At the start of every college football season, the associated press releases a poll ranking all of the FBS division 1 football teams. The list is typically based off of the previous season as well as recruiting class, as sort of a predictor of how the season will play out in a sense.
Today the AP top 25 rankings heading into college football week 1 have been released, and the Wisconsin Badgers are 19th.
These rankings for a Big ten team such as the Badgers are nothing more than aesthetic, but they absolutely can give an organization confidence.
Given the fact that the Badgers went 7-6 last year, this ranking is heavily influenced by what this Badgers recruiting class as well as returning class brings in terms of potential.
Either way this is a huge win in the eyes of any Wisconsin badger fan.