The University of Wisconsin football team (8-2, 5-2 Big Ten) defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-6, 2-5) on their turf Saturday afternoon, maintaining hope for the Big Ten West title with just two games remaining in the regular season.
The Badgers started off fairly slow, allowing Nebraska to jump out to a 7–0 lead after a Jonathan Taylor fumble off a one-handed catch gave the Huskers great field position.
The Badgers quickly responded with a touchdown of their own on Aron Cruickshank’s 89-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Nebraska then managed to pull out to a 14–10 lead early in the second quarter, but the Badgers took over from there.
Wisconsin scored on three consecutive drives, including one touchdown off an interception by Jack Sanborn on a tipped pass by linebacker Chris Orr. With that, Wisconsin headed into the locker room with a 27–14 lead, a lead they wouldn’t relinquish in the second half.
Running back Jonathan Taylor broke former Georgia running back Herschel Walker’s rushing record through a junior season behind a 204-yard performance on the ground, his 11th career game with 200+ rush yards. That total also puts Taylor second for all-time rushing yards by a Big Ten player, as he only trails former Badger Ron Dayne. Taylor also added two touchdowns to his season total.
On the other side of the ball, Orr continued his strong senior season with a sack and the tipped pass for an interception, but Nebraska’s run game was dominant. Running back Dedrick Mills finished the day with 188 yards on the ground on just 17 carries, in addition to quarterback Adrian Martinez’ 89 yards on 16 carries. Head Coach Paul Chryst gave Nebraska credit for their run game.
“They did a heck of a job of running the ball and making plays, especially on third down,” Chryst said in a post-game sideline interview.
Nebraska quickly moved down the field early in the fourth quarter, but the Badger defense stopped them on fourth-and-four and gained possession at a crucial junction in the game. The Badgers proceeded to kick a field goal and extend their lead to 16 points, all but guaranteeing a win with just under ten minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
While Taylor was the story of the day, quarterback Jack Coan also had a nice game, finishing 13-for-21 for 162 yards and a touchdown. That touchdown came on a great 55-yard catch-and-run by senior receiver A.J. Taylor in the second quarter.
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Kicker Collin Larsh also had his best game of the season, going 3-for-3 on field goals and 4-for-4 on extra points.
In what ended up being a great all-around performance by the Badgers, Wisconsin prevailed, 37–21. Wisconsin’s win keeps them in contention for the Big Ten West title, as they trail Minnesota by one game after Minnesota’s loss to the Hawkeyes Saturday evening.
With Minnesota’s loss, Wisconsin will need to win their last two games against Purdue and Minnesota to get into the Big Ten Championship Game in December.
