The University of Wisconsin Badgers — 4-2, 2-1 Big Ten — continued their blowout win streak, this time against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights — 4-2, 1-2 Big Ten —winning 42-7.
The Badgers traveled to sunny Piscataway, New Jersey Saturday, Oct. 12, to face off against the Scarlet Knights, who just came off of a tough 14-7 loss against the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The Badgers, on the other hand, came off of a dominant 52-6 win over the Purdue Boilermakers.
Injuries, which have plagued Wisconsin this season, seemed to haunt them again against Rutgers, with receivers Bryson Green and Tyrell Henry ruled out for the second straight game after both left the Purdue matchup. Will Pauling, who also left the Purdue game with injury, returned and had a productive game, catching four passes for 49 yards and a touchdown.
First Half
The Badgers had one of their best first halves of the season so far. The defense held the Scarlet Knights to zero points by halftime, the first time they’ve accomplished that this season. The offense, though they didn’t score in the second quarter, successfully set the tempo early thanks to touchdowns from Pauling and running back Tawee Walker.
Quarterback Braedyn Locke placed the ball perfectly for Pauling, whose spinning catch in the endzone put the Badgers up 7-0 early in the first quarter. Two minutes before the end of the first quarter, good field position, combined with an 18-yard run from Walker, set Walker up to fight his way into the endzone for a 2-yard touchdown on a risky fourth down.
The defense continued to shine, forcing six punts, a turnover on downs and a missed field goal from the Scarlet Knights in the first half. But, the offense continued to struggle with turnovers, as kicker Nathanial Vakos missed a 35-yard field goal, Locke threw an interception and Pauling fumbled the ball.
Second Half
The second half brought more of the same, including 28 points, a defensive interception and allowing just one score.
During a six-minute span in the third quarter, the Badgers drove 89 yards downfield in 4 plays for a touchdown, came down with an interception off a tipped pass and then scored another touchdown, blowing the game wide open and all but securing the Badger win.
The first play to set off the scoring frenzy was a 33-yard run by Walker. Locke followed that up with a 47-yard pass to receiver Vinny Anthony II before freshman running back Darrion Dupree punched in the first touchdown of his collegiate career.
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One play into Rutgers’ next drive, safety Hunter Wohler tipped the pass right into the hands of safety Preston Zachman. The great field position set the Badgers’ offense up for six straight runs, culminating in a 9-yard Walker touchdown.
The fourth quarter came with the Scarlet Nights’ only score of the day, a strong run from running back Kyle Monangai. It also came with 14 more points for the Badgers; a 55-yard touchdown run from Walker and an 80-yard drive featuring a 45-yard run from running back Cade Yacamelli and culminating in Locke walking the ball in for a 1-yard touchdown.
Postgame
The “running back university” nickname stayed true for Wisconsin on Saturday, as the Badgers combined for 309 yards on the ground, most of which came from Walker’s 198 yards — the most by any Wisconsin player this season.
The Badgers didn’t struggle through the air either. Locke threw for 240 yards and scored two touchdowns, one through the air and one on the ground. Lock also posted his highest single-game completion percentage of the season at 71.4%.
“I give our guys a lot of credit, I’ll tell you what,” head coach Luke Fickell said postgame. “It’s exciting, obviously, to win, but it’s [also] exciting to see things continue to grow in front of our face. This is a team that’s getting better.”
The Badgers will next travel to Evanston, Illinois to take on the Northwestern Wildcats Saturday, Oct. 19 before returning to Camp Randall to face the No. 4 Penn State Nittany Lions Oct. 26.