For Wisconsin football fans it is still undecided what was more frustrating this weekend-watching the Badgers turn the ball over time and time again, or the thought that Wisconsin may have to get by without their Heisman- caliber running back junior Anthony Davis.
Davis left the game early in the first half, after carrying the ball only twice for 11 yards, with what has been reported as a left ankle injury. The junior running back is the leading rusher in NCAA football over the past three seasons and his absence was noticeable in the Badgers' offensive attack.
Although sophomore Dwayne Smith filled in for Davis and rushed for 93 yards on 18 carries, the loss of Davis made it hard for the Badger offense to get into rhythm. Smith went on to fumble the ball twice, including a crucial turnover late in the first quarter when Wisconsin lost the ball on the five yard line.
Smith's fumble would not be the last time the Badgers would give the ball away as they finished the afternoon with five turnovers-two Sorgi interceptions, two Smith fumbles and a Brandon Williams fumble. In the end, it proved too much for the Badgers to overcome.
\Number one, turnovers kill you,"" Alvarez said. ""One takes points away from you when you are going in, the other one gives them seven. That's 14 [points] right there. Then your interceptions close to the goal line, I think their first points were set up by an interception on their field goal. You just give up too many points. You dig a very big hole for yourself and you dig a big hole and it just snowballs.""
The snowball continued in the second half for Wisconsin as well, as Sorgi was picked off by UNLV strong safety Jamaal Brimmer on the first possession of the second half. Brimmer returned the pass 29 yards and set up UNLV's third touchdown of the game to bring the score to 23-5.
""You give up the ball five times, I can't remember the last time we did that,"" offensive coordinator Brian White said. ""I think it was against Northwestern in '96. That is certainly not the formula that we use to win football games and we are not going to win any if we turn the ball over like that.""
The most devastating part of the five turnovers is that most of them led to UNLV points. The Runnin' Rebels were able to score 20 of their 23 points off Wisconsin turnovers.
""There is really not anything I can say that can make or break what happened on that field today,"" sophomore wide receiver Brandon Williams said. ""They just had a good game plan. They came out and executed and we didn't. It was total opposite.\
