Badgers Among Nation's Best in Rushing
September 30, 2003 | Football
Only five games into the 2003 season, the Wisconsin football team has already had three players rush for at least 100 yards and score three touchdowns in a game. The Badgers are the only team in the nation to accomplish this feat. The UW has a trio of running backs, junior Anthony Davis, sophomore Dwayne Smith and freshman Booker Stanley, who have all had 100-yard performances this season. Wisconsin ranks ninth in the nation and third in the Big Ten averaging 220 rushing yards per game.
The Badgers have two of the top ten individual rushing performances in the nation this season. Davis exploded for 247 yards and three touchdowns in the 48-31 victory over Akron marking the highest rushing total by an individual in the nation this season. Davis, who has missed the last two games due to injury, is averaging 141 yards per game and seven yards per carry.
Smith ran for a career-high 193 yards in the Badgers 38-20 win over Illinois last Saturday. His 193-yard effort is the tenth best individual mark in the nation this season. The Chicago, Ill. native has run for 418 yards and four touchdowns on 77 carries this season.
When both Davis and Smith were sidelined due to injury, Stanley stepped in and ran for a career-high 119 yards and three touchdowns in the 38-27 defeat of North Carolina. Coming into the game, Stanley had previously rushed for a total of 36 yards on nine carries in his Badger career.
Wisconsin joins Navy, Minnesota and Troy State as the only teams in the nation with three running backs that have gained at least 200 yards this season. The running back trio looks to continue the remarkable streak of 1,000 yard rushers during the Barry Alvarez era. The Badgers have had 1,000-yard rushers in 10 consecutive seasons dating back to 1993. Only North Carolina (12 from 1973-1984) and Southern California (10 from 1972-1981) have equaled or bettered Wisconsin's streak.
The Badgers (4-1, 1-0) continue conference play when they travel to Penn State (2-3, 0-1) Saturday, Oct. 4 (11 a.m. CDT, ESPN).
