The Voice: Chance to reflect on Badgers’ accomplishments

Taiwan Deal vs. Minnesota, Nov. 28, 2015

Photo by: David Stluka

The Voice: Chance to reflect on Badgers’ accomplishments

December 01, 2015 | Football

Successful regular season marked by perseverance, growth

By: Matt Lepay

MADISON, Wis. -- Yes, you could say that on two occasions, the Badgers were within one yard of victory. You could say this team was just THAT close to being 11-1.

On the other hand, the Badgers were about four inches from losing to Nebraska. That is the approximate distance between the football and the upright on Rafeal Gaglianone's game-winning field goal in Lincoln.

So as Bill Parcells famously said "You are what your record says you are."

For the Badgers, that record is 9-3. And that is pretty darn good.

Going into the season, question marks included the depth at tailback and wide receiver as well as the youth of the offensive line. As the season moved along, the line became younger. For last Saturday's regular season finale at Minnesota, the starting five up front featured four redshirt freshmen.

After making the move from defensive back to tailback last year, Dare Ogunbowale ended up with 34 carries. Last Saturday against the Gophers he had 33 – good for 155 yards and a touchdown.

On defense it was fair to wonder about the inside linebackers. Turns out T. J. Edwards, Jack Cichy and Chris Orr are really good, with a lot of football in a Wisconsin uniform ahead of them.

On the defensive line, the continued growth of players such as Chikwe Obasih, Arthur Goldberg and Connor Sheehy – among others – is a very good sign.

Actually, the defense is just plain good everywhere. Special might be a better description. Joe Schobert and Vince Biegel would make any opposing quarterback nervous. The combination of young talent and veteran savvy have made this unit one of the nation's very best.

How about Tanner McEvoy's last two years? Last fall he set a school record for rushing yards by a quarterback. This season he leads the team with six interceptions. He also plays wide receiver, and every now and then takes a snap as a wildcat quarterback.

McEvoy relates it to backyard football, and he is having a ton of fun along the way.

While cornerbacks Sojourn Shelton and Darius Hillary have no interceptions, defensive coordinator Dave Aranda is quick to point out the play of those two has been a major factor in the success of the defense. It always helps when a coordinator can trust his corners.

This team is far from perfect. Everyone seems to understand it, which is one of this group's many strengths. The Badgers had to throw it more than we are used to seeing. Explosive plays were few and far between. The injury list continued to grow.

Yet nine times out of 12, the Badgers did what they had to do to win. Not bad. Not bad at all.

It is the latest group of seniors who can say they never lost possession of Paul Bunyan's Axe. The streak of bowl games will extend to 14 years. They have handled victory with class, and defeat with dignity.

After the bitter ending to the Northwestern game, plus an early pick-6 by the Gophers, it might have been easy to roll over. The Badgers had none of it. They answered with a 10-play touchdown drive. Nine runs, plus a key 11-yard connection between Joel Stave and Alex Erickson on third-and-seven.

They put together the kind of scoring drives that had to make Barry Alvarez smile. Old-school, pound the rock marches featuring a good push from the big boys, and angry running from Ogunbowale, Taiwan Deal, Alec Ingold and Derek Watt. Yes, even the old fullback got a little sugar. He had three carries, which is two more than he had through the first 11 games.

We can make light of that statistic because this team appears to be a selfless bunch. I would think those in the Badgers' locker room are fully aware of each player's value. Stuff that goes well beyond what shows up in the box score.

And just like that, the regular season has come to an end. It is a chance for players and coaches to exhale. Maybe for fans as well.

The college football season moves quickly. The good news is we can watch this team one more time. One chance in a bowl game to reach win number 10.

I'm already looking forward to it.