No one should be surprised if Florida fires coach Billy Napier during the opening month of the season.

Wisconsin is bringing Cincinnati’s Luke Fickell back to the Big Ten.

Quarterback Payton Thorne threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jayden Reed in the second overtime to lift Michigan State to a 34-28 victory over Wisconsin.

Wisconsin has fired head coach Paul Chryst after a 2-3 start to his eighth season leading his alma mater.

The ground-oriented, weather-proof offense has long been preferred by Big Ten teams.

After a home loss in its opening game, No. 18 Wisconsin will look for redemption when it welcomes Eastern Michigan into Madison on Saturday.

Wisconsin wide receiver Chimere Dike (13) gets away from Michigan defensive back Vincent Gray (4) during the first quarter of an NCAA college football game in Ann Arbor, Mich., Saturday, Nov. 14, 2020. 13 Wisconsin build a big lead in a 49-11 rout of Michigan on Saturday night. “It was great to get back to playing.”The Wolverines (1-3) fell behind 28-0 at halftime, their largest deficit at home since the Big House opened in 1927, and are off to their worst start since 1967. The team announced that 10 players would not be available to play at Michigan, but didn't say why they were out of the lineup. POLL IMPLICATIONSThe Badgers might up a little after slipping in the two weeks they were idle after rising to No.

The 13th-ranked Badgers are set to play at Michigan on Saturday night, three weeks after their season-opening win. Wisconsin has been idle because it canceled two games due to a COVID-19 outbreak within the program. “It’s been kind of weird and sad a little bit, not being able to play," Badgers receiver Kendric Pryor said. The Badgers bounced back well enough with testing results that athletic director Barry Alvarez announced Monday the team would be back on the field against the Wolverines (1-2, 1-2), confident that the coronavirus outbreak has been handled. Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz, who tested positive for COVID-19 on Oct. 24, according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, might play at Michigan.

MADISON, Wis. – Wisconsin has canceled Saturday's home game against Purdue, the second straight game the 10th-ranked Badgers have called off as COVID-19 cases within their team continue to rise. This marks the second consecutive week that Wisconsin has canceled a game due to the virus outbreak. Ten players and 11 staffers have tested positive over the last seven days. The second cancellation gives Wisconsin little room for error in its quest to reach a second straight conference championship game. The Big Ten requires teams to play at least six games to be eligible for the league championship game.

MADISON, Wis. – Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez says the total number of positive COVID-19 cases within the Badgers’ football program has increased to 22. Alvarez told ESPN’s “College GameDay” on Saturday that 12 football players and 10 staffers have tested positive. Wisconsin announced Wednesday that six players and six staffers – including head coach Paul Chryst – had tested positive since Oct. 24, the day after its season-opening 45-7 victory over Illinois. School officials updated that number Thursday by saying two more staffers and one additional player had tested positive. The Thursday update indicated the football program had a total of 16 active cases, and that 15 of them had come since Oct. 24.

The Wisconsin vs. Nebraska football game this weekend has been canceled as cases of COVID-19 continue to spread throughout the Badgers program. COVID-19 has been a hot topic in Madison as star quarterback Graham Mertz had his positive test confirmed on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the university announced the team will pause all team activities for at least seven days because of the outbreak. “This morning, I received the news that I had tested positive via a PCR test I took yesterday,” Chryst said. Wisconsin-Nebraska is the first Big Ten game to be canceled this year, but with COVID-19 cases continuing to spike around the Midwest, it will certainly be difficult to avoid further interruptions to the shortened season.

9 Wisconsin canceled its game at Nebraska and paused team activities for at least a week after a dozen people in the program — including coach Paul Chryst — tested positive for COVID-19. Alvarez said the team had only one positive test two days before Friday's season-opening 45-7 victory over Illinois and 12 positive tests afterward. Alvarez said Wisconsin had reached the “orange/red” levels in the Big Ten protocols based on its rate of positive tests. The announcement followed reports that quarterback Graham Mertz had tested positive twice – which would require him to sit out at least 21 days under Big Ten protocols – and that backup quarterback Chase Wolf had tested positive at least once. “We’ll see where we are as far as testing, and we’ll make that decision as we move closer to the game,” Alvarez said.

What happens if an outbreak hits a team’s quarterback room? “Obviously this year there’s some things that will be unique,” Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said Monday without specifically discussing his players’ test results. “I think there certainly were those questions after the decision was made,” Ohio State team physician Jim Borchers said last week. And that’s all we really paid attention to.”Big Ten protocols say that athletes who test positive through point-of-contact daily testing must take a polymerase chain reaction test to confirm the first result. While Wisconsin awaits answers, Big Ten teams continue reminding quarterbacks about the potential risks inherent in this unusual season.

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel and Wisconsin State Journal both reported that Mertz had tested positive. The Journal-Sentinel reported Mertz’s positive test came Saturday, one day after the Badgers’ 45-7 season-opening home victory over Illinois. Both papers reported that Mertz would be undergoing a second test to determine if the first result was a false positive. Big Ten protocols say that athletes who test positive through point-of-contact daily testing must take a polymerase chain reaction test to confirm the first result. Chryst said he has no problem with the Big Ten’s 21-day policy, which is more stringent than those of most conferences regarding players who test positive.

14 Badgers beat Illinois 45-7 on Friday night to open the pandemic-delayed Big Ten football season. Mertz became the first-team quarterback after returning starter Jack Coan underwent foot surgery on Oct. 7, leaving him out indefinitely. After Illinois fumbled the ball away on the game’s second play from scrimmage, Mertz hit fullback Jason Stokke for a 10-yard touchdown pass. Mertz responded to Illinois’ touchdown by throwing a 34-yard completion to Ferguson and then hitting the senior tight end again for a 14-yard score with 1:06 left in the half. After Illinois went three-and-out on its next series, Mertz threw deep and found Danny Davis for a 53-yard touchdown pass with 28 seconds left until halftime.

Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said before a spring football season is planned, there has to be a discussion about fall 2021. He said conversations about a spring football season have been minimal, but there has been a theme. If the NFL does nothing to accommodate spring college football some of the sure-things are almost certain to leave. There is so much to sort out, including the NCAA signing off on a spring football season. At this point in time, we'll see.__Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at http://www.westwoodonepodcasts.com/pods/ap-top-25-college-football-podcast/___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

15 Badgers 37-21 win on Saturday in a performance that further etched his name into the record books. Taylor became the first Football Bowl Subdivision player since at least 2000 to run for 200 yards three times against the same team, according to Sportradar. And now with 5,634 career yards, Taylor moved past Georgias Herschel Walker (1980-82) into first place for most yards rushing through a junior season. Im a big fan of him, right? Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said with a smile. FROST EXTENSIONBefore the game, Nebraska announced Frost was given a two-year contract extension through 2026.

Josh Metellus #14 of the Michigan Wolverines carries the ball against the Army Black Knights during the first half at Michigan Stadium on September 7, 2019 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. 14 Wisconsin. "We're excited to get going with Big Ten play and face a well-coached and talented Michigan team," Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst told reporters. Wisconsin has won five consecutive home meetings with Michigan. PREDICTION: Michigan 28, Wisconsin 24More college football scoresCopyright 2019 by WDIV ClickOnDetroit - All rights reserved.

Josh Metellus #14 of the Michigan Wolverines carries the ball against the Army Black Knights during the first half at Michigan Stadium on September 7, 2019 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. - Tenth-ranked Michigan looks to record its first win in Madison in 18 years when it visits No. LINE: Wisconsin -3.5"We're just looking to go out there and make a statement it's as simple as that," Michigan quarterback Shea Patterson told reporters. "We're excited to get going with Big Ten play and face a well-coached and talented Michigan team," Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst told reporters. PREDICTION: Michigan 28, Wisconsin 24More college football scoresCopyright 2019 by WDIV ClickOnDetroit - All rights reserved.

17 Wisconsin bounce back from a disappointing season, and the star running back begins that quest on the road against South Florida on Friday night. ABOUT WISCONSIN (2018: 8-5)Junior Jack Coan will get the start in the opener at quarterback after being pushed by freshman Graham Mertz in the preseason, and will look to senior A.J. The Badgers were 29th in the nation in total defense in 2018 and senior linebacker Zack Baun (62 tackles, one interception) leads the way. Wisconsin junior WR Quintez Cephus (30 receptions in 2017) has been re-instated after being acquitted of sexual assault and suspended for the 2018 season. PREDICTION: Wisconsin 34, USF 21More college football scoresCopyright 2019 by WDIV ClickOnDetroit - All rights reserved.