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College football bowl games: Ranking every 2019-2020 bowl team

By Nicholas Ian Allen

Trevor Lawrence, Clemson Tigers. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
Trevor Lawrence, Clemson Tigers. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – DECEMBER 07: Wisconsin Badgers running back Jonathan Taylor (23) runs up the middle during the Big 10 Championship game between the Wisconsin Badgers and Ohio State Buckeyes on December 7, 2019, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN. (Photo by Zach Bolinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – DECEMBER 07: Wisconsin Badgers running back Jonathan Taylor (23) runs up the middle during the Big 10 Championship game between the Wisconsin Badgers and Ohio State Buckeyes on December 7, 2019, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN. (Photo by Zach Bolinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

14. Wisconsin Badgers, 88.25

  • Roster Strength: 85.31 (28)
  • Team Performance: 89.41 (10)
  • Head Coach Rating: 86.02 (21)

Thanks in large part to a disappointing 2018 campaign, Wisconsin entered the 2019 college football season with modest expectations. However, a dominant 6-0 start propelled the Badgers into the playoff discussion, only for everything to be derailed by an inexplicable loss to Illinois, followed by a blowout loss to Ohio State.

Yet, Wisconsin nearly played its way all the way back. A 38-17 win over Minnesota secured the Big Ten West title, and with a 21-7 halftime lead over the Buckeyes in Indianapolis, debate revved up about the Badgers’ resume being stronger than Oklahoma’s. But it was not to be.

The consolation for Wisconsin is a Rose Bowl matchup with Oregon. Hopefully, we’ll have one last chance to see running back Jonathan Taylor take the field before he takes his talents to the NFL. And even without Taylor in 2020, we can expect the Badgers to enter next year with much more hype.

13. Michigan Wolverines, 89.06

  • Roster Strength: 88.91 (8)
  • Team Performance: 87.55 (17)
  • Head Coach Rating: 85.61 (26)

Michigan rated higher than Wisconsin after the Wolverines lost 35-14 in Madison, and the Badgers played Ohio State so much tighter during the last two weeks? The list is a joke! Do your research, man!

Sorry. That’s how the math works out. Despite the fact head coach Jim Harbaugh wasn’t able to get over the hump against the Buckeyes this season, and his team has posted lower game grades on average than Wisconsin (in large part due to the blowouts against the Badgers and Buckeyes), Michigan has a significantly more talented roster on paper. On a neutral field, we would project the Wolverines to be a 1.5-point favorite over the Badgers.

But fortunately, it doesn’t really matter because we won’t have to watch a Michigan-Wisconsin rematch. Instead, we’ll get to watch Harbaugh (assuming he resists the urge to return to the NFL beforehand) square off with Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide in the Citrus Bowl.

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