Wisconsin junior tailback Anthony Davis left Saturday’s game against UNLV during the Badgers second possession with an undisclosed ankle injury. Davis had tallied two carries for 11 yards and was tangled up after a tackle by UNLV defensive back Joe Miklos.

“Last I heard it was an ankle, I don’t know how severe,” Wisconsin head coach Barry Alvarez said after the game.

Reportedly the injury is a sprained ankle. Whether Davis will play against North Carolina next weekend will be determined as he is evaluated this week by team trainers.

Sophomore tailback Dwayne Smith came in to relieve Davis. He rushed for 92 yards on 18 carries, but fumbles leading to consecutive UNLV touchdowns put the game out of reach for the Badgers.

“Anthony obviously is a large part of our offense, but there are no excuses in this game,” Alvarez said about the offense’s deficiencies after Davis left the game. “Their top tailback was out also.”

Dominique Dorsey started in place of Larry Croom for UNLV. Dorsey ran for 100 yards on 26 carries for the Rebels behind an impressive offensive line.

Redshirt freshman tailback Booker Stanley got his first significant stats for the Badgers, running for 25 yards on six carries.

“I felt that when my number got called up, it’s my time to go out there and play my game and help the team out,” Stanley said. “I made a lot of mistakes and I know there’s room for improvement.”

Stellmacher, Rowan and Catalano get work

After surrendering over 500 yards of offense to Akron last weekend, the Wisconsin coaching staff made considerable changes to its starting lineup. Sophomore Joe Stellmacher started over senior Ryan Aiello at strong safety while sophomore Levonne Rowan started in place of junior cornerback Scott Starks. The move concludes Starks’ consecutive-starts streak at 26.

“We wanted to get them playing time,” defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove said. “We’re trying to create competition. If guys are doing a good job, we want them to be rewarded.”

Rowan had trouble covering UNLV wide receiver Earvin Johnson, who beat the sophomore for two touchdowns, but he settled into decent coverage in the second half. Rowan played extensively in last week’s game after corner Brett Bell went down with lower body cramps.

“We graded them every day,” Alvarez said. “Those guys graded out better in practice, so we gave them a start.”

Stellmacher’s coverage was almost exclusively devoted to 6-foot-8 tight end Greg Estandia, who ended up with only one catch for two yards on the afternoon.

Chris Catalano, a senior from Thousand Lakes, Calif., played the majority of the second half at outside linebacker in place of junior Kareem Timbers. Sophomore LaMarr Watkins, the regular backup, didn’t see a single play.

Catalano led the linebacker unit with five tackles.

Lewis blocks another

Senior linebacker Alex Lewis continued to show exceptional play on special teams against UNLV, blocking a punt in the second quarter and recording a safety.

“[Special teams coach Bryan Murphy] drew it up perfect,” Lewis said. “The people would take up the blockers and I would get through clean.”

Lewis recorded his first punt of the season against West Virginia, which was collected for the Badgers’ first touchdown of the season by fellow linebacker Timbers.

Lewis blocked his first-career punt for the Badgers last season in the out-of-conference closer against Arizona.