Badgers upset Buckeyes at Camp Randall
Drew Hansen, Sports Editor
In front of the fifth-largest crowd in Camp Randall history, the No. 22 Wisconsin Badgers defeated the No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes 17-10 Saturday night. Backup quarterback Matt Schabert came in relief of an injured Jim Sorgi late in the third quarter to help lead Wisconsin to victory.
The redshirt junior completed two of three passes for 104 yards, including a game-deciding 79-yard touchdown pass to senior captain Lee Evans. Schabert also made a key run on third down in the game’s final minutes to help seal the deal for the Badgers.
“It was unreal looking at his eye and he had that spark,” Wisconsin center Donovan Raiola said of Schabert’s entrance into the game. “It was good to see that in him. We knew he could do it and he did.”
The upset ended Ohio State’s 19-game winning streak, which goes back to last season when the Buckeyes took both the Big Ten and National Championships. The streak had been the longest in the nation.
Booker Stanley, Wisconsin’s redshirt freshman tailback, rushed for 125 yards on 31 carries against an Ohio State defense that came into the game ranked first nationally. The Buckeyes had only allowed an average of 43.4 yards per game through five games in 2003.
“These are the kind of games coach Alvarez always preaches about,” Schabert said. “He said when we came in, ‘You have to work hard. You have to run the ball and you have to be physical to beat the teams like Ohio State.’ We have been in it before and we know how to handle it. The guys fought hard all day long. It is a great win for the team and the city.”
With the win the Badgers improve to 6-1 overall with a 3-0 record in the Big Ten. Wisconsin is currently tied for first place in conference along with Michigan State. In Sunday’s USA Today/ESPN Coaches poll, the Badgers had moved 10 spots to No. 12. Ohio State fell five spots to No. 8.
“It’s another step down, another hurdle cleared,” Evans said of the win. “We got another big game coming up next week against Purdue, but we’re definitely excited about the thing we did and about where we are at right now, but to win this league it’s a long journey, it’s a long haul. We’ve got to stay together and stay focused as a team for the long haul to win the conference.”
