Wisconsin at Minnesota: Four things to watch as Badgers look to get Paul Bunyan’s Axe back

WISCONSIN (6-5, 4-4 BIG TEN) AT MINNESOTA (5-6, 3-5)

When: 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

Where: Huntington Bank Stadium, Minneapolis.

TV: FS1 with Jeff Levering (play-by-play) and Mark Helfrich (analysis).

Radio: FM-97.3 and AM-920 in Milwaukee and a state network with Matt Lepay (play-by-play), Mark Tauscher (analysis) and Patrick Herb (sideline).

Line: UW by 2.

Series: Tied, 62-62-8. Gophers lead, 38-27-2, in Minneapolis.

Coaches: Luke Fickell (7-5, first full season; 70-30, seventh season overall) vs. Minnesota’s P.J. Fleck (49-33, seventh season; 79-55, 11^th overall).

FOUR THINGS TO WATCH

Can the Gophers run the ball, control the clock and keep UW’s offense on the sideline?

The loss of tailback Darius Taylor, who has missed the last four games because of a leg injury, has hurt Minnesota’s ground game. In Big Ten play, the Gophers are averaging just 125.9 rushing yards per game and have only four rushing touchdowns in eight games. If Taylor returns this week, can he help the Gophers against a UW defense that is allowing 157.6 rushing yards per game in league play? That vulnerable run defense is UW’s greatest liability. Whether the Gophers can take advantage of that weakness is unknown.

UW’s defense must do a better job this season containing Minnesota quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis

When the teams met last season in Madison, Minnesota quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis hurt UW with his arm and his feet. Kaliakmanis passed for 319 yards and two touchdowns, including a 45-yard strike that broke a 16-16 tie with 3 minutes 40 seconds remaining. He also rushed four times for 39 yards, though he finished with only 14 yards because of three sacks. Kaliakmanis is averaging only 151.9 passing yards per game this season but has 13 touchdown passes and two rushing touchdowns. “I do think that offensively they’ve got weapons,” Fickell said. “They’ve got a receiver corps that I think is dangerous and can make some plays. … The quarterback is a good athlete. The quarterback can make every throw.”

Will Wisconsin’s depth be tested? The status of Hunter Wohler, Will Pauling and Bryson Green is TBD.

Fickell wasn’t certain early in the week whether safety Hunter Wohler, wide receiver Will Pauling and wide receiver Bryson Green would be healthy enough to play and be productive against the Gophers. Wohler left the Nebraska game in the first half and did not return. If he did suffer a concussion, he will have to pass the medical protocol to play. Pauling suffered an apparent ankle injury late in the fourth quarter against Nebraska. Green didn’t play against the Cornhuskers because of an unspecified injury suffered against Northwestern. And how effective will Braelon Allen be? Battling an ankle injury, he rushed 22 times for 62 yards and two touchdowns in the victory over Nebraska, though he clearly wasn’t at full-strength. Allen missed the Minnesota game last season because of an ankle injury and was limited to 47 yards on 17 carries in a 23-13 loss two seasons ago.

UW cannot stumble out of the gate, which has been a problem

Yes, the Badgers overcame an early 14-0 deficit last week against Nebraska. Yes, the mettle the players displayed was commendable. But the Badgers lost to Indiana and Northwestern in large part because they fell behind early. Minnesota isn’t a juggernaut, but falling behind early on the road would not be wise. Fickell noted this week that he isn’t sure UW would have been able to overcome the 14-0 deficit against Nebraska had the game been on the road. “Saturday did not start off the way we had envisioned,” he said. “And to be honest with you, had we not had the environment we had Saturday night, had we not had that student section and the fans, I’m not sure we pull through.”

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HISTORY LESSON

Ten years ago, UW’s first-year coach was Gary Andersen.

His first taste of the Border Battle came on Nov. 23 in Minneapolis.

Temperature at kickoff was 18 degrees.

The Badgers entered the day 5-1 in the Big Ten and 8-2 overall. The Gophers came in at 4-2 in the league and 8-2 overall.

Minnesota spotted the visitors a 3-0 lead on Jack Russell’s 31-yard field goal but took a 7-3 lead when Aaron Hill intercepted Joel Stave’s pass and raced 39 yards for a touchdown just 1 minute 31 seconds into the second quarter.

UW controlled the game after that.

James White scored on a 1-yard run and Russell added  20-yard field goal to help UW take a 13-7 halftime lead.

Stave found Jared Abbrederis for a 2-yard score to cap an 83-yard drive in the third quarter and the Badgers’ defense did the rest.

UW’s defense limited the Gophers to 11 first downs and 185 total yards.

White rushed 26 times for 125 yards and Melvin Gordon added 69 yards on 12 carries for UW.

DID YOU KNOW?

The Badgers have allowed a total of 730 passing yards in the second half of games this season. That is an average of 66.4 yards and the fewest in the country. UW has not allowed a touchdown in the second half of its three games in November. Indiana scored three points after halftime, Northwestern scored none and Nebraska got a field goal.