MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin football fans that enjoy planning long term can now mark their calendars for the next five falls.
The Big Ten released its conference football schedules for the 2015 and 2016 seasons on Monday, and several intriguing games fill the Badgers' slate. Most notably, Michigan returns to Wisconsin's schedule following a four-year hiatus.
The Badgers and Wolverines will meet for the 65th time on Oct. 10, 2015 in Ann Arbor. The following year, on Oct. 29, Michigan will play at Camp Randall Stadium for the first time since 2009. The Badgers have won the last two meetings between the teams.
Wisconsin fans might be disappointed to find Michigan State missing from the conference schedule from 2013-16. The two teams have forged one of the Big Ten's best rivalries in recent years. Last season, Michigan State defeated Wisconsin 37-31 on a last-second Hail Mary touchdown pass during the regular-season. Wisconsin then knocked off Michigan State 42-39 in the inaugural Big Ten championship.
The only way for Wisconsin and Michigan State to meet from 2013-16 would be in the Big Ten title game again.
Wisconsin's other two cross-divisional games in 2015 and 2016 are Nebraska and Minnesota. The Badgers played the Cornhuskers in 2011 and 2012, but the two teams will not meet again in the regular season until Oct. 24, 2015. That will mark Nebraska's first trip back to Camp Randall Stadium since Wisconsin earned a 48-17 triumph during the Cornhuskers' first-ever Big Ten game in 2011.
Minnesota remains on Wisconsin's schedule as a protected rival in the Legends Division. The annual Battle for Paul Bunyan's Axe will take place on Nov. 21, 2015, in Minneapolis and Nov. 19, 2016, in Madison. Wisconsin defeated Minnesota 42-13 last season and has won eight consecutive games in the rivalry.
The season-ending tradition of a game against Leaders Division foe Penn State will continue in 2015 and 2016. Wisconsin clobbered Penn State 45-17 in the regular-season finale at Camp Randall Stadium last year. The two teams will play in the regular-season finale this year on Nov. 24 in State College and rotate sites to end the regular season for at least the next five years.
Wisconsin's other Leaders Division foes (Indiana, Illinois, Ohio State and Purdue) will remain in a home-and-home rotation. Wisconsin will play Ohio State in Columbus on Nov. 7, 2015, and in Madison on Nov. 12, 2016. The Badgers will begin their conference schedule in both 2015 and 2016 against Indiana.
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