Notre Dame started 0-2 last year, which resulted in it missing out on the College Football Playoff, and the Fighting Irish will try to avoid another slow start when they begin the 2026 college football season against Wisconsin on Sunday, Sept. 6. The Badgers finished 4-8 in 2025, so there's a lot of pressure on Luke Fickell to get things right in 2026 after he joined Wisconsin with high expectations after a great run at Cincinnati. Notre Dame enters 2026 as the No. 4-ranked team in the AP preseason poll.
Kickoff from Lambeau Field in Green Bay is set for 7:30 p.m. Notre Dame and more college football games with the FanDuel promo code to receive bonus bets: Notre Dame is a 20.5-point favorite, per the latest FanDuel Sportsbook odds, and the Over/Under for total points scored is 46.5. The Irish won 10 straight to wrap up 2025, while the Badgers only won two conference games in 2026 and are trying to move up the standings in a crowded Big Ten.
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These teams are entering 2026 in very different situations. The Irish were almost certainly one of the 12 best teams in the country last year, but losses to Miami and Texas A&M -- both of which made the College Football Playoff -- kept Notre Dame out of the postseason. It was clear that the program was upset, as the Irish opted not to participate in a bowl game.
They now enter the 2026 season as the No. 4 team in the country and as a team that many believe can feasibly win the national championship. Notre Dame lost its top playmakers on offense to the NFL Draft in Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price, but quarterback CJ Carr was one of the best passers in the country in 2025 and may very well be a Heisman Trophy contender in 2026. The Badgers have a lot of work to do to right the ship.
Fickell was hired to great fanfare after a great tenure at Cincinnati that included three 11-win seasons and a CFP appearance, but his best season in Wisconsin was 7-6 in 2023, and the Badgers have missed out on a bowl game each of the last two years. Offense was a major issue for the Badgers last year, and they hope transfer quarterback Colton Joseph can lead the way to more points in 2026. Joseph shined at Old Dominion last year, passing for over 2,600 yards and rushing for over 1,000 with 34 total touchdowns.
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