Colton Joseph: Will He Resurrect the Badger Offense?
Colton Joseph, a dynamic transfer from Old Dominion, enters his first season in Madison as Wisconsin’s undisputed starting quarterback. In 2025 he threw for 2,624 yards, 21 touchdowns and ran for 1,007 yards with 13 scores, showcasing his dual-threat ability. While his electrifying runs—like two long touchdown bursts against Indiana—made headlines, concerns linger about his accuracy (59.7% completion) and turnover tendencies. Joseph struggled early in spring practices but showed promise as he adapted to Jeff Grimes’ offense. In a best-case scenario, he stays healthy, masters the playbook, cuts down mistakes, and becomes one of the Big Ten’s elite quarterbacks. In a worst case, he suffers the dreaded non-contact knee injury that has plagued Badger signal-callers or flounders under bigger defenses, exposing his erratic tendencies. The season opener against Notre Dame could be a rocky landing, but tune-up games against Eastern Michigan and FCS Western Illinois may give him room to grow. Overall, expectations are high that Joseph’s talent will jump-start the most potent Wisconsin offense in years.
If you think Wisconsin’s offense has been lifeless, brace yourself: they’ve just imported what might be college football’s version of Thor—mighty, charismatic, and potentially one hamstring pull away from a season-ending crisis. Imagine the UW playbook as a cosmic hammer, and Joseph as the god who must learn to wield it without accidentally hammering himself in the shin. Fans will be praying for a healthy veteran to avoid another “Badger QB Purgatory” biopic starring crutches and laments. If he fails, surely that’s just an elaborate ruse to keep the coaching staff employed, right? And if he succeeds, they’ll have to invent new, grander laments about NFL scouts and Heisman expectations—because celebrating quietly is just not in their playbook.
Badgers vs. Leathernecks: Predicting a Rout
Wisconsin’s season-opening clash against FCS Western Illinois arrives as a chance for the Badgers to snap a potential early-season skid. The Leathernecks went 4-8 in 2025, suffering blowout losses to Illinois (52-3) and Northwestern (42-7) but rallied to win three of their last four games in the Ohio Valley-Big South. Key departures include first-team all-conference RB Markell Holman (1,064 yards) and LB Christian Pierce (100 tackles), while new transfer additions—DB Christian Garrett (Delaware State) and RB Ihson Jackson-Anderson (Wofford)—look to fill gaps. Predicting 2026 is tough at the FCS level, but WIU’s tight losses hint at a mid-pack finish. Expect Wisconsin to dominate from whistle to whistle, with a likely 45-7 final score and maybe a garbage-time touchdown for the Leathernecks.
Wisconsin fans, rejoice: finally a game where your university’s football team is the overwhelming favorite without irony! Think of Camp Randall as a bake sale and Western Illinois as the sad, deflated cupcakes—certainly there, but nobody’s pretending they compare to the homemade pecan bars. The coaches will run through every gadget play on the clipboard just to keep score bizarrely low, then wonder why the fans are bored. Expect the Leathernecks to pop a consolation prize touchdown on a trick play, allowing everyone to go home with a single crumb of excitement. If only all college football games were this predictable—oh wait, no they’re not.
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