Brett Bielema came to Wisconsin as a highly-touted defensive coach from Kansas State. The defense hasn't been anything to brag about since he got to Mad-Town. The end of the '08 season saw the Badgers ranked 37th nationally in total defense, with a 329 yards-per-game average and 43 touchdowns allowed against them.

To put that into perspective, the team that allowed the fewest touchdowns, TCU, gave up only 18.

The defense needs help. Wisconsin was seventh in the conference in fumbles recovered, as well as seventh in passes intercepted.

The defense took away the ball 22 times, to the offense's 30 giveaways.

The Badgers were also weak in the tackle-for-loss department, checking in at ninth in the conference, behind such defensive powerhouses as Northwestern and Indiana.

The sack totals were very low, and with the departure of Matt Shaughnessy, Mike Newkirk, and Jason Chapman from the defensive line, as well as Deandre Levy at linebacker, there are only three guys on the team who recorded a sack in 2008.

The outlook is bleak, right?

Not as much as one might think...

At defensive line, the Badgers return O'Brien Schofield,  a senior who will look to up his sack total of five from last season.

Schofield will most likely be joined by a combination of Jeff Stehle, Patrick Butrym, Jeff Moore, and walk-on J.J. Watt.

Watt and Schofield will play ends, rotating with redshirt freshman Brenden Kelly, while Moore and Steel rotate with Butrym at the tackle spots. The coaches seem to think that the line may become very stout over the course of this year.

The two strengths of this defense will be the secondary and the linebackers.

Jay Valai and Chris Maragos have the safety spots covered, while the cornerbacks will be Aaron Henry and Niles Brinkley. Shane Carter will rotate in at safety and try to return to 2007 form, when he logged seven interceptions.

Mario Goins should see some play time, and senior Aubrey Pleasant will rotate in as the fifth defensive back in nickel packages.

The secondary could be extremely good, if those coming off of injury (Henry and Valai) return to their full potential. None of these guys is afraid to tackle or challenge a receiver for the ball.

Look for this secondary to create some turnovers.

With the departure of Levy, and Casillas, Jaevery McFadden will take over the weakside linebacker position. McFadden led the team in tackles last season as their middle linebacker. He is efficient in pass coverage, and he's also a run stopper.

At middle linebacker, Culmer St. Jean will get a chance to show his stuff. St. Jean is uber-athletic, and in spring ball he looked like he will be one of the top tacklers on this team, playing a role comparable to McFadden's last year.

The last linebacker spot will be taken by junior Blake Sorensen. Sorensen is not quite big enough or quick enough to play the middle of the field, but will make an adequate strong side linebacker.

On paper, the defense looks less talented than last year. However, this defense could develop into an explosive unit that is stingy with yards.

Let's hope they develop quickly.

All statistics are courtesy of NCAA.com

The Wisconsin Badgers are coming off of a disappointing 2008 campaign. They finished a miserable seventh in the Big Ten, with a 3-5 conference record and 7-6 overall.

The season was highlighted by Florida State's shellacking of the Badgers in their Bowl game.

But, in the immortal words of the poet, "Hope springs eternal..."

The Badgers look to turn around an anemic passing game to help strengthen the always consistent run game.

Pundits are not giving the Badgers much of a chance this year. The preseason magazines have the Badgers picked to finish sixth (Lindy's) or seventh (Sporting News and Athlon).

But we all know those magazines are pretty much worthless anyway.

The Badgers should be better this year on offense. The departure of P.J Hill is not a huge loss as 6'2" 247 pound halfback John Clay steps in ready to pummel opponents as the Badgers' next crushing back.

Clay rushed for 884 yards on 155 attempts, averaging about 5.7 ypc, in the 2008 season.

He also had nine rushing touchdowns last season as Hill's back up. Expect Clay to have a monster season, and to challenge for the All Big Ten Team, especially if the passing game is even semi-efficient.

Behind Clay is Zach Brown, a great change of pace from Clay. Brown is a Junior who rushed for 305 yards and 3 touchdowns in 2008.

The combination of these two will keep defenses worn out as Clay pounds it out between the tackles and Brown goes outside to try and stretch the defense with his speed.

Another strength of the Badgers offense this season will be the tight end position.

Senior Garret Graham made the 2008 All Big Ten team after leading the Badgers in receptions, yards, and touchdowns. Graham has the potential to be one of the best tight ends in the country. He has very consistent hands and is a good blocker.

The rest of the Badgers' receiving corps is experienced and very quick. David Gilreath is returning, as well as Kyle Jefferson and Nick Toon. All of these guys have shown themselves at least capable of catching the ball, Aye, but there's the rub!

No one knows who will throw it to them. The Badgers quarterback position is still in the air.

The current front runner, Dustin Sherer has the most experience, playing in eleven games in '08.

Sherer completed 104 of 191 attempts, for a 54% completion percentage. He threw for only 6 tds, and 5 interceptions.

As you can see, experience is about all that he has going for him. He is a fifth-year senior, and should be throwing the ball better, with fewer mistakes, at this point in his career.

The quarterback who will challenge Sherer for the starting job is red-shirt freshman, Curt Phillips.

Phillips was impressive in the spring game, throwing for two touchdowns and rushing for one more, while Sherer was throwing one touchdown to the defense, and one two the offense.

Phillips seems like a more reasonable choice, as the Badgers would then have two threats two run in the backfield, a legitimate passer, and the possibility of incorporating some type of option into their offense.

Phillips could also be the quarterback of the future, and if he did not pan out this season, Jon Budmayr is a good option. The rest of the options at QB are unproven and even more untested than the first two.

Regardless of who plays quarterback, he will need some protection. The Badgers seem to always just reload along the offensive line.

Left tackle Gabe Carimi has 24 career starts, and center John Moffit has 19, the rest of the Badgers projected starters, Jake Bscherer, Bill Nagy, and Josh Oglesby, have very limited experience.

However, the Badgers always seem to have good luck on the o-line. It couldn't possibly be the coaching, could it?

Overall, I think the Badgers' offense will be improved over last season. If Phillips starts at quarterback, we may see some surprise wins, and I think Clay is an upgrade over Hill.

Only 75 days until we find out.

I am a Badger football fan: Cardinal and white, great running backs, smash mouth football—all synonyms for Wisconsin football. What has it meant to be a Badger fan the last 10 years? Great expectations, followed by horrible disappointment. No expectations followed by great results.

Up and down, up and down...it is returning a fumble for a touchdown in the final seconds in 2004 to remain perfect...for now. It is watching Travis Beckum's senior year become a waste.

Seeing Ron Dayne break the record? That was unbelievable. Watching Sherer struggle in 2008? That was extremely painful.

Badgers football is a long and storied tradition. I have been blessed to live recently when the Badgers have been at least decent every year. My earliest memories of Badger football are of the backfield tandem of Moss and Fletcher. I remember Brooks Bollinger coming into the game against OSU his sophomore year down 17-3 and walking away with a 42-17 win.

This year's bowl game was a fiasco. I cried...just kidding...I think. Anyway, it was rough, but hope is on the horizon!

The Badgers have never been a strong passing team that I can remember. The next four years may prove to change all of that. Here are the reasons why I think the Badgers have a great chance to win the Big Ten this year:

1. Anyone other than Evridge at QB. As previously stated, last year was painful to watch as first the offense would struggle and then the defense would struggle. Evridge couldn't stop throwing picks and the running game struggled at times due to the inefficiency of the passing game. It can only go up from here. Phillips or Sherer will be a definite upgrade.

2. John Clay is a beast. Three out of his last four regular season games last year he rushed for over the century mark. (We should probably throw out the Cal Poly game. I could rush for 100 yards against Cal Poly). The 6'2" 240 pound sophomore should improve drastically going into this season.

He averaged over 5.5 yds per carry as the backup last year. His combination of strength and quickness make him dangerous from anywhere on the field.

3. The wide receiving core is much improved. With the incoming class of recruits and guys returning from injury, the Badgers will have a very improved wide receiver corps from last year's. Kyle Jefferson's return and the emergence of Toon will bolster a corp that looks make a huge impact this year.

4. They have a better schedule. They don't play PSU, Fresno State, MSU, or Purdue at home. If the Badgers find a way to win at OSU and Minnesota, they may be looking at a very favorable record this year.

The Badgers will be looking to rebound from a down year. If they don't, the words "hot seat" may be in Brett Bielema vocabulary by the end of the year. However, I am looking forward to some new looks and some new players this fall and the beginning of a successful Badgers football season!

John Clay