Wisconsin football’s Week 2 opponent, the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders, fell to No. 136 in USA TODAY Sports’ college football 1-136 rankings on Monday.
Following a 34-14 upset loss to the Austin Peay Governors, the Blue Raiders fell three spots to last place in the Football Bowl Subdivision. The move bumped Kent State, which defeated Merrimack in Week 1, up to No. 135. The Badgers, meanwhile, moved up one spot to No. 56. They now rank between Virginia Tech (No. 55) and Rutgers (No. 57).
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Despite entering their week one contest as a heavy favorite, the Blue Raiders faced an early 21-0 deficit and never got closer than within 10 tallies in the second half of action. The program’s defense allowed the Governors to accumulate 344 yards, nearly 200 more than Middle Tennessee’s 153.
Middle Tennessee State also holds the No. 134 position in ESPN’s Football Power Index and the No. 131 rank in SP+. The team’s blowout home defeat against a Football Championship Subdivision opponent appears to have officially cemented its place at the bottom of nearly every relevant ranking.
The recent string of updates obviously aids Wisconsin as it approaches the Week 2 matchup. Even with No. 2 quarterback Danny O’Neil expected to start under center, Wisconsin opened as a 28 1/2-point favorite to begin the week.
Luke Fickell’s crew will look to build off its dominant defensive display against Miami (Ohio) in Week 1, a game in which UW prevented the RedHawks from converting on a single third-down sequence. If Wisconsin’s defensive unit looks as sharp as it did to open the season, the Badgers should move to 2-0 ahead of their Week 3 road tilt vs. Alabama.
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This article originally appeared on Badgers Wire: Wisconsin football Week 2 preview Middle Tennessee USA TODAY ranking
