Luke Fickell gets signature win as Badgers come back in thriller win on road vs. Penn State
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It wasn’t pretty. At times, they looked dead in the water. But, the Wisconsin Badgers somehow found a way to pull off an incredible 24-20 comeback victory on the road over the No. 13 Penn State Nittany Lions for Luke Fickell’s biggest win as head coach.
Wisconsin’s offense looked dreadful at times after three rough interceptions from Colton Joseph. The Badgers trailed by 17 early in the second quarter. But behind an excellent defensive performance and some late-game heroics on offense, the resilient Badgers found a way to pull off a major upset in one of the toughest environments in college football.
The Badgers started the game on defense and quickly forced a punt after one first down, but the offense couldn’t do anything with the opportunity, as an offensive pass interference led to a quick three-and-out.
Wisconsin punted from deep in their own territory, and the Nittany Lions were able to start their next drive with exceptional field position at the Badgers 40-yard line. A 19-yard pass to Benjamin Brahmer got Penn State inside the Badgers 10-yard line, but the defense impressed with a stand once again, as they forced the Nittany Lions into a field goal despite having an opportunity at the one-yard line.
Wisconsin started its next drive with an 11-yard gain on first down, but they couldn’t get anything from there, dealing with another third-and-long that led to a quick punt. However, they were able to get Penn State inside their five-yard line, and Nittany Lions punted after a nine-play, 28-yard drive, thanks to another quality defensive drive.
That’s where the struggles really started for the offense. Colton Joseph threw an ugly pick-six to Josiah Zayas, throwing a poor ball out to the outside with multiple defenders in the area. Just like that, Penn State had its first touchdown and had a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter.
Wisconsin’s offense trotted out again, but the result was the same, as Joseph threw back-to-back interceptions, with this one coming on 3rd & 13. Once again, the Nittany Lions got great field position, as Daryus Dixon returned the pick to the Wisconsin 11-yard line. Three plays later, Rocco Becht ran a touchdown in to give Penn State a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter.
Wisconsin’s offense had no response, going three-and-out once again. This one was quite frustrating as the Badgers got nine yards on first down on an Abu Sama III run. But on 2nd & 1, the Badgers dropped back and Colton Joseph looked to scramble after not finding a receiver open. Trying to hit the edge, he was brought down for a loss of two by linebacker Tony Rojas. Then, he had a poor throw on 3rd & 3 for another three-and-out from the Badgers.
That didn’t faze the defense, though, who got off the field on four plays, as Hammond Russell got a sack on Rocco Becht on 2nd & 9. With 6:23 left in the half, the Badgers finally got some offensive momentum, as they went 11 plays and 75 yards, with Jacob Harris making the key 22-yard catch late in the half to get Wisconsin inside the red zone.
From there, two Colton Joseph runs finally got Wisconsin in the end zone, as the Badgers cut the lead to 17-7.
Despite two first-half interceptions and really only one quality offensive drive, the Badgers found themselves down only 10 points at half with the ball coming out of the second half.
But Wisconsin wasn’t able to capitalize on the chance, quickly punting once again. And once again, the defense came up with the stop, this time thanks to the big boys up front.
On the first play of Penn State’s drive, Rocco Becht’s pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage by Hammond Russell, and Charles Perkins was able to track the ball for the interception. Suddenly, the Badgers were in striking distance with great field position and a chance to cut the lead to one score.
But they went three-and-out after an errant first down throw, a five-yard run on second down, and a missed block on a receiver screen on third down, forcing them to settle for a field goal.
Penn State had a grueling seven-minute drive on the ground on their next possession, going 12 plays for 56 yards, with eight of the plays coming on the ground. They were able to move the ball for the first time all game, and were trending towards their third touchdown.
But Mason Posa forced a big tackle for loss on 1st & 10 at the Wisconsin 24, and Penn State couldn’t recover, settling for a field goal to take a 20-10 lead.
This is where hopes started to dwindle for the Badgers, as they had a quick three-and-out on their next drive, compiling only 18 total yards of offense in the third quarter.
It felt like the chance for Penn State to put the finishing touches on the game to begin the fourth quarter, but the Badgers forced a three-and-out of their own.
The Badgers were able to convert two first downs on the ensuing possession, and found themselves at the 50-yard line with a 3rd & 6. And the playcall was a good one, as Tyrell Henry was open on a swing pass that Colton Joseph missed with a poor throw.
Once again, the Badgers punted with just over 10 minutes left in the game. What happened next? You guessed it: another Wisconsin defensive stop with a three-and-out.
Wisconsin’s response? Colton Joseph’s third interception of the game on the first play of the drive. That felt like the nail in the coffin, as Wisconsin had really struggled to generate any offense in the second half.
Penn State had a chance to ice things with eight minutes left. And somehow, the Badgers found a way to muster another three-and-out, getting pressure on the quarterback and losing just 1:07 of clock.
At this point, it was do-or-die for the Badgers offense. And they finally showed some life behind some hard running from Darrion Dupree, who was a late-game hero in this game.
Dupree had runs of 17, 13, and six yards, while also catching a 10-yard pass to open the drive. Colton Joseph went 4 of 5 to end the drive, completing passes to Jacob Harris, Shamar Rigby, and Grant Stec before delivering a 13-yard dart to Eugene Hilton in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, the Badgers were right back in this game and it needed some more magic from its defense with just over three minutes left in the game.
It all came down to a 3rd & 4 after the Badgers used a timeout, and they were well prepared. Cooper Catalano jumped a Rocco Becht slant, nearly intercepting the pass. Regardless, the defense got the stop it needed, giving the offense ample time for a comeback.
Wisconsin only needed a field goal, but it was in real danger to begin the drive due to a false start on Jacob Harris and a hold on Kevin Heywood, setting them back with a 2nd & 19 at their own six-yard line.
Deep in his own territory, Jeff Grimes called a screen for Darrion Dupree and it was well-executed, with the running back going for 25 yards to breathe life into the offense.
Harris had another false start, setting Wisconsin back five more yards for a 2nd & 15. But he repaid those mistakes with a massive 72-yard touchdown catch, breaking a pair of tackles as he beat the Penn State defenders for a touchdown.
Somehow, the Badgers were leading 24-20 with just 1:13 left. And its fate was in the hands of their trusty defense, which had delivered all game.
Penn State got their way down to the Wisconsin 29-yard line after a pair of completions and a Wisconsin penalty, but Sebastian Cheeks got a clutch sack that forced Penn State to burn a valuable timeout,
From there, it was three unsuccessful shots near the end zone, and the Badgers won on the final play, breaking up the last pass to secure the biggest win of Luke Fickell’s career at Wisconsin.
It wasn’t pretty. And it certainly wasn’t probable. But the Badgers didn’t give it up, and found a way to secure a major victory on the road.
Now, they’re 3-1 going into Week 5 with a chance to be ranked on Monday. What a turn of events.
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