Wisconsin
Three takeaways from Wisconsin football's 2025 schedule
Three takeaways from Wisconsin football’s 2025 schedule
The Big Ten announced its complete 2025 football schedule on Wednesday afternoon. The Badgers’ opponents were already known, but now dates have been finalized for the 2025 campaign.
Here is Wisconsin’s slate, as announced Wednesday:
Wisconsin Football 2025 Schedule
*Home games in Bold.
If the first thought that comes to mind is “loaded,” get used to it. This is the 18-team Big Ten. The days of a cakewalk through the Big Ten West are over. With ever-increasing parity in the sport and Wisconsin trending in the wrong direction regardless, there’s very few that can be marked off as games the Badgers “should” win.
Without further ado, here’s three quick takeaways from Wisconsin’s 2025 football schedule release:
No shortage of hostile environments
Wisconsin’s 2024 schedule was similarly stacked, with the Badgers ultimately playing three games against top-5 teams. Wisconsin dropped all three, and it doesn’t get any easier: those games (Alabama, Penn State, Oregon) were all at home. Of the Badgers’ toughest tests in 2025, the majority will take place outside of Madison.
It starts off with a trip to Tuscaloosa in Week 3. Bryant-Denny Stadium, which seats over 100,000 die-hard Crimson Tide fans, will be an unforgiving environment to say the least. Wisconsin has never played in Tuscaloosa, — the Badgers are 1-1 in Madison against Alabama and lost a neutral site game in Arlington, Texas back in 2015.
In their very next road game, the Badgers will travel to Ann Arbor to play in front of yet another 100,000-plus crowd in the Big House. The Badgers haven’t fared well on the road against the Wolverines; they’re 7-29 in the Big House, including 2-6 this century. This series tends to favor the home team, although Michigan waltzed into Camp Randall in 2021 and beat Wisconsin, 38-17, in their last meeting.
The very next road game? Autzen Stadium in Eugene for a rematch with the Ducks. That stadium only seats 54,000, but make no mistake — it can be one of the loudest environments in the sport, especially at night. The Badgers are 1-1 in Eugene, but their lone win came in 1977. Oregon has won four straight in this series.
Just how brutal is October really?
The prevailing wisdom about Wisconsin’s October slate is that it’s a murderers’ row of opponents, quite possibly the toughest conference stretch for any Big Ten team.
With games at Michigan, versus Iowa, versus Ohio State and at Oregon, that checks out upon first glance.
Still, there’s so much we don’t know about what these programs will look like in 2025. Early December is not the time to evaluate how tough an opponent will be next fall. Every single roster in the nation is in flux right now, and while it would be foolish to assume anything other than a daunting test against teams like Oregon and Ohio State, there’s no telling how the Ducks and Buckeyes, or any other team for that matter, will look come game time.
Of the four teams Wisconsin plays in October, it’s highly likely that none have their starting quarterback currently on their roster. Heck, the Buckeyes might have a new head coach after four years of Ryan Day’s repeated incompetence in The Game. Michigan, Ohio State and Oregon, especially, have exceedingly deep pockets and should be able to construct formidable rosters on paper. Still, that doesn’t guarantee the team will be a juggernaut, especially when the transfer portal is relied upon heavily (how’d that go for preseason No. 10 Florida State this season?)
Yes, this figures to be a tough stretch any way you slice it. But don’t get too caught up in an opponent’s logo — worry about their depth chart. Considering every roster in America is currently in upheaval, we know much less than we think we do about these daunting foes.
Chance to start hot
Wisconsin won its two buy games to open the year this season, only to fall to 2-2 after a tough back-to-back against Alabama and USC. The Tide are of course scheduled for Week 3 once again, but the Badgers have a real shot to start 3-1 next fall.
Miami (OH) and Middle Tennessee are the only two games that you can truly, confidently say the Badgers should win. Against Alabama, you can pretty confidently say the Badgers will lose. But in Week 4, Wisconsin opens Big Ten play against a Maryland program that just finished 17th in the conference, going 1-8 in Big Ten games. That’s about as close to a should-win as it gets for a Badgers team reeling from consecutive disappointing seasons.
A 3-1 start would be massive in helping Wisconsin get back to bowl eligibility next year. If the Badgers can start 3-1, win a few tight games and not close the season on a five-game losing streak, it should return to the postseason.
_________________________________________________
*Chat about this article in The Badgers’ Den
*Check out our videos, interviews, and Q&As on our YouTube channel
*Subscribe and listen to the BadgerBlitz.com podcast (as seen on Apple, Google, Spotify and wherever you listen to podcasts)
*Follow us on Twitter: @McNamaraRivals, @TheBadgerNation, @_Perko_, @seamus_rohrer, @DonnieSlusher_
*Like us on Facebook
Wisconsin
Insider: Wisconsin Man Charged With Possession Of Virtual Child Pornography
POLK COUNTY (DrydenWire) – An investigation by the Wisconsin Department of Justice, Division of Criminal Investigation, into multiple cybertips from Google about suspected child sexual abuse materials has resulted in felony charges for a Wisconsin Man.
Cody Struemke, age 27, of Amery, WI, is facing nearly a dozen charges for possessing child pornography, including Felony Possession of Virtual Child Pornography.
The criminal complaint against him alleges that Struemke saved a photo from Facebook of juveniles known to him, and digitally edited the photo to make it appear they were nude.
Insiders can read the full post below:
DrydenWire Insider
This content is only for paid subscribers to DrydenWire Insider.
Please Login or Subscribe.
Note: Once you are logged in, you will see the full content of this article.
Last Update: Dec 16, 2025 9:27 am CST
Wisconsin
Wisconsin health professionals share tips to protect against respiratory illnesses
MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) -Respiratory illness season has begun in Wisconsin, with health professionals reporting increased flu cases and higher demand for medications and vaccines.
Over-the-counter medicines are flying off the shelves at Forward Pharmacy in McFarland, according to manager Tony Peterangelo.
“We’ve had to increase like how much of some of that stuff we’ve kept on hand,” Peterangelo said. “We had to make some special orders to really bulk up on some of it too.”
Upland Hills physician Benjamin Hecht said the respiratory illness season typically begins after Thanksgiving.
“As of right now, we are just starting in the last week or two to see some Influenza A. Last year was a pretty tough flu year for us, influenza in Wisconsin. It’s still to be seen how severe of a year this is going to be in 2025-26,” he said.
Respiratory viruses are hard to avoid according to the Upland Hills physician.
“You can wear masks and wash your hands a ton, but you’re going to get exposed to these viruses at some point,” Dr. Hecht said.
RSV poses concern for young children
Dr. Hecht said another concern this season is RSV, particularly for young children with developing immune systems.
“The kids that get this, especially the really young kids, that don’t have a mature immune system, they can get pretty sick from RSV. That’s a particularly scary one. If you’re in a position where you qualify to get that vaccination or perhaps your kids do, please consider that,” Dr. Hecht said.
Forward Pharmacy is meeting demand for vaccines, which Peterangelo said can help protect against viruses.
“All of that stuff reduces the need to scramble on the back end to get antibiotics and cough suppressants. It doesn’t completely reduce your risk, but it reduces it enough that your likelihood of getting that is down,” Peterangelo said.
The pharmacy has given out dozens of flu and covid shots in a day.
“I would say maybe in the 60 to 80 range,” Peterangelo said.
Dr. Hecht said influenza B will come later in the season. He recommends people with severe respiratory symptoms like breathing troubles to see a doctor.
“The big thing is just living a healthy lifestyle, staying well hydrated, getting good sleep, doing what you can with physical activity and exercise to make sure your immune system is in tip top shape,” Dr. Hecht said.
According to new CDC data, doctor visits for flu-like symptoms rose to more than 3% in the last two weeks. The majority of flu cases are caused by a mutated strain that causes more severe illness, particularly among older adults.
Click here to download the WMTV15 News app or our WMTV15 First Alert weather app.
Copyright 2025 WMTV. All rights reserved.
Wisconsin
Former Trump aides appear in Wisconsin court over 2020 election fraud charges
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Two attorneys and an aide who all worked on President Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign appeared in court Monday for a preliminary hearing in Wisconsin on felony forgery charges related to a fake elector scheme.
The Wisconsin case is moving forward even as others in the battleground states of Michigan and Georgia have faltered. A special prosecutor last year dropped a federal case alleging Trump conspired to overturn the 2020 election. Another case in Nevada is still alive.
The Wisconsin case was filed a year ago but has been tied up as the Trump aides have fought, unsuccessfully so far, to have the charges dismissed.
The hearing on Monday comes a week after Trump attorney Jim Troupis, one of the three who were charged, tried unsuccessfully to get the judge to step down in the case and have it moved to another county. Troupis, who the other two defendants joined in his motion, alleged that the judge did not write a previous order issued in August declining to dismiss the case. Instead, he accused the father of the judge’s law clerk, a retired judge, of actually writing the opinion.
Troupis, who served one year as a judge in the same county where he was charged, also alleged that all of the judges in Dane County are biased against him and he can’t get a fair trial.
Dane County Circuit Judge John Hyland said he and a staff attorney alone wrote the order. Hyland also said Troupis presented no evidence to back up his claims of bias and refused to step down or delay the hearing.
Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the allegations.
The same judge will determine at Monday’s hearing whether there’s enough evidence to proceed with the charges against the three.
The former Trump aides face 11 felony charges each related to their roles in the 2020 fake elector scheme. In addition to Troupis, the other defendants are Kenneth Chesebro, an attorney who advised Trump’s campaign, and Mike Roman, Trump’s director of Election Day operations in 2020.
The Wisconsin Department of Justice, headed by Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul, brought the felony forgery charges in 2024, alleging that the three defrauded the 10 Republican electors who cast their ballots for Trump in 2020.
Prosecutors contend the three lied to the Republicans about how the certificate they signed would be used as part of a plan to submit paperwork to then-Vice President Mike Pence, falsely claiming that Trump had won the battleground state that year.
The complaint said a majority of the 10 Republicans told investigators that they were needed to sign the elector certificate indicating Trump had won only to preserve his legal options if a court changed the outcome of the election in Wisconsin.
A majority of the electors told investigators that they did not believe their signatures on the elector certificate would be submitted to Congress without a court ruling, the complaint said. Also, a majority said they did not consent to having their signatures presented as if Trump had won without such a court ruling, the complaint said.
Federal prosecutors who investigated Trump’s conduct related to the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot said the fake electors scheme originated in Wisconsin.
The Trump associates have argued that no crime took place. But the judge in August rejected their arguments in allowing the case to proceed to Monday’s preliminary hearing.
Trump lost Wisconsin in 2020 but fought to have the defeat overturned. He won the state in both 2016 and 2024.
The state charges against the Trump attorneys and aide are the only ones in Wisconsin. None of the electors have been charged. The 10 Wisconsin electors, Chesebro and Troupis all settled a lawsuit that was brought against them seeking damages.
___
This story has been corrected to show that the attorneys who are charged formerly worked on Trump’s campaign, but are still practicing attorneys.
-
Washington1 week agoLIVE UPDATES: Mudslide, road closures across Western Washington
-
Iowa2 days agoAddy Brown motivated to step up in Audi Crooks’ absence vs. UNI
-
Iowa1 week agoMatt Campbell reportedly bringing longtime Iowa State staffer to Penn State as 1st hire
-
Iowa3 days agoHow much snow did Iowa get? See Iowa’s latest snowfall totals
-
Miami, FL1 week agoUrban Meyer, Brady Quinn get in heated exchange during Alabama, Notre Dame, Miami CFP discussion
-
Cleveland, OH1 week agoMan shot, killed at downtown Cleveland nightclub: EMS
-
World1 week ago
Chiefs’ offensive line woes deepen as Wanya Morris exits with knee injury against Texans
-
Minnesota1 week agoTwo Minnesota carriers shut down, idling 200 drivers
