight when the season was only 11 games long instead of 12). Wisconsin has become the dependable program, the school which will regularly do what it is supposed to do. It might not dominate, but it will enter a season, win a pile of ballgames, and do it all over again the following year.
The past few seasons, however, Wisconsin has experienced some erosion — not to the point where the program isn't making bowl games, but where its place in the Big Ten feels a little more tenuous than it did in 2019. Wisconsin won the Big Ten West Division in 2019, marking the third time in four seasons it had done so. No Big Ten West team has made more Big Ten Championship Game appearances than the Badgers, who were part of the very first Big Ten title game in 2011, then in 2012 and 2014, before returning in 2016, 2017, and 2019. This was a regular part of each season, a way of life, for Wisconsin. Being in the Big Ten title game and making a prestigious bowl was something this program could count on.
Not in the past two years, however.
We could toss out the 2020 season due to the pandemic and its distorting effect on various college football programs in that one weird and unrepresentative season. However, in 2021, with a lot more normalcy returning to the sport, Wisconsin wasn't able to bounce back. The Badgers lost to Minnesota late in the season and failed to win the Big Ten West. Wisconsin, for the first time in the Big Ten Championship Game era, went two straight years without making the conference championship game. That represents an alarm bell for coach Paul Chryst, who knows he needs to right this ship in 2022.
Here are the 2022 College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
2022 College Football Odds: Wisconsin Over/Under Win Total Odds
Wisconsin Badgers:
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Over: 9 (+125)
Under: 9 (-145)
Why Wisconsin Will Win 10 Games
Is Wisconsin really going to miss the Big Ten Championship Game three straight years? That's unlikely. This program has built a reputation and identity for being the reliable program, the program which just doesn't miss many opportunities when presented with them. The Badgers have had a lot of time in the offseason to get their offense fixed. More precisely, the Badgers have had a lot of time to work with quarterback Graham Mertz and get him on track. Mertz came to Wisconsin with a lot of hype and promise, but he hasn't lived up to the billing. This year, with so much familiarity and comfort as a quarterback in this offensive system, you should see Mertz finally deliver the goods. If he is strong, Wisconsin will be strong.
Why Wisconsin Won't Win 10 Games
The other side of the coin is that Mertz might simply not be the answer. He could be the example of a player in which a lot of resources were invested, but no solutions could be found. That will happen. Generally good programs arrive at a point where they count on a new player to carry the torch and continue a tradition, but it just doesn't happen. This could be the story of Graham Mertz. This could be the period of time which slips through Wisconsin's fingers before another, better quarterback restores the Badgers in the future.
Final Wisconsin Win Total Prediction
Skepticism toward Graham Mertz might be warranted, but skepticism of this coaching staff — given its track record of success — seems less warranted. Wisconsin should win at least nine games, and if you're going to lean to a number other than nine, it's likely 10, not eight.
Final Wisconsin Win Total Prediction: Over 9 (+125)
