Wisconsin Badgers predictions: Pinstripe Bowl vs. Miami
Wisconsin's season finally comes to an end Thursday (I'm sure some might say mercifully) against Miami in the Pinstripe Bowl.
Really, who knows what to expect.
The Badgers will have Jack Coan at quarterback instead of Alex Hornibrook. The move has so shook Vegas that the line hasn't moved since the announcement -- UW is a three-point underdog.
Miami apparently has a host of issues in the locker room and playing in cold temperatures is not exactly their forte.
Oh well, it's one more game of football until Aug. 31, 2019.
That being said, in this battle between teams who were ranked in the AP top 10 to open the season, the majority of prognosticators are picking Wisconsin to win (side note: some of these were made before the Hornibrook news, but, again, we're not sure that'd change things based on the Vegas line).
I guess it just shows that even with the Badgers season being a disappointment, perhaps it doesn't compare to the Hurricanes. Either way, one team's fan base is going to be extra displeased Thursday night.
Here's the final predictions of the year from around the web and Twitter:
The Associated Press' Ralph D. Russo: Wisconsin 23, Miami 21.
Pete Fiutak of Collegefootballnews.com: Wisconsin 27, Miami 24. "Wisconsin won’t dominate, and it’ll have a few problems for a half with the Miami defensive front – especially a motivated one after what happened last year against the Badgers – and then the game will wear on. The Canes will struggle more in the cold, the Badger offensive line will take over, and the Big Ten team will salvage something out of the season."
Bill Bender of The Sporting News: Miami 23, Wisconsin 20. "This is a rematch of last year's Orange Bowl, and neither team had the season they wanted. It's going to come down to which team can generate something in the passing game between N'Kosi Perry and Alex Hornibook, who had his best game of the season against the Hurricanes last year. The Hurricanes get their revenge, but it won't be easy."
Adam Rittenberg of ESPN.com: Wisconsin 24, Miami 21. "They should call this the Disappointment Bowl as two preseason top-10 teams fell massively short of expectations. The environment should favor Wisconsin, but Miami is clearly the superior defensive team. In a game someone has to win, I'll go with the Badgers behind running back Jonathan Taylor."
Pat Forde of Yahoo Sports: Miami 21, Wisconsin 16. "It’s been a season-long quest for competent quarterback play for both teams, and the one that gets it — or at least limits mistakes at that position — in Yankee Stadium is probably your winner. The Hurricanes at least finished the regular season on a high note, handily defeating both Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh, while the Badgers were routed by Minnesota."
David Jones of pennlive.com: Wisconsin 27, Miami 16. "[The Hurricanes] are a notoriously bad bowl team and then we get to the weather. We can’t know what it’ll be like in three weeks but long-range forecasts are confidently calling for a colder than normal winter. In NYC, trust me, that means normal people won’t even go to the convenience store for milk let alone sit in Yankee Stadium. Of course, Wisconsin fans aren’t normal. I like their team’s chances, especially as a +4 dog, double-especially once Jonathan Taylor’s engine gets warm."
Bruce Feldman of The Athletic ($): Miami 17, Wisconsin 13 (note: Feldman assigns this game 12 confidence points). "I think the ’Canes will be pumped up to send off Manny Diaz with a strong performance and get a little revenge on Paul Chryst."
Stewart Mandel of The Athletic ($): Miami 20, Wisconsin 17 (note: Mandel assigns this game 14 confidence points). "It’s a question of who wants to be here less? We could try to guess, or we could just pick Miami based on the fact it’s got the No. 3 defense in the country playing its last game for revered coordinator Manny Diaz."
Andy Greder of the Pioneer Press: Miami 20, Wisconsin 17.
Jesse Temple of The Athletic ($): Miami 24, Wisconsin 17. "Maybe Taylor runs for 200 yards with three touchdowns and it doesn’t matter. Somewhere along the line, however, the Badgers will need to make a handful of big throws. Coan came up clutch late against Purdue. But the Boilermakers rank 123rd in pass defense. Miami is a different story, even in the cold-weather environment of Yankee Stadium. In a down season for both teams, Miami edges Wisconsin and partially avenges its Orange Bowl loss."
James Kratch of NJ Advance Media picks Wisconsin to win.
Kevin McGuire of Athlon Sports: Wisconsin 23, Miami 20. "The Badgers have struggled to throw the football all season long and don't expect them to be able to simply flip a switch for one game, especially against a Miami defense that has held opponents to just 140.8 passing yards per game, the lowest average allowed by an ACC team over the past decade. The Badgers will get their yards on the ground with Jonathan Taylor playing behind that beefy offensive line, but Miami can counter with Travis Homer and DeeJay Dallas. But in the end, Wisconsin handles the elements better than Miami and avoids going too cold down the stretch for a second straight bowl victory over the Hurricanes."
David Kenyon of Bleacher Report: Miami 20, Wisconsin 16. "Wisconsin quarterback Alex Hornibrook enjoyed a career-best day in last season's Orange Bowl, but he's struggled mightily in 2018. Plus, this 'Canes defense leads the FBS in tackles for loss. Wisconsin doesn't create havoc like it did in 2017, and that difference up front will allow a subpar Miami offense to sneak out an ugly win in New York."
Dave Matter of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Miami 23, Wisconsin 21.
The Oklahoman's Berry Tramel: Wisconsin 30, Miami 20.
Josh Slagter of MLive.com: Miami 24, Wisconsin 14. "Both the Badgers and Hurricanes went from preseason top 10 to five-loss seasons. So it's a rematch of last year's Orange Bowl after playoff near-misses, and also fitting considering the falloff of both programs this season. Wisconsin's Jonathan Taylor didn't have a sophomore slump, though, and needs just 11 rushing yards to hit 2,000 on the season. But Miami's defense allows just 3.3 yards per carry. It was the other sides of the ball (Wisconsin's defense, Miami's offense) that led to disappointing seasons, and the winner of that matchup decides this bowl game."
Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune is taking Wisconsin.
Al "Big Al' Arend of the Herald-Palladium: Miami 27, Wisconsin 24.
Tom Fornelli of CBSSports.com: Wisconsin 27, Miami 17 (his Lock of the Week).
Jacob Myers of NCAA.com: Wisconsin 24, Miami 16. "While neither team is particularly impressive on offense, no team has really been able to stop Jonathan Taylor this season. The Miami defense is tough and has the nation's best passing defense, but The Hurricanes offense has eclipsed 400 total yards just once since late September. Wisconsin doesn't have to throw the ball to win this game."
Shad Powers of the Palm Springs Desert Sun, using his Quality Game System, picks Wisconsin.
Bob Dunning of the Davis Enterprise: Wisconsin 22, Miami 17.
Austin Meek of the Eugene Register-Guard: Wisconsin 24, Miami 14.
Charles Hollis of AL.com: Wisconsin 28, Miami 24.
Michael Dashiell of the Sequim Gazette: Wisconsin 24, Miami 13.
Cole Frederick of the Gadsen Messenger: Wisconsin 19, Miami 16.
Bill Connelly of SB Nation: His S&P+ projection has it Miami 27.2, Wisconsin 26.5.
Two of the three analysts at Yahoo Sports are picking Wisconsin to win. The scores: Nick Bromberg, Wisconsin 11-8; Sam Cooper Wisconsin 20-17; Pat Forde, Miami 21-16.
Four of the six analysts at USAToday.com pick Wisconsin to win with Eddie Timanus and Dan Wolken the exceptions.
All seven CBSSports.com analysts think Wisconsin will win.
All three Athlon Sports analysts are picking Wisconsin to win -- although with varying confidence. In a rating of 1 to 39 (39 being the most confident), Steven Lassan assigns his pick a 23, Mark Ross a 9 and Mitch Light … a 1.
It's a split -- four of eight analysts at SI.com think Wisconsin will emerge with a victory.
Five of the six reporters and editors at the Los Angeles Times are picking the Badgers. The scores: Ben Bolch, Wisconsin 35-21; Mike Hiserman, Wisconsin 28-24; J. Brady McCollough, Miami 21-20; Blake Richardson, Wisconsin 31-26; Angel Rodriguez, Wisconsin 24-10; David Wharton, Wisconsin 27-24.
Only four of nine analysts for the Dallas Morning News have Wisconsin winning (and all four think the Badgers will cover a 3.5-point spread).
