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BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. -- The best game of Jazz Peavy's career with the Wisconsin football team ended with the sophomore wide receiver in an understandable state of confusion.
What constitutes a legal pass reception these days?
"I have no idea," he said.
Peavy thought he caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Joel Stave with 24 seconds left that put the 21st-ranked Badgers in position to win a frantic, crucial Big Ten Conference victory over Northwestern on Saturday at Camp Randall Stadium.
"I ran my route – a corner route,'' Peavy said. "I know I caught it. Took a couple steps. Fell down with it."
The designed roll-out right by Stave and subsequent pitch-and-catch seemingly capped a seven-play, 64-yard march that erased a 13-7 deficit. All that was needed was for sophomore kicker Rafael Gaglianone to convert the extra point and Wisconsin would be in position to close out Senior Day in manic, epic style.
But after the play was reviewed, game officials, saying Peavy lost control of the ball as he tumbled out of bounds, ruled that he "did not complete the process of the catch."
Boos from the announced crowd of 75,276 could still be heard two plays later when a fourth-down pass from junior backup quarterback Bart Houston intended for senior wide receiver Tanner McEvoy in the middle of the end zone fell incomplete with 6 seconds left.
Confusion reigned after the Badgers (8-3 overall, 5-2 Big Ten) endured a mistake-filled, one-score setback at home for the second time this season.
"The rule is you have to catch it all the way to the ground, but if you have two or three feet in before you fall, you'd expect that to be a catch," McEvoy said.
"I don't even know what a catch is anymore," Wisconsin sophomore tight end Troy Fumagalli said. "I've got to get informed."
But McEvoy, one of 19 seniors honored before the game, declined to offer excuses.
"There's guys that are looking at the replay knowing more than what we know about the rules, so if that's the call, it is what it is," he said. "We had an opportunity and we didn't finish."
The outing was achingly similar to the Big Ten season opener when Iowa emerged with a 10-6 victory that helped set the stage for its current 11-0 overall record and West Division title.
In that game, the Badgers turned the ball over four times, including a fumble by Stave on the Hawkeyes' 1 midway through the fourth quarter.
This time, Wisconsin had five giveaways, two of which the Wildcats used to score 10 points.
"You can't win with five turnovers," said McEvoy, who lost a first-quarter fumble, "and we still had an opportunity."
That's because the Badgers got a brilliant performance from their defense. The unit allowed 209 yards of total offense and controlled Northwestern to such degree that Wisconsin had a chance at the end despite the five turnovers and a 2-for-13 showing on third-down conversions.
"They kept us in this game," Peavy said of the defense, led by junior outside linebacker Vince Biegel (14 tackles) and senior outside linebacker Joe Schobert (13 tackles, including three for losses). "If we would have won this game it would have been because of the defense. They played excellent."
The final drive for the Badgers was a microcosm of their luckless day. In addition to the turnovers, they had a 78-yard punt return for a TD by senior wide receiver Alex Erickson in the third quarter called back because officials ruled he called for a fair catch. It appeared Erickson was merely warning onrushing teammates to steer clear of the bounding ball.
The last possession for Wisconsin began at its 26 with no timeouts and 1:47 left. After an incompletion, Stave found McEvoy for 18 yards, junior tailback Dare Ogunbowale for 6 and a 15-yarder to Peavy that put the ball at the Northwestern 35.
"We take a lot of pride in that two-minute drill," Fumagalli said. "We were really confident. I thought we were going to pull it out."
That last hook-up gave Peavy a team-best five catches for a career-high 88 yards. His 42-yard reception midway through the third quarter, another career-best, set up a 9-yard scoring run by junior tailback Corey Clement.
Peavy said Stave, who was 20-for-34 for 229 yards, was his usual self during the drive.
"He was locked in," Peavy said. "Joel was calm. He forgot about any other mistake he may have made earlier in the game and went out there and executed."
After another incompletion, Stave hit McEvoy for 12 yards and led Fumagalli perfectly over the middle for a 22-yard pickup that initially looked like a TD. But replays showed he was down at the 1.
The fateful throw to Peavy was next.
"I thought we had it," Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said, adding he was surprised it was reviewed.
After the completion was overturned, Stave was sacked by defensive lineman Deonte Gibson for the third time. Not only did the third-down play lose 10 yards to the 11, Stave landed on his head and looked woozy as he got to his feet.
With the clock winding down, Ogunbowale had the presence of mind to slide under center, take the snap and spike the ball to stop the clock with 6 seconds left.
"I didn't even realize what was going on until he was under there," McEvoy said.
"A big, heads-up play," Fumagalli said. "It gave us another chance to score."
Enter Houston for one snap with the game on the line.
"The last thing Coach Chryst told me is, 'Have fun and play the game,'" he said.
Houston said he went with his first read, but couldn't connect with McEvoy.
"We can make all the excuses we want, but that's why we're here," Houston said of the final moments. "We're here to deal with adversity and win ballgames. We had four chances to do it and didn't do it."
The Badgers close out the regular season next Saturday with a trip to Minnesota and another duel for Paul Bunyan's Axe. Between now and then, a controversial setback on Senior Day must be digested.
"It was a pretty heartbreaking loss," McEvoy said, "but we still have another game next week against a really good team, so we have to be prepared."
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