SAN DIEGO, Calif. - The Badgers’ 23-21 win over USC in the Holiday Bowl Wednesday was a great send-off for the UW seniors, as they were able to ride off into the San Diego sunset on top. However, the victory might have been even more important for the future of the team, as the next generation of Wisconsin leaders made their presence felt.
For every senior that played his heart out in his last collegiate game, there were two or three juniors and sophomores making major contributions that proved the team will be in good hands moving forward.
Lost in redshirt senior quarterback Joel Stave’s record-breaking 31st win with UW was the encouraging showing from the offensive players who will be back next season with some experience under their belts.
Regardless of who is under center for the Badgers in 2016, their success will be determined by the guys up front.
Redshirt senior left tackle Tyler Marz is the only offensive lineman on his way out, and he played with four redshirt freshmen who will all be battling for starting spots this spring. As a group, they gave Stave plenty of time to throw and opened up lanes for Wisconsin to establish their running attack.
Not to mention the backfield will be bringing back all of its talent, which should do wonders for whoever the quarterback will be.
Also aiding the new quarterback will be a pair of fourth-year wide receivers with big shoes to fill. Stave heavily targeted redshirt senior wide receiver Alex Erickson this season, and in will step junior Rob Wheelwright and redshirt sophomore Jazz Peavy.
“We’re best friends anyway, so I feel like we’re going to be great,” Wheelwright said. “Being able to make plays and compete against some of the best defenses, especially next year because of our schedule, I think it’s going to be great.”
Wheelwright has shown flashes all season of being able to be a reliable receiver for the Badgers, and he put it on display once again with an incredible one-handed catch in the second quarter.
“He’s been doing that more often than you think in practice,” Stave said. “To see him go up with one hand and pull it down like that on a big third down to set up a score for us, that was pretty sweet to see.”
He was second behind Erickson with four catches for 47 yards in this game, three of which went for first downs. Wheelwright finished the season averaging 13 yards per reception, and he and Peavy have the potential to be a reliable duo moving forward.
Defensively, Wisconsin has a one-two punch coming back that let everyone know redshirt senior outside linebacker Joe Schobert won’t be missed too much. Redshirt junior Vince Biegel and redshirt sophomore Jack Cichy brought a linebacking attack USC redshirt senior quarterback Cody Kessler won’t soon forget.
Biegel was credited with two quarterback hits, and Cichy sacked Kessler on three consecutive plays in the third quarter, finishing the game with a team-high nine tackles despite being forced to sit out the first half because of a targeting penalty against Minnesota.
“We’re used to going up against tackles, so when he gets to go one-on-one against tight ends and running backs, it’s unfair,” Schobert said of Cichy. “He took advantage of that on that one series, and I was surprised they didn’t make any adjustments to block him after that because he wrecked their game right there.”
Cichy capped off his performance by hitting Kessler as he threw late in the fourth quarter, causing the pass to fly off target and into the hands of junior cornerback Sojourn Shelton, his first interception this season.
That interception gave the Badgers the ball and let them kill the clock. The Trojans got one more shot at it, but on 4th-and-10 with just seconds remaining, Shelton’s coverage of junior USC wide receiver Darreus Rogers forced a sideline incompletion and secured the Wisconsin win.
With redshirt seniors Michael Caputo, Tanner McEvoy and Darius Hillary all moving on, it is Shelton who will have to step into the leadership role in this secondary in 2016. He finished his season strong, leading by example.
“Knowing that they were going to be passing the torch to me, Caputo hit me on a couple of things as far as taking care of meetings and whatnot,” Shelton said. “All those guys showed me, lead by example, and I’m the type of person that watches and picks up on the little things, so I’m ready.”
He’s confident in the young defensive backs that will be fighting for starting spots this spring. They’ve gotten playing time throughout the season, and the soon-to-be leader of the secondary likes what he’s seen.
“We’re talking about a group that can be special,” Shelton said. “The experience is there. It’s just a matter of time, of us putting it together, building the chemistry, and getting ready for next year.”
Ultimately, that will the whole team’s task. There is plenty of experience that will be coming back, and they’ll need to take advantage of the spring to put it together and build chemistry.
The future leaders of the Wisconsin Badgers gave the seniors a great last hurrah, and those leaving players should feel comfortable with the state of the team, moving on without them.
