This week, the No. 6 Oregon Ducks will face the Wisconsin Badgers while donning their Grateful Ducks uniforms. While the Ducks are only in their second year in the Big Ten, there is a lot of familiarity between these two sides. The history of brawls between the Ducks and the Badgers is worth discussing.
The Ducks and the Badgers have faced seven times, with their first matchup being in 1977. Oregon faced Wisconsin again in 1978, and then the two foes would not meet until 2000. The Badgers got the better of the Ducks in the first three battles, but it has been all Ducks since.
A friend of the Ducks is a friend of mine. #GratefulDucks pic.twitter.com/ZL6qxKmXCt
— GoDucks (@GoDucks) October 25, 2025
The First Two Scraps: '77 and '78
The Ducks hosted the first matchup against the Badgers in Eugene. However, home-field advantage was not enough to stop the Badgers, who won 22-10. In 1978, it was the Ducks' turn to travel, and they lost to the Badgers in Madison by a score of 22-19. Not the best start to the series for Oregon, as they were already in a 0-2 hole. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of stats available for these two games, but the story goes "Oregon lost both".
Ducks vs. Badgers 2000
Almost 23 years later, Oregon and Wisconsin finally met again. The No. 5 Badgers hosted the Ducks and beat them by a score of 27-23. The Badgers ran all over the Ducks, with running back Michael Bennett rushing for 290 yards and two touchdowns. The Badgers' quarterback, Brooks Bollinger, only attempted 13 passes, completing just five of them and throwing an interception.
The Ducks had an Oregon legend in Joey Harrington at QB. He had an interesting game to say the least, throwing for 362 yards, a single touchdown, and three interceptions. Ducks wide receiver Marshaun Tucker had 196 yards, and LaCorey Collins scored a touchdown.
The Ducks Strike Back in 2001
The following season, Oregon finally got its first win against Wisconsin. Behind the No. 7 Ducks' home crowd, they beat No. 22 Wisconsin 31-28. Joey Harrington led the charge, throwing for 278 yards, 3 TDs, and 2 INTs. In addition to his passing attack, Harrington tacked on a rushing touchdown. Justin Peelle had two receiving touchdowns, and running back Maurice Morris caught a touchdown pass as well.
Badgers' QB Jim Sorgi threw for 231 yards, 2 TDs, and an interception. Their RB, Anthony Davis, rushed for 130 yards and a touchdown. WRs Nick Davis and Darrin Charles caught the receiving touchdowns from Sorgi. Despite their efforts, the Ducks were just too much to handle.
The Two Rose Bowls
The next two faceoffs between the Ducks and the Badgers took place on a neutral field, in one of the most prestigious bowl games, the Rose Bowl. The first one took place in 2012, as the Ducks beat the Badgers 45-38. Darron Thomas was the Ducks' QB at the time, and he had a great outing on the big stage. Thomas threw for 268 yards, 3 TDs, and one interception. The QB for the Badgers was the great Russell Wilson, who threw for 296 yards, 2 TDs, and one interception. The Ducks' star RB duo of LaMichael James and De'Anthony Thomas scored a total of 3 touchdowns.
The second Rose Bowl matchup was in 2020, as Justin Herbert was fully unleashed, leading the Ducks to a 28-27 victory. Herbert didn't have the best game in the air, as he threw for 138 yards and an interception; it was his rushing attack that prevailed. Herbert didn't run a whole lot at Oregon, but as we know now, he was more than capable. Herbert scored 3 huge rushing touchdowns against the Badgers, and safety Brady Breeze scored a touchdown off a defensive fumble recovery.
Justin Herbert is the first QB with 3 Rush TD in the Rose Bowl since Vince Young in 2006 🌹 pic.twitter.com/cFSA9hAtMp
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 2, 2020
The New Big Ten Era
After the Ducks' thrilling win in the 2020 Rose Bowl, the Badgers would have to wait until conference realignment brought the two schools together to get revenge. Last season, the Badgers hosted the Ducks for their first Big Ten battle, but were unable to get the job done against the monstrous Ducks. The Ducks left Wisconsin with a gritty 16-13 win, behind three field goals from Atticus Sappington and a touchdown from RB Jordan James. Wisconsin kicker Nathaniel Vakos scored two field goals, and QB Braedyn Locke threw a passing touchdown to Will Pauling.
This week, the Ducks and Badgers will meet for the eighth time in history, and for the second time as Big Ten enemies. The Ducks will get the home-field advantage for this bout. Can the Badgers tie up the series? Will we have another one-score game? We will find out tonight.