Badgers Outlast Iowa For 34-28 Victory
November 03, 2001 | Football
The Wisconsin defense forced Iowa to go four-and-out with 1:43 remaining in the game, and then an interception by Nick Greisen on the Hawkeyes' final possession sealed a 34-28 Badger victory at Camp Randall Stadium.
UW junior quarterback Brooks Bollinger completed 14-of-21 passes for 262 yards and one touchdown to help the Badgers improve to 5-5 overall and 3-3 in the Big Ten. Junior wide receiver Lee Evans caught seven passes for 175 yards and now has at least one reception in 23 consecutive games, tying the school record set by Lee DeRamus in 1993.
'I thought that was a heck of a football game,' said UW head coach Barry Alvarez. 'I thought two teams really played hard and answered one another and really competed hard for four quarters. I was really pleased with the way my guys played.'
After forcing Iowa (4-4, 2-4) to punt on the opening drive, the Badgers put together an 11-play, 61-yard march to the Hawkeyes' 11 yard line and went ahead 3-0 on a Mark Neuser field goal. Wisconsin took a 10-0 lead with 4:35 left in the first quarter on a two-yard Bollinger keeper.
Iowa got on the board at the 12:38 mark in the second quarter on an 11-yard pass from Brad Banks to Kahlil Hill. A kick by Nate Kaeding narrowed the gap to 10-7 in favor of the UW.
Neuser kicked the second of his two field goals with 7:44 remaining in the first half before Iowa took its first lead of the game with a 68-yard drive that took only 48 seconds. On UI's second play from scrimmage, Banks used a pump-fake and found Hill wide open along the right sideline for a 54-yard touchdown. Hill totaled six receptions for 97 yards in the contest.
Touchdowns by freshmen Jerone Pettus and Darrin Charles gave the Badgers a 27-14 lead at halftime.
Iowa's Ladell Betts, who rushed 15 times for 121 yards, broke open for a 38-yard dash on his team's first drive of the second half to cut the Badger advantage to 27-21. Freshman Anthony Davis returned the favor on the UW 's next possession, capping an eight-play, 77-yard drive with a two-yard scamper into Iowa's endzone. The Hawkeyes finished out the game's scoring with a one-yard touchdown run by Banks.
The Badgers return to action in two weeks, hosting Michigan on Saturday, Nov. 17 at Camp Randall. Game time is yet to be announced.
