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Obviously I’m not happy with where the program is at currently, but I’m excited to watch Wisconsin Badgers football – even without high expectations.
Thursday night’s announced attendance at Camp Randall Stadium was 65,952. And I’m pretty sure that’s being generous by 5,000-8,000. There were lots of massive holes in occupied sections. That’s the lowest at a home opener since 1992 (57,758). To be fair, I’m sure an 8:00 PM local kickoff on a Thursday night didn’t help the cause.
Wisconsin (1-0) kicked off the 2025 season with a 17-0 win over the Miami (OH) RedHawks (0-1). It was UW’s first shutout since a 38-0 win over Illinois State on September 3, 2022.
Senior Quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. left the game with a non-contact injury in the second quarter. I have no idea the severity of the injury & I’m not going to speculate since I’m not a doctor. But if he is seriously hurt, UW is in deep trouble.
WR Vinny Anthony said he’s not worried about Billy Edwards Jr., said he’ll be fine.
I really liked the scheme that new offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes has brought.
Danny O’Neil – who came in for Edwards Jr. – is a one read QB right now. I liked the plays that Grimes gave him.
The offensive line had a tough day & I don’t think that unit is where it needs to be to help the program get back on track. When opponents scout the UW offensive line, they are going to see a weakness at Left Tackle.
I thought the UW defense did a great job of setting the edge & was very fundamentally sound.
The defensive unit held Miami (OH) to 117 yards of offense & added three sacks.
The RedHawks did have to replace all 11 players on offense (only had four returning starters – all on defense) & had roughly 40 new players in their program, so I’m not sure that they aren’t terrible, but all you can do when playing a bad offense is be dominant & the UW defense was dominant Thursday night.
In general, I thought the UW offense had a better plan of attack & the defense was excellent. Yes, it’s very early in the season.
There were a few major areas of concern & I’m still not very optimistic overall (I still think this is a 5-7 team), but this was a good step against an inferior opponent.
Up Next:
The Badgers will host the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders on Saturday, September 6 at 3:00 PM (CT). Television: FS1.
Middle Tennessee finished 3-9 in 2024, opens their season this Saturday against Austin Peay.