Wisconsin Football: Jonathan Taylor exits with leg injury vs. Illinois

The No. 5 Wisconsin Badgers could be in trouble if running back Jonathan Taylor is out for an extended period of time.

While the No. 5 Wisconsin Badgers are predictably rolling over the Illinois Fighting Illini on Saturday afternoon in Campaign, they received some bad news near the end of the first half.

The Badgers are in the playoff discussion with a perfect 7-0 record behind the strength of their defense and running game, following a trend that has brought the team plenty of success in recent seasons. Wisconsin has been a talent factory at running back for over a decade, with players like Melvin Gordon, James White and Corey Clement currently in the NFL.

Once again, the Badgers have produced a star in the backfield with three-star freshman Jonathan Taylor enjoying a terrific season. Taylor has emerged as the Badgers’ MVP with 149 carries for 1,112 yards and 11 touchdowns to key the perfect 7-0 start.

Unfortunately, Taylor exited Wisconsin’s game against Illinois in the second quarter with a leg injury and is questionable to return, per the team’s official Twitter account.

Taylor is by far Wisconsin’s most important player, and its playoff hopes will be trouble if he misses an extended period of time. Quarterback Alex Hornibrook is having a great season but might not have the explosive ability to keep up with Penn State or Ohio State in a potential Big Ten Championship Game, which would put far too much pressure on the Wisconsin defense.

The good news is Wisconsin has a soft schedule before then, so there’s no need to rush Taylor back if the leg problem turns out to be serious. Wisconsin is managing to hold lowly Illinois at bay with a 17-3 lead late in the fourth, and the Badgers should be able to take down Indiana and Iowa without Taylor.

A Nov. 18 matchup with Michigan is the first game Wisconsin might really miss Taylor, as the Wolverines defense will present a major challenge even in a down year. Beyond that, Wisconsin must have Taylor to take down the eventual Big Ten East champion or advance in the playoff should it advance that far.

Of course, Wisconsin has been able to churn out running back talent year after year and has some depth at the position to help mitigate the loss. Sophomore Bradrick Shaw has some experience with 150 carries entering Saturday, and freshman Garrett Groshek is averaging 7.1 yards per carry in limited action.

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With a soft schedule and good depth at running back, Wisconsin has the luxury of being able to ease Taylor back into action over the next couple of weeks but needs him in the backfield in order to reach the College Football Playoff.