The No. 11 Miami Hurricanes (10-2) and the sixth-ranked Wisconsin Badgers (12-1) clash as they meet at the Capital One Orange Bowl tomorrow night at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.
The game features two stout defenses that will probably turn this game into one of the best defensive matchups that will take place this 2017-18 bowl season.
The Badgers defense has been utterly dominant this year, as they allow just 13.2 points per game (ranked third in the nation), limiting opponents to 253.2 yards per game (which ranks them first overall) and on the ground, they allow their opponents just 92.6 yards per game, which ranks second nationally.
Despite those impressive numbers the defense fails to meet expectations during the 21-27 loss to Ohio State, so some people question how good they can be when they face tougher opposition.
UW offensive line is the key to Wisconsin’s identity on the ground, but they also struggled against Ohio State as they recorded a season-low 60 rushing yards on 32 attempts. If Wisconsin can’t establish a solid run game against Miami, they’ll likely struggle to move the chains as they did against the Buckeyes.
Although scoring wise they allow 19.9 points per game (which has them tied for 19th in the nation) Miami’s defense is not far behind when compared to the Badgers, as they are a very explosive group.
Miami owns the best unit in the country in the term of sacks per game (3.58) and is second in the nation with 30 forced turnovers. That’s because they are quite fast and know how to apply good pressure to the quarterback throughout the whole game.
Both teams are coming off losses in conference championship games and are looking to redeem themselves with a win to close the year on a positive note.
The hurricanes though will try to do it in front of their fans as they are playing in their own city and will have the added benefit of home-field advantage.
Miami, who lost to Clemson 38-3 in the ACC Championship game, is coming off back-to-back losses. They are playing in the Orange Bowl for the first time since 2003 when they defeated the Florida State Seminoles 16-14.
