Think back to 1992. Wisconsin Head Coach Barry Alvarez was entering into his third season as Badger head coach. The team had a mediocre 5-6 overall record (3-5 in Big Ten) and it was the last time the team failed to produce a 1,000-yard rusher, when the leading rusher was Brent Moss with 739 yards.
Welcome to 2003. It is now the Alvarez era with 13 Badger seasons under his belt, the team is barely hanging on with a 6-4 record (3-3 in Big Ten), and believe it or not, history may repeat itself as the season could conclude with no tailback reaching the 1,000 yard mark.
Could this be the end of an era? Or is it just a bump in the road? Wisconsin has had an acclaimed offense that is known for producing top-notch tailbacks that are capable of putting up the numbers. For the past decade, the numbers have done the talking as the Badgers have produced players like Ron Dayne, Michael Bennett and even current junior Anthony Davis who have rushed for more than 1,000 yards.
\It's something that we prided ourselves on and got the longest streak in the country,"" Offensive Coordinator and Running Backs Coach Brian White said. ""Ten years; it's certainly a tremendous tribute to our program and the running backs tradition that we've established here.""
Though a tradition is established, it looks like the streak might come to its end this season as none of the tailbacks are remotely close to reaching 1,000 yards. Davis is the closest with 595 yards while sophomore Dwayne Smith and freshman Booker Stanley have 530 yards and 521 yards, respectively.
Many factors have contributed to the team producing a dominant rusher over the years.
""It's also been a tremendous tribute to the backs staying healthy this year,"" White said. ""Anthony, he's been really hurt most of the year so if you're not healthy you're not going to have a 1,000-yard back. It is a possibility that that's the way it's going to unfold this year.""
Injuries indeed have plagued the offense from the start of the season. Things were looking promising for Davis as he rushed for 247 yards and had three touchdowns in the home opener against Akron. His season took a turn for the worse against UNLV as Davis went down with an ankle injury, which has limited him to appearing in only six games this season.
For the 2001 and 2002 seasons, Davis was the go-to-guy, rushing for more than 1,000 yards in each season. During his sophomore year he rushed for 1,555 yards, which is a record for any Badger sophomore. With his absence in the offense this year, Stanley and Smith were called on to attempt to fill in the void and be the one to reach 1,000.
""There kind of has been added pressure to be the one to reach 1,000,"" Stanley said. ""But with how we've been playing I don't know if there is going to be a 1,000-yard rusher unless a miracle happens where a guy rushes for 200-yards a game. You never know but we're going to have to play well.""
""It hasn't put any pressure on me,"" Smith said. ""It just makes you want to go out there and not only represent for the team but represent for him as well because you know he's a competitor and he wants to be out there and it's frustrating to see that his injury is hard to get over.""
Besides injuries, split playing time between the three has been a factor in trying to reach 1,000. Though none of the three really pulled ahead of one another, the trio of tailbacks has not panned out to be such a bad thing.
""I think that it's worked out (with the three running backs),"" Smith said. ""It's kept the guys fresh. With Davis out with an ankle injury and me and Booker switching off a lot more, that's keeping guys fresh and I don't think it's been bad at all.""
As the regular season is drawing to a close, it looks like the decade old streak of producing a 1,000-yard rusher will also see its conclusion. While this was a noble feat to the team, there are other things on their minds.
""I think it's important [to have a 1,000-yard rusher] but that's not our focus right now,"" Smith said. ""Right now our focus is to get these last two wins and hopefully get a better bowl game. We want our seniors to go out the right way. That's our focus right now.""
Fortunately for the Badgers, these three tailbacks all have another chance to come back and try to start up the streak again together. With a healthy Davis, and continued development of Smith and Stanley, the 2004 season could put the Badgers back on top of the rushing game.
""Booker and Dwayne have done a nice job for a majority of the year,"" White said. ""Anthony's as good as anyone and Dwayne and Booker are good solid backs that are only going to get better and have a chance to be outstanding backs.\
