THE BASICS

The teams: The Wisconsin Badgers (3-3, 1-2) vs the Michigan State Spartans (2-4, 0-3)

The time: 3 p.m. CDT, Saturday

The place: Spartan Stadium, East Lansing, Mich.

The TV coverage: FOX with Tim Brando and Spencer Tillman on the call

The last time: Wisconsin racked up 222 yards on the ground and earned its fourth shutout of the season with a 38-0 win over Michigan State in 2019.

The series: Michigan State leads 30-24

The line: Wisconsin -7.5

THE BREAKDOWN: 4 THINGS TO WATCH

1) Encore performance?

Wisconsin saved its season last week with a 42-7 win over Northwestern that was easily its best overall performance of the year. The Badgers rolled up over 500 yards of offense, didn’t allow a sack or turn the ball over, forced three turnovers on defense and had just five penalties. It was the clean performance that interim coach Jim Leonhard was looking for. But consistency has not been a strength of the Badgers this year. They have yet to win back-to-back games. If they are going to keep their hopes for a Big Ten West title alive for another week, they’ll need to put together another strong all around effort.

2) Passing game rolling

Graham Mertz and the passing game was absolutely rolling against the Wildcats last week. The quarterback threw for a career-high 299 yards and five touchdowns, while wide receiver Chimere Dike put together just the second game of 185 yards and three touchdowns in Wisconsin history. Now comes a Michigan State pass defense that is the worst in the Big Ten and among the worst in the country. The Spartans are allowing 292 yards per game and opposing quarterbacks have thrown 14 touchdowns and just one interception. If Mertz can get the same kind of protection he had against Northwestern when he was barely touched, look for another huge day through the air.

3) A familiar face

For a second time this year the Badgers will face one of their former running backs. The first was Nakia Watson, who had a couple touchdowns in Washington State’s upset in Madison last month. Now it’s Jalen Berger’s turn. The redshirt sophomore was kicked off the team last year and landed with the Spartans. After a strong start, Berger has just 81 yards over his last four games as Michigan State’s running game has become feeble. Still, Wisconsin is expecting a motivated Berger that figures to run hard against his former teammates.

4) Vital game

Wisconsin had been disappointing this year and it led to the firing of coach Paul Chryst. But no team in the Big Ten has been more disappointing than the Spartans. A top-15 team to start the year, coach Mel Tucker’s club has lost four straight games and are one of just two winless teams in conference play. In fact, since Tucker, a player at Wisconsin under Barry Alvarez, got his new $95 million contract last November, the Spartans are just 4-5. Now, sitting at 2-4 this year, they are in danger of missing a bowl game and winnable games are starting to dry up.

That’s what makes Saturday’s Homecoming game against Wisconsin so vital. The Badgers figure to face a motivated group that has its back up against the wall. Luckily, Wisconsin is in a similar position, knowing that any loss may knock it out contention for a trip to Indianapolis to play for the Big Ten title.

NUMBERS TO CONSIDER

Through six games, Graham Mertz has a pass efficiency rating of 163.5. That would be the third-best mark in school history behind only Russell Wilson (191.8 in 2011) and Scott Tolzien (165.9 in 2010). Mertz has already thrown more touchdowns (13) than he did in 13 games (10) last season.

Wisconsin has picked off 10 passes in the first six games of the year. It’s the most in the Big Ten and the fourth-most in the nation. The Badgers have 24 interceptions in their last 13 games, more than any other Power 5 team in the country.

ZONE PREDICTIONS

Zach Heilprin’s (4-2, 4-2 ATS) prediction: Wisconsin 34, Michigan State 17
Ebo’s (2-4, 2-4 ATS) prediction: Wisconsin 31, Michigan State 17
Nelson Raisbeck’s (3-3, 3-3 ATS) prediction: Wisconsin 31, Michigan State 14
RJ Brachman’s (4-2, 1-5 ATS) prediction: Wisconsin 28, Michigan State 20
Ben Kenney’s (4-2, 3-3 ATS) prediction: Wisconsin 28, Michigan State 25