Wisconsin Football: Best Bowl Options for the Badgers

With just one game left before the Badgers find out their bowl destination, let's take a look at what the Wisconsin football team has done to get to 10-2 and to have a chance to win the Big Ten in Indianapolis on Saturday.

The Badgers started the year with a loss against LSU in Houston, and then looked rather pedestrian in most of their nonconference slate after that, save a performance for the ages on the ground against Bowling Green to push their record to 3-1 before Big Ten play began.

The Badgers lost their Big Ten opener to Northwestern, switching from Tanner McEvoy to Joel Stave just before halftime, a decision that didn't help the outcome of that game as Stave looked rusty in throwing three second-half interceptions. However, it was the right move for the team going forward.

With Stave returning to form over the course of the season, even improving over last season when he went 9-4 as the full-time starter, the team has improved significantly.  During their seven-game winning streak, Stave has thrown seven touchdowns against just one interception while completing 60.7 percent of his passes.

Melvin Gordon has established himself as a Heisman candidate with an otherworldly season, rewriting the already impressive Wisconsin record book for a running back.  Gordon has 2,260 yards on 283 carries (8.0 yards per carry) with 26 rushing touchdowns.  He's also added 17 receptions for 151 yards and three touchdowns.

Ranked No. 13 going into the Big Ten Championship, the Badgers have virtually no chance of making the inaugural College Football Playoff; however, a win against the Ohio State Buckeyes would guarantee them a berth in one of the "New Year's Six" bowls.  If not one of those bowl games, we'll look at two other possible landing spots for the Badgers.

Orange Bowl

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The Orange Bowl would be the Badgers top bowl destination for this year.

If the Badgers defeat the Buckeyes on Saturday in Indianapolis and don't climb into the top four, they will likely end up in the Orange Bowl.  Their opponent in this game would probably be Georgia Tech, who are currently ranked No. 11.

If Georgia Tech defeats No. 4 Florida State in the ACC championship, then it could be the Seminoles who the Badgers face in this game.  Either way, they would face the highest-ranked non-playoff ACC team.  

The Badgers aren't necessarily guaranteed to play in this game, as they would have to be the highest ranked non-playoff team from either the SEC, Big Ten or Notre Dame.  Michigan State also has a chance to play in this game; however, a win in the Big Ten championship, coupled with their eight-game win-streak makes this a likely destination.

Fiesta Bowl

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If Michigan State stays ranked above the Badgers, then the Fiesta Bowl would certainly be a good consolation prize.

This would require a lot to happen, so bear with me here.  Currently, the Badgers are ranked No. 13 in the College Football Playoff ranking.  They play No. 5 Ohio State.  If the Badgers beat the Buckeyes, then it's up to the committee to decide who should be ranked higher, the dormant No. 8 Michigan State Spartans or the victorious Badgers.

It's not entirely out of the realm of possibility that Michigan State would remain ranked above the Badgers, who are playing a Buckeye team without the services of quarterback J.T. Barrett.  An unconvincing win against a poor looking Ohio State squad would probably put the Badgers in the Fiesta Bowl.

Their likely opponent in the Fiesta Bowl would be Boise State as they are probably going to be the highest-ranked team in the "Group of Five," which includes all of the non-power conferences that play FBS football.  With Boise State ranked at No. 22 and the only ranked team from the Group of Five, it's theirs to lose.

Boise State sits at 10-2 with losses to Ole Miss and Air Force.  They are a very solid team but one the Badgers could handle.  The last time they played a non-Power Five team in a major bowl, they lost in the Rose Bowl to TCU in one of the grittiest Rose Bowls in recent memory.

Outback Bowl

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The Badgers are not strangers to the Outback Bowl; however, they've not had much success there.

If the Badgers lose to Ohio State, they'll almost certainly fall out of contention for a New Year's Six bowl game and will find themselves in a position to play in one of the higher-tier bowl games with a Big Ten tie-in.  This year, the most likely landing spot would be the Outback Bowl.

The Outback Bowl pits a top-tier Big Ten team that is not in the playoff running against a top SEC team that's not in the playoff running.  This season, the Badgers opponent is either going to be Georgia or Auburn if they play in this game.

Even without Todd Gurley, Georgia and Wisconsin are cut from the same cloth, using power run games and good defenses to win games.  Unfortunately for Georgia, their defense fell apart multiple times this season as they racked up losses to an underwhelming South Carolina team, a putrid Florida side and Georgia Tech in overtime last week.

Auburn is in a similar boat, starting incredibly strong with five wins to open their season including an impressive pair of wins at Kansas State and at home against LSU.  The last four games have not been kind to the Tigers, going 1-3 with their only win coming against Stamford while giving up 130 points in the three losses.

Either of these two teams would present a challenge similar to that of LSU in the Badgers' opener, a game they very much could have won with a healthy Gordon, Konrad Zagzebski and Warren Herring or with some semblance of a passing game.

Holiday Bowl

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Probably their last choice, the Holiday Bowl is still very much on the table for the Badgers.

With the top-tier of non-playoff bowl games consisting of the previously mentioned Outback Bowl, the Citrus Bowl and the Holiday Bowl, another likely destination for the Badgers would be to sunny San Diego, California, to take on a Pac-12 team.

The Badgers have not fared well against Pac-12 teams of late—losing to Arizona State last year in the "Debacle in the Desert," losing to Oregon State in Corvallis and Stanford in the Rose Bowl the year before and Oregon in the 2012 Rose Bowl—so a Pac-12 opponent is probably the last thing the Badgers want.

If it is the Holiday Bowl, bringing the Badgers back to California for the fourth time in five years—the other three were Rose Bowl trips in 2011, 2012 and 2013—they would either play Arizona State or USC, though there are plenty of options depending on what happens in the Pac-12 Championship Game.

Let's say it is Arizona State, Badgers fans would be salivating at the chance to have a rematch of last year's agonizing defeat in Tempe.  With a neutral crowd and (hopefully) neutral officials, I'd like the Badgers' chances in this one against Arizona State.

USC has been a bit of an enigma this season, winning in Tucson against a very good Arizona team and thrashing Notre Dame last week; however, they've also lost at Boston College, who finished 7-5, at home against Arizona State and at Utah and UCLA.

The Trojans love to air it out, which could present plenty of problems for the Badgers; however, they have yet to face a defense on par with the Badgers' and have not played well outside of the Coliseum, going 3-3 on the road this season.