Bowl Projections: Wisconsin Poised for Rose Bowl Matchup with Oregon

The No. 16 Wisconsin Badgers are headed to Indianapolis to avenge their October loss to Big Ten rival Michigan State this coming weekend, and they are primed for an epic Rose Bowl matchup with eventual Pac-12 champion No. 10 Oregon.

The two-loss Ducks survived Stanford on the road in mid-November, so they will host the Pac-12 South division winner UCLA Bruins.

The Bruins are 6-6 and pose little threat to the Ducks' conference title aspirations.

Michigan State will challenge Wisconsin, but the lack of home-field advantage for the Spartans will be the difference. The neutral turf will give the Badgers' bruising ground attack the edge.

The Rose Bowl will be one of the more anticipated bowl games of this winter's bowl season given the two intriguing, contrasting styles of football.

Oregon's explosive spread will be met with plenty of resistance from the Badgers' Big Ten stoppers, and the Ducks' speedy D will be tested against the strong and powerful offensive line of Wisconsin.

Both teams were once national championship contenders earlier this season, so January's BCS clash between the two will provide answers to college football ponderers and excitement to football fans not so thrilled about a rematch between LSU and Alabama.

The Rose Bowl is often a forgotten game given how lame the Big Ten has been over the past few seasons and how questionable the Pac-12 (formerly the Pac-10) has been over recent years.

College football fans will be all smiles to ring in 2012 with two of the nation's best teams squaring off in Pasadena for the historic Rose Bowl championship.