Wisconsin 38, Purdue 17: 2-minute drill

September 23, 2023
|In Badgers
|By Zach Heilprin

WEST LAFAYETTE — Wisconsin scored four rushing touchdowns and forced three turnovers on its way to a 38-17 win at Purdue in the Big Ten opener for both teams on Friday night.

Game Balls

Offense:

QB Tanner Mordecai

His passing numbers don’t jump off the page at you — 17-for-27, 174 yards, one interception — but Mordecai did so many other things for the Badgers to make up for it. He ran it 14 times for 58 yards and two touchdowns, while also catching one pass for 19 yards. The sixth-year senior added another catch on a 2-point conversion to close out the scoring for Wisconsin.

 

 

RB Braelon Allen

Wisconsin’s lead back put up his second 100-yard game of the year, rushing for 116 yards on 16 carries (7.3 ypc). It included bouncing off a pair of attempted tackles and breaking away for a 52-yard gain early in the third quarter. Allen would end up scoring twice on the night as Wisconsin ran for 209 yards.

 

 

Defense:

CB Ricardo Hallman

Interceptions tend to come in bunches and Hallman is a testament to that. The redshirt sophomore picked off the final pass of the first half, outmuscling the wide receiver for the ball. Then, with Wisconsin holding on to a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter, Hallman got quarterback Hudson Card for his second interception of the day and his third in the last two weeks.

 

 

DE James Thompson Jr.

Wisconsin has given its defensive line the green light to play in the other team’s backfield and Thompson Jr. has taken advantage. He had two more tackles for loss, part of a six tackle game for him. He also added a sack, his third of the season, which is already a career-high for the junior.

What Went Right

The Start

For the first three weeks, Wisconsin had to answer questions about slow starts that allowed its opponents to outscore the team 41-30 in the first half. The Badgers had no such issues on Friday night, scoring touchdowns on their first three possessions and opening up a 21-3 lead at the break.

More turnovers

After not getting a single turnover in their first two games, the Badgers are making up for lost time. Over the last two weeks they’ve racked up nine takeaways, including three on Friday. In addition to Hallman’s two interceptions, Wisconsin also got a forced fumble from Kaden Johnson, which got recovered by Purdue, only for Darian Varner to strip the ball loose from Devin Mockobee and recover it. The Badgers are now +3 in turnover margin for the year.

 

 

What Went Wrong

The rushing defense

Purdue came into the game with one of the worst rushing offenses in the country and averaging 3.4 yards per carry. All the Boilermakers did on Friday was rush for 194 yards (6.3 ypc) and two scores. The Badgers got gashed on a series of big play, with the Boilermakers breaking off nine runs of 10 or more yards. Missed tackles, horrible angles and bad run fits were all to blame for the struggles. The 194 yards is the second-most Wisconsin has given up in a game since the start of 2020.

Penalties

The Badgers were tagged with 11 penalties, more than double their season average. Six of them were false starts (four on the OL, two on STs), two were holding and they also had a delay of game. The pre-snap penalties have become an issue in the last two weeks and has to be infuriating for the coaching staff.

Losing Chez

Wisconsin had one of the best running back tandems in college football with Allen and Chez Mellusi. Unforutanely, Allen will likely have to go it alone for the rest of the season. That’s after Mellusi suffered what appeared to be a serious left leg injury in the fourth quarter. He was taken off the field on a cart and went for X-rays. Coach Luke Fickell did not have an update afterwards, but the way Mellusi’s teammates talked, they know it’s an injury that is likely to sideline the fifth-year senior for the rest of the year.

 

 

Best Tweets

Simple

 

The red pants factor

JJ Watt needed to talk some trash

Best Video

You don’t want Braelon loose in your secondary

What They Said

Coach Luke Fickell on the loss of Chez Mellusi

“They’re hurting in there. If we lose him for a while, it’ll be tough. He’s not just a great football player for us. He’s not just a great tailback, he’s a bit of the heart and soul of some of the things that we do.”

In Case You Missed It

— Wisconsin opened the game in a base 3-4 defense, something that had not been seen much at all in the first three games. The Badgers eventually switched to playing more of a 2-4-5 and using their dollar package.

— Jake Chaney and Jordan Turner got the start at inside linebacker and played nearly the entire game while captain Maema Njongmeta watched from the sideline. Fickell said Njongmeta was available to play and he did end up getting in for one snap on the final Purdue offensive play of the game.

— Wisconsin broke out a trick play early in the game with wide receiver Will Pauling hitting Mordecai for a 19-yard gain.

 

 

— The win allowed Wisconsin to improve to 1-0 in Big Ten play for the first time since 2020.

— Wisconsin had an opportunity for another touchdown in the first half, as Mordecai laid a perfect pass down the sideline to Skyler Bell, but the wide receiver could not haul it in.

Inside the Numbers

17 — That is how many wins Wisconsin has over Purdue in a row. The Badgers have not lost to the Boilermakers since 2003.

8-8 — That is what Wisconsin started out on third down after coming into the game just 13 for 37. The Badgers finished 12 for 18.

6-6 — That’s what Wisconsin was in the red zone, staying perfect on the year. However, the Badgers had to settle for field goals in the third quarter or the game wouldn’t have been as close as it was.

5 — That is how many catches CJ Williams had for 56 yards. The USC transfer had just four catches in the first three games combined.

3 — That is how many field goals Nathaniel Vakos made on three tries. It included hitting from 48 yards out early in the fourth quarter.

4 — That is how many pass breakups cornerback Alexander Smith was credited with. The Badgers had seven as a team.

3 — That is how many kickoffs that Jake Van Dyke has put out of bounds this year after sending one out in the fourth quarter

89.4 — That was Hudson Card’s passer rating against Wisconsin.

What’s Next

Wisconsin (3-1, 1-0) will get next weekend off for its bye before returning the following week at home against Rutgers.