Wisconsin at Northwestern

The Wisconsin Badgers have a long history of great running backs, but the best of all may be in their backfield right now. Melvin Gordon has put himself on the Heisman Trophy watch list, but did some of that luster come off the tracks last week vs. South Florida? The Badgers managed just 27 points against a very flawed team, but Gordon did manage 182 yards, but had to carry the ball 32 times to get there. He may be toting the rock more than that here vs. Northwestern, so the clock is going to be running fast. Northwestern was supposed to be better than a 7-point loser at Cal, and an 8-point loser vs. a rebuilding Northern Illinois team, but they came back with a pair of wins to get even at 2-2. The defense has been the difference as the Wildcats have allowed 13 points in their last two games. Wisconsin is going to run, as they rank #115 in passing yards per game, which that plays into the strength of the Northwestern defense that ranks #36 in fewest rushing yards allowed, and have allowed opponents just 2.9 yards per carry on the season. I see a lot of running from both teams as they have both shown good defense. Northwestern is going to load the box, and dare Wisconsin to come out of their running game. This is a lot of points in a game that projects to be played with the clock moving. Wisconsin is 6-1 ATS in their last seven after posting more than 200 yards rushing in their previous game. The Wildcats bring the "D" at home where they are 17-4 to the UNDER in their last 21. This has been a house of horrors for Wisconsin as they are 0-6 ATS in their last six visits here as they never play well in Evanston. Grab the points on Northwestern and play the UNDER in this one.