What any reasonable Badger fan didn’t count on, however, was the emergence of starter Scott Tolzien and the UW aerial attack as one of the best in the Big Ten. With Tolzien leading the league in passing efficiency at 164.3 — 16 points higher than No. 2 Tate Forcier — and coming in second in league with eight touchdowns, the Wisconsin passing game may be what opponents have to game plan for this season.

“The thing with Scott is that he’s smart,” sophomore receiver Nick Toon said. “He throws the ball to the guy it should be going to. He understands the offense. … We have practiced every day for a while now so naturally chemistry is going to develop.”

It starts under center

After throwing two interceptions in his first start against Northern Illinois, the junior signal caller has taken care of the ball while continuing to complete a high percentage of his throws. With zero interceptions in his last three games and a completion rate of 66.7 percent for the season, Tolzien has brought a level of productivity to the game’s most important position not seen in Madison since John Stocco.

Tolzien attributes his strong play to a comfort level with the offense he has reached through years of practice and repetition.

“I think its mostly the more throws you make with the guys — the more throws I get with Isaac [Anderson] I get to see how he runs his routes,” Tolzien said. “Just getting comfortable with each guy and how they are coming in and out of their breaks.”

Tolzien’s consistency has rubbed off on the rest of the passing game. As an even keeled player, multiple teammates have attested to his command of the huddle.

“He is not a rah-rah guy or a quiet guy,” Toon said. “He is very confident, and he has a really nice swagger about him as a player and quarterback.”

The Illinois native saved his best start for the beginning of Big Ten play, tossing four touchdowns and 243 yards while being named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week.

Although Tolzien says he has thought very little about the accolade, rising from surprise starter to the Big Ten elite in four starts will certainly have fans thinking about him.

Coming into the season, the only sure weapon Tolzien had at his disposal was fifth-year senior tight end Garrett Graham.

From the first pass of the season — an 80-yard touchdown to junior wide out Isaac Anderson –and on, Tolzien has been able to spread the ball to multiple weapons as they developed.

At the top of this list is Toon, whose 18 receptions and two touchdowns have already passed last season’s totals.

“It’s maturity,” wide receivers coach DelVaughn Alexander said about the change from last year to this year. “Guys are showing their maturity in their attacking, their preparation. Just the way they show up in practice.”

With Toon providing a physical presence, Graham competing like a future Sunday tight end and Anderson proving to be a big play threat, last year’s leading wide receiver, junior David Gilreath, has averaged merely one catch per game.

According to Alexander, they are still trying to work Gilreath into the offense.

“We are just trying to find roles for him,” Alexander said. “He is a big part of our offense, and a big part of our team. The ball just hasn’t come his way yet as much as it did a year ago, but he is still a big part of what we do.”

Tolzien has shown a knack so far for spreading the ball between three tight ends and the two starting receivers. This versatility may allow for future success with defenses unable to key in on one guy — something the Badgers did against Michigan State’s Blair White and will try to do against Minnesota’s Eric Decker.

“Obviously, I’m a receiver and I want to touch the ball as much as I can,” Toon said. “But having multiple threats really opens up the rest of the passing game and keeps defense honest. If you have an all-star, go-to guy you can key on that and force other guys to make plays.”

Tolzien staying upright

Two dominant themes have developed with Tolzien and the offensive line this season. One, the Badger signal caller is willing to stand tall in the pocket and take a hit to make his throw. Two, the UW offensive line has done all they can to make sure Tolzien doesn’t have to take a hit, allowing a Big Ten low two sacks for the season.

“I think that he has proved to us that he can take a hit and we have proved to him that we can protect him,” UW right tackle Josh Oglesby said. “Anytime you have trust like that with an offensive line and a quarterback the offensive side of the team is going to do well.”

The job of the offensive line has been more impressive due to multiple injuries along the line. The Badgers have started two different freshman centers and regular starters John Moffitt and Bill Nagy have been sidelined for much of the season.

“I would say [two sacks] is unexpected but it’s a tribute to the players, the offensive linemen and coach [Bob] Bostad have done phenomenal,” Tolzien said. “Every day they come out with a worker’s mentality.”

With all of the success through the air, one natural but sacrilegious UW football question comes to mind.

Has the Badger passing game overtaken the running game has the main offensive weapon?

Umm, not quite yet.

“No, there is no change there,” Alexander said about the running game. “It’s been one of our things to make sure that we keep Wisconsin the way it has always been: tough, hard-nosed, physical football.”