The Wisconsin Badgers are taking on the No. 16 USC Trojans on Saturday night at Camp Randall Stadium in a vital game for both sides.
Wisconsin is looking to bounce back after a 17-7 loss to the UCLA Bruins last weekend. They have a tough two-game stretch with USC and the Iowa Hawkeyes next, and need to come out of the stretch with at least one win.
USC is coming off their bye week, but had their best win of the season the week before in a 31-23 victory over the Penn State Nittany Lions. It’s a pivotal year for Lincoln Riley, who needs to answer the bell with an expensive roster, and the Trojans are just outside the projected College Football Playoff. With a 6-1 record, this is a must-win game.
Heading into Saturday, the Badgers are seen as three-point underdogs on FanDuel, with a high total at 50.5 points.
In our Reacts poll this week, we gauged how fans felt about Wisconsin upsetting USC after the disappointing loss against UCLA last week.
There’s still a lot of faith in the Badgers, with 61 percent of voters believing Wisconsin will upset the Trojans at home on Saturday. What do the experts think?
CBS Sports Staff
CBS Sports’s college football staff gave their spread and straight-up picks for Saturday’s game and there was an overwhelming favorite.
Brandon Marcello: USC to cover, USC to win straight
John Talty: USC to cover, USC to win straight
Richard Johnson: USC to cover, USC to win straight
Shehan Jeyarajah: USC to cover, USC to win straight
David Cobb: USC to cover, USC to win straight
Brad Crawford: USC to cover, USC to win straight
Chris Hummer: USC to cover, USC to win straight
The Athletic’s staff
The Athletic’s staff also gave their spread predictions for the game, but these were more even.
Matt Baker: USC to cover
Mark Cooper: Wisconsin to cover
Seth Emerson: Wisconsin to cover
Sam Khan Jr.: Wisconsin to cover
Austin Mock: Wisconsin to cover
Dan Santaromita: USC to cover
Daniel Shirley: USC to cover
David Ubben: Wisconsin to cover
Chris Vannin: USC to cover
College Gameday
Desmond Howard: USC
Nick Saban: USC
Kirk Herbstreit: Wisconsin
Pat McAfee: Wisconsin
Dalton Kincaid: Wisconsin
Staff Predictions
In my three predictions of the week, I have USC covering the three-point spread and winning. While Wisconsin’s defense has been great this year, it’s facing a really tough challenge with Jayden Maiava and the USC passing game. That’s not the main concern, though.
I just don’t know that Wisconsin can take advantage of USC’s shaky defense, given that the Trojans will likely try to stop the run and dare the Badgers to throw. I have a hard time seeing the Badgers come back and win if they fall behind. I do think the defense can still do a good enough job, which is why I see the under at 50.5 points coming through as well.
In his weekly scenarios case, Scary has the Trojans winning by double digits in his likeliest case.
“I feel like I’ve tipped my hand already, so let’s just get it out of the way. I don’t think the Badgers win this game. Will it be particularly one-sided? No. There’s too much pride and talent in Wisconsin’s locker room to lay an egg here.
“Unfortunately, I still see the Trojans simply out-talenting the Badgers and, after a decent test from Bucky where a couple of big plays spell the difference, USC leaves Camp Randall feeling quite chipper for their long flight back to Los Angeles.”
Last week, I had the Badgers with the upset, while Scary saw a close loss. We’ll see if it plays out differently this week.