Herald blogs: Extra Points: Football

What we learned: Week nine

In my three years of watching Wisconsin football I have never seen a more dominant performance than the one I witnessed this past Saturday. The Badgers played a full 60 minutes and controlled every aspect of a game the Purdue Boilermakers wanted no part in. 

Here is what we learned from an impressive week nine Badger victory:

1. Kendricks has emerged as a playmaker

Lance Kendricks was everywhere on Saturday. He carried the ball for 90-plus yards and provided excellent run-blocking from his tight end position. Kendricks is a freakish athlete and the sky is the limit for this gifted tight end.

2. The coaching staff figured out how to take advantage of a bye week

Last season, UW had a bye week after a huge win against a ranked Fresno State team. They followed the week off with a miserable collapse in Ann Arbor. This time around the Badgers looked prepared and focused coming off the bye week. Few penalties and solid execution led to a big Badger win.

3. The injury to Mike Taylor won’t hurt too much thanks to Chris Borland

Taylor was the team’s leading tackler and his loss weakens the linebacker depth, but Borland will be just fine as his replacement. The true freshman is always around the ball and he made his presence known once again with a forced fumble and fumble recovery all in one play. The future looks bright with Taylor and Borland manning the outside linebacker positions. 

4. Welch is back on track

In windy conditions Welch performed well connecting on all of his field goal attempts. It was a strong performance from a kicker who has been struggling to find his accuracy.