Nearly 10 years have passed since the first edition of the College Football Playoff, won by a surging Ohio State team led by running back Ezekiel Elliott and quarterback Cardale Jones.
Wisconsin did not make the CFP in its first decade. The Badgers came close several times, most notably falling 40 yards short of a Big Ten Championship over Ohio State and Playoff birth in 2017.
Now the format is expanding to 12 teams. It will get more challenging for schools like Wisconsin to win the entire thing, but more tickets are available for them to make the dance.
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ESPN recently looked back upon the first decade of the CFP and put together an all-Playoff era team. Several Wisconsin Badgers were included:
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RB Jonathan Taylor
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RB Melvin Gordon (honorable mention)
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C Tyler Biadasz (honorable mention)
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OL Beau Benzschawel (honorable mention)
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OLB T.J. Watt (honorable mention)
Unsurprisingly, Wisconsin got a few running backs, a few offensive linemen and an outside linebacker included. Those position groups also correlate to what the program has sent to the NFL, and the general strengths of the team under former head coach Paul Chryst.
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