Wisconsin opens inside the AP top 25 for a 7th straight year

Wisconsin will start inside the top 25 of the Associated Press poll for the seventh straight year.

The Badgers were ranked No. 19 in the poll released Monday morning. It’s tied for the lowest they’ve been with 2019. That year they went 10-2 in the regular season, winning the Big Ten West and playing in the Rose Bowl.

Wisconsin started out at No. 18 last year but finished unranked after going 7-6 and seeing coach Paul Chryst get fired in the middle of the year. New coach Luke Fickell inherited a team with talent but holes, leading him to add 15 players in the transfer portal. Five of them are projected to start this year, including quarterback Tanner Mordecai.

The Badgers were one of five Big Ten teams ranked in the poll. Michigan came in behind top-ranked Georgia at No. 2, receiving two first-place votes. Ohio State followed them at No. 3, getting one first-place vote. Penn State is also inside the top 10 at No. 7, while Iowa is the final team in the poll at No. 25.

As it stands, Wisconsin has just two ranked opponents on its schedule and both at home. They will host the Hawkeyes on Oct. 14 and then the Buckeyes on Oct. 28.

The full poll can be found here.