The Badgers look tired and worn out. No longer do you hear the hootin’ and hollerin’ as the Badger football team returns to the locker room after practice. The spirit and swagger of an undefeated football team has vanished, and instead of wallowing in their mistakes and misfortunes, the Badgers are showing a resolved understanding for the task that now stands in front of them.

“Basically, you have to have amnesia,” said reserve tailback Jerome Pettus. “You win some, and you lose some. But when you lose, you correct your mistakes and you move on to the next team you have to play.”

After a heart-wrenching defeat at the hands of Penn State, the offensive side of the Badger football squad has watched the film, listened to the sermons, and is now focused on correcting the mistakes that allowed the Nittany Lions to suffocate the Badger running game and come away with a 34-31 win.

“The best way to bounce back, and the way we’re going about it as a team, is to watch the film and try and put it behind us,” said center Al Johnson. “It’s hard to let it all pass after you put so much into it, but that’s what we have to do. It’s already Tuesday, and the game’s going to be here in a few days. We have to put Penn State out of our minds. Not forget it, but put it out of our mind and not take any baggage into this week.”

Unfortunately for the Badgers, they have some very visible reminders from the Penn Sate game — the most significant of which is the aggravated ankle injury to running back Anthony Davis. Davis tweaked the ankle against Arizona and re-aggravated the injury late in the game against Penn State.

After Davis was taken out of the game, the Badger coaching staff came to true freshman Dwayne Smith and sophomore Jerome Pettus and asked the duo to carry the load for the remainder of Saturday’s game. Smith had his number drawn first and came away with 42 yards on six carries.

With the possibility of Davis missing this Saturday’s game against Indiana, the Badger coaching staff will call upon Smith and Pettus to carry the load for an entire game. Smith has recorded 188 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the season, gaining the confidence and support of his teammates and coaches.

“The coaches are always there, helping us out and getting on us for what we need to look for.” said Smith. “A.D. and Pet, they’re always there helping me out, too, so I just have the extra support. The support from the team and staying focused has been the key to my success.”

Though the possibility of a start is looming, Smith understands his current role on the team is to back up Davis, and he wouldn’t be surprised is Davis fought off the pain and made an appearance in the starting lineup Saturday.

“A.D. is durable,” said Smith. “I’m sure he’ll bounce back from this and he’ll be out there playing great.”

With the support of his fellow tailbacks and his coaches, Smith shouldn’t feel unprepared if his name should be called to start against Indiana. Pettus made a similar spot start last season against the Hoosiers at Camp Randall when Davis fell to injury, where he recorded a career-high 82 yards rushing. Pettus and Davis will be there Saturday, advising Smith of what needs to be done in a starting role.

“The tough process is knowing exactly what you’re doing,” Pettus said about being called up to start. “Just being a smart football player, knowing the situations, knowing the way you have to be on the football field at all times.”

“Whoever is out there, we want to make sure we do the best so he is successful,” said Johnson. “To say that we’re rooting for one back more than the other, it’s not true, and I don’t think the backs do. They want the team to be successful. Each back has their own different way they run . . . but, as a whole, we just want the best possible running back out there, no matter who it is.”

With a renewed focus, and with the possibility of a new starting running back, the Badgers look ahead to facing an Indiana team that embarrassed Wisconsin at Camp Randall last season, beating the Badgers 63-32.

“Of course, we feel like we want to go out there and beat them into oblivion like they did us last year,” said Pettus. “But we have to stay focused. The purpose is to beat them . . . Throughout the week, we don’t want to be out of control, and we want to play with some enthusiasm and purpose, and in doing that, we should play a lot better this week.”

After losing one standout on offense, the Badgers look and hope for the return of another. Wide receiver Lee Evans, who had targeted Oct. 5 as his return from his ACL injury, participated in Tuesday’s practice in full padding and took an active role in most team drills. Adding an experienced senior like Evans would reduce the number of mental errors in the clutch like the ones the younger receivers experienced against Penn State.

But the Badgers are more than capable of dealing with the personnel they may be left with. Renewed focus and determination look to carry the Badgers to victory Saturday in Bloomington.

“Right now we need to focus on our technique and schemes that we have to run to be successful against [Indiana],” said Johnson. “As the game gets closer, that will be more of our motivation.”