Sports

Beckum performs following criticism from coach

Up a field goal with just 50 seconds left to play in the first half, the Badgers found themselves deep in their own territory and in possession of the ball. Scoring again before halftime didn't seem like much of a possibility, but nine plays later Taylor Mehlhaff kicked a 47-yard field goal to increase the Badger lead to six. The key to the late scoring drive: three Travis Beckum receptions for 42 yards.

A week after head coach Bret Bielema said Travis Beckum needed to become more of a "complete player," the tight end responded in a big way — catching a career-best 10 balls for 132 yards and a touchdown in Wisconsin's 37-34 win over Michigan State Saturday.

“Today was more so Travis getting in some one-on-ones,” quarterback Tyler Donovan said. “It’s been Luke the first couple of games, and today was Travis’ game. That’s kind of what our offense is all about. If they’re going to take somebody away, we’re going to go to somebody else. That's a statement for our offense."

With the defense unable to shut down the Spartans offense, the pressure fell upon the Badger's offense to put up points, and it was Beckum that Donovan locked in on when throwing the ball — 10 of Donovan's 17 completions went to Beckum. Luke Swan, who was tied with Beckum for the team lead in receptions (20), only caught one pass in the game, and no other Badger caught more than two.

Facing a Michigan State team that was giving up just 170 passing yards heading into the contest, Beckum was the biggest factor in Wisconsin's ability to move the ball down the field through the air with success.

"We don't look at it as if another team has a great defense," Beckum said. "We look at it as it's us, and we have a good offense, and we determine our success."

Last season Beckum determined plenty of success when he caught 61 passes for 900 yards, but this season he had only gone over 60 yards receiving once.

With a depleted receiving corps, though, (Paul Hubbard remains out with an injury, Kyle Jefferson missed the second half and Marcus Randle-El was ejected in the second quarter) the pressure fell on Beckum to be more of a target for Donovan against MSU.

"The playmakers just need to step up," Beckum said of the mentality needed with a thinning group of receivers. "I always expect pressure, that's what I'm used to."

Beckum's impact was most noticeable in the first half when he caught nine passes for 121 yards, including the three key receptions on the Badgers drive that resulted in a field goal as time expired.

Though Beckum only caught one second-half pass — a key 11-yard reception that pushed the Badgers across midfield on their final scoring drive — the junior's presence was still felt; he opened up the field for his teammates.

"When we have playmakers like Travis and they can make plays, they open it up," fullback Chris Pressley said. "It all works together, when [Beckum] is out there doing his thing. … We all can work together."

With the ability to line up at both tight end and wideout, Beckum was put in positions to exploit the defense by the coaching staff this weekend.

"He's been having numbers, but not the production of a year ago," Bielema said. "As coaches, we have to maximize our best players."

"It doesn't matter," Beckum said about caring where he lines up. "I think [offensive coordinator Paul Chryst] did a great job of putting me in position to have success, putting me out there where he knew I'd have one-on-one coverage and taking advantage of it."