No. 3 Penn State football is back, folks.

The Nittany Lions (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) head to Madison for a date with Wisconsin (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten) at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 26, at Camp Randall Stadium. James Franklin’s team is coming off its second bye week and previously stunned USC 33-30 in overtime on the road.

Meanwhile, the Badgers have largely taken care of business despite dealing with injuries to multiple key players. They’re rolling right now, with 117 points scored in October. Before things get underway in Madison, let’s take a closer look at Luke Fickell’s team.

The Team

Wisconsin is 5-2 overall and 3-1 in Big Ten play this season. The Badgers are coming off a 23-3 win at Northwestern.

Luke Fickell is in his third year at the helm in Madison. He has a 13-8 record there, including appearances at the ReliaQuest Bowl and Guaranteed Rate Bowl. Fickell was the longtime coach at Cincinnati and had the Bearcats as the first-ever Group of Five team to make the College Football Playoff in 2021. His career also includes a stint in 2011 as Ohio State’s interim head coach. He has a 76-33 overall coaching record.

Phil Longo is in his second season as Wisconsin’s offensive coordinator. Meanwhile, Mike Tressel is also in his second season as defensive coordinator. Eric Raisbeck is in his first season as special teams coordinator.

Penn State leads the all-time series 11-9. The last matchup was a 16-10 Nittany Lion win to open the 2021 season at Camp Randall Stadium.

Offense

Wisconsin has the No. 56-ranked offense in America. The Badgers are averaging 29 points per game, 406.6 yards per game, and have scored 26 touchdowns. They’ve scored 117 points in October alone.

Braedyn Locke took over at quarterback after Tyler Van Dyke suffered a season-ending injury against Alabama last month. Locke has 1,064 passing yards, seven touchdowns, and five interceptions with a 59.2% completion rate.

Wisconsin’s bread and butter is, per usual, its run game. Tawee Walker leads the Badgers with 580 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. Pennsylvania native Cade Yacamelli has 278 rushing yards and two touchdowns, while Chez Mellusi has 245 yards and three touchdowns. Mellusi has 23 more carries than Yacamelli, but he’s been dealing with an injury and has not played since September 28. He was listed as questionable last week.

No Wisconsin receiver has more than two touchdowns. Will Pauling has 302 receiving yards and two touchdowns while Trech Kekahuna has 233 yards and two touchdowns. Vinny Anthony II, who has also seen time on defense this season, has 174 yards and one touchdown. CJ Williams and Bryson Green, who hasn’t played since October 5, are also in the mix.

Riley Nowakowski and Tucker Ashcraft have recently stepped up at tight end as JT Seagreaves battles an injury. Nowakowski has 56 receiving yards over seven catches, while Ashcraft has 53 yards and a touchdown over six receptions.

Jack Nelson and Joe Brunner line up at left tackle and guard. Jake Renfro is at center, while Joe Huber and Riley Mahlman are at right guard and tackle.

Defense

Wisconsin has the No. 14-ranked defense in college football. The Badgers allow 5.04 yards per play, and much of that is due to their secondary’s success. Their passing defense is ranked No. 7 in the country, with 155.9 passing yards allowed per game. However, Wisconsin’s 139.9 allowed rushing yards per game ranks outside the top 50. The Badgers don’t pressure much, with only 15 quarterback hurries and 12 sacks.

Hunter Wohler headlines Wisconsin’s tough secondary. The safety is second on the team with 37 tackles but leads with six pass breakups. Preston Zachman lines up alongside him and has 27 tackles, a team-best two interceptions, three breakups, and 2.5 tackles for loss. Austin Brown also plays plenty, and he has 24 tackles, two tackles for loss, two breakups, and a sack.

Nyzier Fourqurean and Ricardo Hallman line up at cornerback, with Xavier Lucas also seeing time. Fourqurean has 24 tackles and four breakups, while Hallman has nine and four, respectively. Lucas has nine tackles, two breakups, and one interception. Max Lofy, who has eight tackles and a breakup, is the starting nickelback.

Jaheim Thomas and Jake Chaney are the starting middle linebackers. Thomas leads Wisconsin with 43 tackles, which include one tackle for loss and a sack. Chaney has 29 tackles, including three for loss. Christian Alliegro and Tackett Curtis are in the mix as backups. They have 19 and 18 tackles, respectively.

Leon Lowry and Darryl Patterson should start at outside linebacker against the Nittany Lions. Lowry leads the defensive line with 20 tackles. Patterson has 18, along with 1.5 tackles for loss and a breakup. Curt Neal and Ben Barten should start at defensive tackle. Neal has 15 tackles and half a sack, while Barten has nine.

Special Teams

Nathanial Vakos is 6-for-10 on field goal attempts, with 53 yards being his longest attempt. Sydney, Australia, native Atticus Bertrams is averaging 45.3 yards per punt with nine kicks worth more than 50 yards. His longest was a 74-yarder. Gavin Lahm is averaging 64.4 yards per kickoff with 29 touchbacks.

Wisconsin has given multiple players a similar amount of reps returning punts and kickoffs. Tyrell Henry and Wohler have had the most success returning punts, averaging 5.6 and 5.0 yards in their three attempts. Anthony II is projected to be the kickoff returner, but he’s had just one for 38 yards. Kekahuna had seven for 142 yards.