The Wisconsin football team (1-1 Big Ten, 4-2 overall) finally realized how easy it is to pile up points on the board with a healthy rushing attack Saturday in its 31-14 win.
“This is the first time that we’ve left the game feeling good about the run game, good about the offense,” redshirt junior offensive lineman Ryan Groy said.
All signs pointed to another frustrating offensive performance early on. The team had more penalty yards (45) than rushing yards (40) in the first half, and if it weren’t for junior James White’s 62-yard touchdown on a screen pass, the team likely would have been shutout in the first half. It also was key in giving at least some momentum to the Badgers before the half.
“I think the play that broke it wide open was James’s screen play,” Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema said.
It also gave the defense, which has been stout thus far in the season, some extra confidence.
“[Illinois] had the momentum for the majority of the first half,” White said. “So [the screen play] really helped us out and probably gave the defense a little boost, too.”
It was White’s effort in the first half while senior running back Montee Ball was struggling that spread the confidence throughout. If not for his tough runs late in the first half and early in the second, Ball may have not been running with an intensity level as high as his second-half performance showed.
“[James] told us that he was going to make some plays and it kind of put a fire under me,” Ball admitted. [So] then I had to get out there and make some plays or I [was] going to be on the bench.”
Ball had only 14 yards on six carries in the first half, but exploded in the second to finish with 119 yards on just 19 carries.
The second half burst can mostly be attributed to a bigger push from the offensive line and some adjustments at halftime. It also meant that Ball finally had some open field to work with.
“It was a different feeling,” he said. “I know that our group, the offensive group, will look at this fourth quarter tomorrow and carry it forward.”
Redshirt freshman Melvin Gordon even saw an improvement up front despite only rushing five times for 16 yards.
“It was starting to click,” he said. “Those guys were starting to feel it up front and you could definitely see it.”
Redshirt junior center Travis Frederick thought that the credit should be given to much more than the push the line generated in the second half, but also to the running backs simply being more aggressive.
“I do think that [the running backs] were running hard and we are starting to get back to what we need to be doing,” Frederick said. “I don’t want to give it all to James, I don’t want to give it all to Montee. I think all those guys were running well and obviously the offensive line was playing better in the second half.”
Ball, though, insisted that the near-perfect offensive showcase in the second half was a product of the team’s confidence. He also said that it was this confidence that gave the team similar results in its effective first half at Nebraska.
“Confidence, man. It’s that easy,” Ball said. “The energy level and just believing, it’s really just that simple.”
The fact that a stable rushing game opens up the possibility for balance and unpredictability in the play-calling is perhaps the most important thing the Badgers learned Saturday.
Take junior wide receiver Jared Abbrederis’ 59-yard play-action touchdown at the beginning of the fourth quarter. The team ran the ball 44 yards on only five carries from White and Ball in the previous drive. It was one play after a quick incompletion to redshirt junior tight end Brian Wozniak on the team’s next possession when redshirt freshman quarterback found Abbrederis deep.
“I think that play, in particular, and others are really looks that come off our run game, to be quite honest,” Bielema said.
“It was nice to see our guys kind of take control in the fourth quarter and kind of manhandle the guys up front,” Bielema said.
The Badgers finally showed flashes of the last couple of seasons’ form Saturday, and the point total in the second half indicated that. And it didn’t just allow them to score points; it allowed them to do so quickly and almost effortlessly, which is the complete opposite of almost every other scoring drive prior to Saturday.
Now, combining the offensive performance from Saturday’s second half with the one that was on display in the first half last weekend in Lincoln appears all that’s left to do for the suddenly confident Badgers.
“There was a huge emphasis during the week about playing a four-quarter game,” Bielema said.
But he also thinks there is something else to add to that.
“We work way too hard and put in too many hours not to enjoy this,” he said. “Win football games and have fun doing it. I thought that really came out today.”
