There weren't any changes on Northwestern's injury report this week. The Wildcats will once again be without starting defensive tackle Sean McEvilly and reserve linebacker Jaylen Prater.
McEvilly's injury, in particular, is no surprise, as he was off the depth chart this week and has been on crutches.
McEvilly, as we noted before the season started, is one of NU's most important pieces on defense. The Wildcats don't have much depth on the interior of their defensive line, meaning McEvilly's presence is extremely important. Without him last week, NU was gashed for 168 rushing yards by Ohio State's Carlos Hyde.
This week brings another challenge in Wisconsin. The Badgers' star running back, Melvin Gordon, is actually a better matchup for NU than Hyde was, since he's smaller and — unlike many past Wisconsin running backs — actually runs sideline-to-sideline as much as he runs between the tackles. Still, NU's defensive tackles will face a stiff test without McEvilly.