Barry Alvarez, the future Wisconsin head coach and athletic director, played linebacker for Nebraska from 1966 to 1968 and during the 1966 meeting between the Cornhuskers and Badgers he intercepted a pass and returned it 25 yards.

The two programs traded home wins with Wisconsin resoundingly defeating the Cornhuskers, 48–17, in their inaugural Big Ten game at Camp Randall Stadium in 2011.

[5] The two met again just over two months later in the 2012 Big Ten Football Championship Game where the unranked Badgers defeated the heavily-favored, 14th-ranked Cornhuskers at Lucas Oil Stadium, 70–31.

[5] After the Cornhuskers joined the Big Ten in 2011 the significance of the initial matchups coupled with the ensuing scores resulted in the game quickly developing into a budding rivalry.

[9][1] The 2014 game was referred to as a showdown between two Big Ten running back Heisman Trophy candidates; Nebraska's Ameer Abdullah and Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon.

[14] Prior to their meeting in 2014 the athletic departments of both universities announced the two teams would play for the newly created Freedom Trophy, thus cementing the new rivalry status.