Wisconsin tops Michigan 24-10 to remain undefeated: 3 takeaways
Recapping the No. 5 Wisconsin Badgers 24-10 win over the No. 24 Michigan Wolverines on Saturday afternoon at Camp Randall.
The No. 5 Wisconsin Badgers passed their first major test of the season with flying colors in a 24-10 win over the No. 24 Michigan Wolverines on Saturday in Madison.
As expected, both defenses dominated in the early going, with neither offense getting inside the 40-yard line in the first quarter. The Badgers got a huge boost from their special teams unit with 1:15 to go in the first quarter, as Nick Nelson ran a Michigan punt back 50 yards to go up 7-0.
A few minutes later, Michigan’s special teams unit struck back by hurrying a Wisconsin punt in the end zone to take over in Badgers territory and appeared to be headed in for the game-tying touchdown on a Zach Gentry 35-yard reception two plays later. After a controversial call robbed Donovan Peoples-Jones of a touchdown catch, Brandon Peters made a major mistake on a fumble near the goal line, preserving a 7-0 lead for the Badgers.
The Wolverines weren’t discouraged and drove 84 yards on their next drive to tie the game on a Ben Mason touchdown run heading into the half. Peoples-Jones reeled in a 48-yard catch to spark the drive, as Peters started to get into a rhythm in the biggest start of his young career.
Both defensive lines controlled the action following the break, with Mike McCray and T.J. Edwards trading sacks to end the opening drive for both teams. Devin Bush then picked off Alex Hornibrook midway through the third, setting up a short Quinn Nordin field goal to give the Wolverines a 10-7 advantage.
Hornibrook bounced back moments later with a pair of long passes to A.J. Taylor, including a 24-yard touchdown to give Wisconsin a 14-7 lead at the 3:31 mark of the third. Michigan got more bad news on its next drive when Peters was injured on a late hit and replaced by John O’Korn for the rest of the game.
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Wisconsin’s prolific running game finally got going in the closing stages of the third, with Kendric Pryor tallying a 32-yard touchdown run to give the Badgers their biggest lead at 21-10 heading into the final quarter. While the Michigan defense would keep things close, its offense couldn’t do anything, and Wisconsin effectively ran the clock down for a huge 24-10 win.
The Badgers finished with 40 rushes for 182 yards, including a terrific 132-yard performance from star freshman Jonathan Taylor. Here’s what we learned from the Badgers taking down Michigan on Saturday at Camp Randall.
3 takeaways
Alex Hornibrook is good enough to lead a title run
A number of Badgers are enjoying terrific seasons on both sides of the ball, but Hornibrook’s improvement has been the biggest difference-maker in what could be a national championship campaign.
After redshirting a year, Hornibrook turned in a solid freshman campaign with 1,262 yards and nine touchdowns to seven interceptions. The Badgers expected Hornibrook to do a lot more this season after Corey Clement graduated, and he’s responded with 1,863 yards and 17 touchdown passes heading into Saturday’s action.
While Hornibrook’s numbers against Michigan don’t jump off the page, he came up with a couple of huge throws in key situations to lead the Badgers to a win. Facing intense pressure from the Michigan front seven, Hornibrook made a pair of brilliant throws to key the third quarter touchdown drive to give Wisconsin the lead for good and found Danny Davis III on a long pass later in the frame to help the Badgers score again.
Hornibrook needs to cut down his interception rate against better competition but adds an explosive element to the Wisconsin offense that wasn’t there last season.
Michigan will be in the national title hunt next year
For all the hand-wringing about Jim Harbaugh’s inability to beat Ohio State and Michigan State early in his tenure, the Wolverines will be among the nation’s top teams next season if the injury to Peters isn’t too serious.
Prior to the injury, Saturday’s contest was a step in the right direction for the true freshman against one of the best defenses in college football. Peters shook off the goal line fumble with an impressive touchdown drive midway through the second and showed off some downfield throwing ability that we haven’t seen much this season.
Michigan should be loaded elsewhere on the roster, particularly on defense, and Peters will have a star young receiver in Peoples-Jones to throw too. As long as he’s healthy, the Wolverines should feel optimistic for the future with Peters leading a stacked roster.
Wisconsin needs to improve pass protection before the postseason
The Badgers have a well-rounded roster, including the nation’s best linebackers and a prolific group of running backs led by star freshman Jonathan Taylor. Pass protection may be the final piece of the puzzle for Paul Chryst, as the Badgers can win a national championship if they protect Hornibrook better.
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While that’s rarely a problem for Wisconsin, the Badgers have had to replace a lot of stars on the line over the past few years and showed some cracks on Saturday. Hornibrook was under constant pressure and sacked three times, all of which killed promising drives for the Badgers.
That being said, Wisconsin was excellent in run blocking against a fierce Michigan front, and the unit isn’t exactly a major weakness. Still, Ohio State’s front seven is looming as a major challenge, and the offensive line could be in trouble in a potential playoff game against a team like Alabama or Clemson.