UW got back to basics on Saturday, running over North Carolina with ease, efficiency and exquisite power.

Led by an offensive attack that featured nearly three running plays for every passing attempt, the Badgers showed off their depth at tailback by giving the bulk of carries to third string freshman Booker Stanley.

After an inauspicious start in which UNC’s Michael Waddell ran back the opening kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown, the Badgers and Stanley got things going offensively with their second drive of the day. The drive featured five rushes on six plays and was capped off by a Stanley five-yard score, the first of his career.

“I didn’t know what to do at first. I just got up and looked at the crowd and congratulated my teammates,” Stanley said. “It was lovely.”

The biggest play of the drive was a gutsy fourth down call on the Badgers’ own 40-yard line that set a precedent of run first, think later for the UW attack.

“I was trying to make a statement that I have confidence in the offensive line. I told them all week we wanted to establish the running game,” head coach Barry Alvarez said. “We came here to win the game.”

On the ensuing kickoff, kicker Mike Allen trotted onto the Camp Randall field for the first time this season to handle kickoff duties for an injured Scott Campbell. Allen was thrust into all of the placekicking duties and was nearly flawless in his return, going 5/5 on PATs and 1/1 on field goals.

The Badger defense stepped up their intensity after giving up some crucial scores to UNLV, forcing the Tar Heels to consecutive three and out drives to start the game. On Carolina’s third drive of the day, left tackle Anttaj Hawthorne put a hit on Ronnie McGill, forcing the ball loose at the UNC three-yard line. Recovered by strong safety Ryan Aiello, the Badger offense ran through Stanley on three consecutive plays, the last of which gave Stanley his second score of the day.

“I think for the most part we did a good job of getting off the field on third down,” safety Jim Leonhard said of the Badger defense. “We made some plays, got some turnovers and just won the game.”

The Tar Heels stayed in the game behind the arm and legs of quarterback Darian Durant. After failing to get into much of a passing rhythm to start the second quarter, Durant (12-of-24, 139 yards and one interception), put the drive on his back, running for 25 yards and then sneaking into the endzone for the one-yard score.

With the game tied at 14, UW used a two running back set to offer an array of short runs by Stanley and Dwayne Smith. On third down and two, the Badgers appeared to be in another run situation, but a gutsy play call would result in a 44-yard touchdown pass from Jim Sorgi to Lee Evans.

“We motioned Evans across the formation, play faked it with the run and gave him the whole field to work,” Sorgi said. “[With] one-on-one coverage he’s going to win that most of the time.”

A Waddell fumble on the kickoff led once again to a great field position for the Badgers. However, a Sorgi interception turned the ball over and led to a UNC field goal, pulling the Tar Heels within four, 21-17.

Well-designed plays made the Badgers look like they were running downhill. UW drove the ball to the UNC six-yard line before a passing play was once again the demise of the drive.

At the end of the second half, Sorgi overthrow Lee Evans in the end zone and the ball was intercepted by UNC safety Mahlon Carey for a touchback. The play left the offense frustrated and Sorgi a little disappointed going into half time. Sorgi ended the day 12-20 for 193 yards and two interceptions.

“My linemen were upset with me that we didn’t run the ball on that throw. They wanted to run a power,” coach Alvarez said. “They were really fired up.”

That fire carried over into the second half for UW, as the Badgers reverted to old form, running the ball on 15 of its first 18 plays in the 3rd quarter.

“At half we requested run. We said we wanted a program game, we wanted it to be an O-line game,” left tackle Morgan Davis said. “We went out and we wanted to pound those guys.”

On UW’s second drive of the half, Stanley found the endzone for the third time and the Badgers went up 28-17. A Dan Orner 51-yard field goal brought the Tar Heels back to within one score at 28-20.

With 5:00 left in the 3rd quarter, the Badgers started a drive that seemingly put the game out of reach for UNC. After a flurry of Stanley rushes, Sorgi dropped back to pass on the Carolina 17 and found wide receiver Darrin Charles over the middle for his first touchdown catch of the season.

“It feels great. Just something to get my year started off real well,” Charles said. “It boosts everybody’s morale because everybody’s working for that six points, and you know it may come to one guy or the other, but it all means the same.”

The pursuing UNC possessions would end in disappointment for the Tar Heels. Place kicker Dan Orner missed a 47-yard field goal, which Jim Leonhard followed by his second interception of the season, returning it 54 yards to the UNC 11 yard line.

After Allen’s lone field goal put the Badgers up 38-20, the Badger defense appeared to become complacent, allowing the Tar Heels to drive 60 yards over the final 2:30 and scoring the game’s final points with no time remaining on the clock.

“We’ve just got some things that we’ve got to clean up. We do some good things, but we’re still very inconsistent,” Alvarez said after the game. “I’m not satisfied where we are at all. We’re going to have to do a lot of work this week.”