Just a few short weeks ago, the Badgers were heavy underdogs against #5 LSU.
Now, for the time being at least, the Badgers are in the national conversation with two top ten wins.
For an undefeated top ten team, the Badgers have had an odd road. An upset win over LSU, an ugly game that was too close for comfort against Georgia State, and then a statement win in East Lansing last Saturday. Even more odd, the Badgers have been rolling, but it seems as if the offense is just now getting set.
It’s easy to get wrapped up in Saturday’s win, especially with the way redshirt freshman quarterback Alex Hornibrook played in his first collegiate start. Hornibrook finished 16/26, 195 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Hornibrook’s interception was a heave to the end zone at the end of the second quarter, essentially making it irrelevant. He only made one real mistake, fumbling in the first quarter because he was unaware of the pocket collapsing around him and held the ball too low.
In all reality, however, it was just one game. The Badgers don’t truly know what they have in Hornibrook – not yet.
The one thing Badgers fans and coaches know for sure, however, was the moment wasn’t too big for Hornibrook. His first start was a clash of two top 15 teams and on the road, and Hornibrook was calm and collected. He never looked scared or rattled, which is important because the Badgers have plenty of tough tests still left, including this week at #4 Michigan. Wisconsin is going to need that same demeanor in Ann Arbor from their young quarterback to pull of the upset. Hornibrook led the Badgers to a win in East Lansing, a place they haven’t won in since 2002.
Jazz Peavy is the number two reciever, but he’s playing more like the number one. Peavy has 16 receptions for 274 yards along with two TD’s. Troy Fumagali was a key member in the LSU win at Lambeau Field, and that has continued throughout the first four games. In fact, the tight end crew has done a great job of being a security blanket for the inexperienced quarterbacks. Both of Hornibrook’s collegiate touchdowns have went to tight ends, Kyle Penniston and Eric Steffes.
The receivers have gotten better with every week, dropping less and less balls and even making more plays. If Hornibrook is able to stabalize the quarterback position for the long run, the production out of the recievers should continue to progress.
Traditionally, the Badgers are going to lineup and wear you down with the run game, featuring NFL linemen and running backs. The shocking part of the Badgers undefeated start is that it’s been done largely without a run game, or at least an explosive run game. Corey Clement is only averaging 3.9 yards per carry, and only totaled 54 yards on 23 carries against MSU (and 22 of those 54 yards came on one carry). Dare Ogunbowale has played well as the second running back, but is averaging less than 50 yards per game. Taiwan Deal has only carried the rock 20 times.
Corey Clement was a dark horse for the Heisman race in the preseason. If you told me the Badgers would start the season 4-0 with LSU and MSU on the schedule, I would have bet that Clement leaped up into the top tier of Heisman candidates. With Michigan and Ohio State on the schedule, the Badgers are going to need Clement to deliver. The offensive line hasn’t been great, but it hasn’t been bad either. The longest carry of the year for the Badgers is only 35 yards. The running backs have to do a better job of making medium gains go the distance, something that Melvin Gordon was special at.
Of course, I don’t need to tell you about the strength of the Badgers to this point, but let’s talk about it anyway. There was a lot of uncertainty on defense coming into the season with a new defensive coordinator, but Justin Wilcox has the defense on Dave Arranda’s level. The Badgers have only allowed 11.8 points per game, ranking them 11th in the country.
The linebacker core has been outstanding, and that’s even without Chris Orr. T.J. Edwards is finally healthy and picked off a ball against MSU. Cichy and Biegel have been everything the Badgers need them to be. Ryan Connolly was a surprise performer against LSU, and T.J. Watt had a breakout game against MSU.
The secondary has made plenty of plays already as well. D’Cota Dixon had the game sealing interception against LSU. Safety Leo Musso returned a fumble to the house against MSU. Sojourn Shelton also had an interception against MSU, making a beautiful break on a hitch route.
With the way the defense is playing, the Badgers are going to be in every game, and it’s going to come down to the offense most nights. On the bright side, the offense has made enough plays against two really tough teams. However, the Badgers haven’t even played the two toughest teams on their schedule.
The Badgers are in the thick of the College Football Playoff conversation for right now. As every week goes by, however, the LSU win is becoming less and less significant. With three top 15 ranked opponents still on the schedule (Michigan, OSU, Nebraska), there is still plenty of time for the Badgers to bolster their resume.
Photo courtesy of espn.com.