For the better part of the season, the Wisconsin defense played well on third downs, allowing opponents to convert just 22 of 73 attempts. It was a stat that kept the UW defense off the field and allowed the Wisconsin offense to control the ball for an average of nine minutes more than its opposition. Neither of those stats held up against a Penn State attack featuring Larry Johnson and versatile quarterback Zack Mills.
Wisconsin allowed PSU to convert seven of 16 third-down attempts. The majority of those third-down conversions came in the first half. Penn State was able to offensively dominate the game rolling up 297 yards, while UW managed an anemic 107 yards.
“We couldn’t slow them down in the first half; we made some adjustments at the half, I felt we played better,” said head coach Barry Alvarez. “But I didn’t think we played particularly well. We missed a lot of tackles.”
The Penn State offense translated into a lack of opportunities for the UW offense in the first half. With the Wisconsin defense unable to get off the field, Penn State was able to run 44 plays and secure 17 first downs. By comparison, the Badgers ran 23 plays and managed only six total first downs.
“We never got in a rhythm. We allowed the first few third downs. The first drive they got a field goal, and we had stopped them on third down, but we were off sides. The next drive we have another opportunity on third down, and we don’t make the play,” said defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove. “Third downs are critical. You can’t have people move the chains on you, and you have to get off the field on third down.”
For the Badgers, what would have been a punt on PSU’s first drive ended up being an 11-play, 65-yard scoring drive. The drive set a tone for Penn State that the Nittany Lions maintained throughout the first half.
The Lions’ offense was led by tailback Johnson, who displayed his versatility out of the backfield by carrying the ball 14 times for 114 yards, as well as catching five balls for 41 yards. The majority of his damage was done in the first half before he left the game early in the third with a pulled hamstring.
The defense looked like a rejuvenated unit for much of the second half. Part of the reason for the improvement were a few small defensive adjustments to stop Penn State’s backs from getting into their routes cleanly.
“We were very soft because of our alignment in the first half,” said Alvarez. “We made that adjustment, and it gave us a better chance in the second half, but I don’t think we played well at all.”
The poor defensive play out of the gates seemed to come as a surprise, because as a group the defense felt very confident, rested and well prepared after using the bye week to prepare for the Nittany Lions’ offense.
“I think we started off slow all around. My main focus is the defense, because that’s what I play,” said defensive back Scott Starks. “We didn’t really play the way we practiced this week, and the results showed. We’re just going to have to rebuild from where we’re at now.”
Fellow corner B.J. Tucker provided one of the few Badger highlights in the first half when he picked off a Mills pass and raced in for a touchdown from 65 yards out. At that point UW had pushed its giveaway/takeaway margin to a plus 14. UW ended the game plus 13 after Brooks Bollinger had a pass deflected and intercepted in the fourth quarter.
The game marked several firsts for the Badgers this season. Previously, UW had won the time of possession and turnover battles in each game. Each team finished with one turnover, while Penn State controlled the ball for 31 minutes.
“We have to cut down on our mental errors; just play the next play if something goes wrong,” said Wisconsin strong safety Jim Leonhard. “We didn’t do a very good job of that today.”
