CHICAGO — It may seem like ages since Wisconsin’s 21-17 season finale loss to Tennessee on New Year’s Day. With the defeat, the Badgers fell to 9-4 on the season, which was nothing short of a disappointment to most UW players and fans.

This year, that sour taste still settles in the mouths of the Badger players as they anxiously await the Aug. 30 season opener in Madison against Akron. That said, here’s a look at the 2008 Wisconsin squad:

 

Quarterback situation

Last year’s signal caller Tyler Donovan graduated after leading Wisconsin to an Outback Bowl appearance. Senior Allan Evridge is the favorite to take over the starting spot this season, but junior Dustin Sherer is not making it easy for him.

Evridge is a lefty transfer from Kansas State. He started six games as a freshman for the Wildcats before transferring to UW. After being beat out by Donovan for last year’s starting spot, Evridge is anxious to prove himself and lead this talented offense.

Sherer throws from the right side and has good mobility. He has never made an NCAA start, so the lack of experience is a concern.

Head coach Bret Bielema has hinted Evridge might be the go-to guy, but at this point, nothing is for certain.

“Last year [Donovan] was the guy, and Allan had to beat him out,” Bielema said. “This year the tables have flipped. Allan is the guy and [Sherer] has to beat him out. I don’t want to go with a starter at this point because every day in practice I want to build pressure and build anxiety and see how they’re going to react to it.”

Deep at running back

Even after junior Lance Smith’s recent suspension from the team, the Badgers’ running game is still by far their biggest asset. They have one of the biggest and most talented offensive lines in the country, complemented by perhaps the deepest running back corps in the land.

Junior P.J. Hill is the feature back, but he has battled injuries since his National Freshman Player of the Year Award in 2006. With Hill out with a leg injury, sophomore Zach Brown rushed for 250 yards against Minnesota last season and has proven he, too, can be an every-down back for the Badgers.

And after redshirting last season, freshman John Clay is the most intriguing back of the bunch. Standing 6 feet 2 inches and weighing 237 pounds, his massive frame is a nightmare for opposing tacklers. He is the running back of the future and because of his sheer power and speed, he will demand carries as the season progresses.

Needless to say, Bielema and offensive coordinator Paul Chryst have many options in the running game. It will be interesting to see how he utilizes them all.

“Whoever plays the best during fall practice will be that guy,” Bielema said. “The only way you can build competition is in practice.

Few receivers, talented tight ends

The 2008 UW squad will have a run-first mentality all season. However, they do have arguably the best tight end in the nation in senior Travis Beckum. Beckum turned down the NFL to return to Madison for one more year and will likely be a first round pick in next year’s draft.

“I didn’t want to leave,” Beckum said. “I’m having a great time being a Badger and I can see myself having a lot more success here before going to the NFL.”

Junior Garrett Graham also provides some depth at the tight end position after impressing his coaches last season.

The wide receivers are young and inexperienced, as the top two candidates for starting roles are both sophomores. Kyle Jefferson saw action in all 13 games of his rookie campaign a season ago and David Gilreath had an outstanding spring, according to the UW coaching staff.

Gilreath will also be the primary kick and punt returner and don’t be surprised if he has a breakout season. After that, there is not much game experience at the wideout position.

The defense

Wisconsin went 12-1 in Bielema’s first season as head coach in 2006, in large part due to its stingy defense. Last season, however, was a different story as the Badgers struggled to stop anyone during much of the year. The defense did improve as the season went on — which gives them hope for this season — but is still nothing to write home about.

“Nobody is satisfied with the play last year, so we’re going to come out hungry and ready to go,” senior linebacker DeAndre Levy said. “Last year wasn’t a great year, but we still made a Jan. 1 bowl game. Hopefully this year we can take it a step further and go to a BCS game, but people expect certain things from Wisconsin; we’ve got to go beyond expectations.”

Cornerback Jack Ikegwuonu left a year early to enter the NFL Draft after last season, meaning senior Allen Langford and sophomore Aaron Henry will have to come up big in his absence. But both are coming off ACL injuries, so health is a serious concern.

Junior safety Shane Carter (brother of former NFL wide receiver Cris Carter) led the team in interceptions last season and should help the rest of the secondary with his experience.

The linebacking corps struggled as a whole last season, but all three starters are returning. Senior Jonathan Casillas is the leader of the pack, as he hopes his classmate Levy and junior Elijah Hodge will provide some help behind a talented, but banged up D-line led by senior defensive end Matt Shaughnessy, who is coming off of a broken leg suffered in the spring.

Suspect special teams

The Badgers’ kicking game provides for a serious question mark entering the 2008 campaign. Kicker Taylor Mehlhaff was the first kicker selected in the NFL Draft in April and punter Ken DeBauche signed with the Packers as an undrafted free agent.

Either Brad Nortman or Ken’s brother Brad DeBauche will succeed Ken with the punting duties and either freshman Philip Welch or junior Matt Fischer will be the new UW kicker. Both are unproven and have big shoes to fill.

“I really like what I’ve seen out of Philip and Matt,” Bielema said. “I felt both of those guys did a great job in the spring, but bottom line is someone is going to be kicking off for the first time not named Taylor Mehlhaff, who we had for the last three years. Philip has a stronger leg, so he has a better chance to be our kickoff guy, but for PATs and field goals I’m going to go with who’s more consistent in pre-practice, practice and everything in between. The punting position is wide open.”

Night games

Wisconsin’s schedule features back-to-back home night games against Ohio State (Oct. 4) and Penn State (Oct. 11). Both will be nationally televised and have been given mixed reviews from players and coaches alike.

“Last year we had one night game, and it was probably the most energetic, most exciting game we had,” Levy noted. “I prefer to play at night actually. I like to have a little buildup, time to get off your feet. You have longer to prepare mentally, so I prefer night games.”

An evening trip to Camp Randall makes Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel a bit nervous.

“Our coaches don’t like playing at night period because we hate sitting around all day,” Tressel said. “Our guys like it because the whole world gets to watch them play. On the road, we really don’t like it because by the time you get home, you’re already behind, and Sunday is a big day for us. But if ESPN or ABC sets the game time, you don’t have a say in it. What scares us is we’re going to have to go on the road and play a perfect game, and that’s hard to do.”

“Wisconsin is tough to play period on the road,” Penn State head coach Joe Paterno added. “That’s a tough stadium. I don’t even think about the time.”

His players are also aware of the atmosphere.

“That’s the craziest to play, I’ve said it since day one,” Penn State defense end Josh Gaines said of Camp Randall. “The fans, the people there are ridiculous. The ‘Jump Around,’ the fast wave, the slow wave, it’s the craziest place to be. Our fans are rowdy, but theirs are ridiculous. They’re nice, but they go hard during the game. They want to win that game.”

Preseason predictions

The Big Ten Media voted Wisconsin as the second-best team in the conference behind Ohio State and ahead of Illinois. ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit casually mentioned that the Badger defense might be the best in all of the Big Ten.

“It’s good that somebody sees potential in us,” Levy noted. “People can say whatever they want, but it comes down to us doing what we have to do and players making plays.”