Keeping a steady ship, Badgers sail through season’s first challenge
September 04, 2016 | Football, Mike Lucas
Wisconsin shows it can hold its own in a heavyweight fight with win over LSU
 |
||
|
BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
GREEN BAY — Whether leading or trailing, the score didn't have any bearing on Wisconsin center Michael Deiter, who didn't change the tone of his message in the huddle or on the sideline.
He wasn't alone. There were 10 other guys on offense thinking and acting the same way. And because there were no leaps of faith, it all ended with Lambeau Leaps for all here Saturday.
"Even when it was 13-0," Deiter related, "I was telling the guys, 'Don't get too high. Don't get too low. Just stay steady.' It's football. Anything can happen. And it just turned into a football game."
After quarterback Bart Houston connected with tight end Troy Fumagalli for a 27-yard gain on the Badgers' first offensive play of the third quarter, LSU got a heavy dose of Wisconsin football.
Corey Clement rushed for 12 yards.
Clement rushed for 10.
Clement rushed for 4.
Clement rushed for 5 and a touchdown.
"The line played their (bleeps) off," observed Houston, who thought all of the running backs, but particularly Clement on that series, were "running like a chicken with their head cut off."
Wisconsin 13, LSU 0.
That was the high.
"Our offensive line was fired up every single drive that we went out there to just move the ball," said left tackle Ryan Ramczyk, who was making his first career start after transferring from Stevens Point.
"Every possession that we had, we wanted to go in for a touchdown and just win the line of scrimmage. But things can change at any time. That's football for you."
They changed in a blink.
A Houston pass was picked off by LSU's Tre'Davious White and returned 21 yards for a TD.
Wisconsin 13, LSU 7.
"They've got athletes," Houston conceded. "And they're going to make plays."
On UW's next possession, Houston found George Rushing for 11 yards and a first down. But the aforementioned White, a 36-game starter, knocked the ball loose and the Tigers recovered.
It took two plays for quarterback Brandon Harris to get his team in the end zone.
LSU 14, Wisconsin 13.
That was the low.
"Even in that two-drive stretch," Houston said, "where we didn't do anything and they scored — we helped them score — I was telling everyone, 'Hey, keep it going. We've got this. Strive for victory.'
"I felt like we didn't lose any confidence in ourselves."
Actions speak louder than words. How did Houston command the huddle after falling behind?
"He handled himself very well," said Fumagalli. "He knew that he had made a mistake (on the White interception) but he had confidence in himself to come back.
"It's always about the next play and he did a good job with that — just letting the past be the past and he focused on what he could control."
That didn't surprise anybody.
"It's just like I would have expected him to do," Deiter said. "He has that mentality that it's not going to affect him. He just kept playing and he kept battling.
"He trusted us (the O-line) and he trusted his receivers. I didn't see any drop-off in him. I didn't see any pouting. He stood strong."
That rubbed off on his teammates, especially the younger ones.
"It wasn't an overly stressful thing," said left guard Jon Dietzen, who went into the game as a tag-team partner with Micah Kapoi but got most of the snaps after Kapoi was injured.
"We all understood the goal and we understood the situation that we were in and we knew what we had to do to get out of it."
Wisconsin head coach Paul Chryst's demeanor never changed during this critical stretch.
"Coach did a great job of talking to us," said wide receiver Rob Wheelwright. "He loves it when the game is close. He smiles and makes jokes. He keeps us calm
"He just wants us to go out there and play our game and make some plays."
That's pretty much what Chryst relayed to Houston after his second pick.
"He said, 'If you see what you've got (out of the defense), let it go — throw him (the receiver) open and make him right,'" Houston said. "That was his version of, "We're OK. Get it going.'"
On the game-winning drive in the fourth quarter, Houston was 3-for-3. He had completions of 7 yards to Jazz Peavy and 20 and 11 yards to Fumagalli to move the Badgers into field goal position.
"We battled a ton of adversity today," said Fumagalli, who finished with seven catches for 100 yards, bot career highs. "We have stuff to clean up, but we just kept playing and we found a way to win."
Rafael Gaglianone paved the way with three field goals (30, 48, 47).
Each facet contributed. Special teams. Offense. Defense.
"We've been through it before," Wheelwright said. "We've been through adversity. We've been in tough games, close games. And we were on the right side today.
"We came here for a purpose and the purpose was to win."
In the first quarter, the best defense against the Tigers was the offense. That set the tone. The Badgers controlled the ball (13:07 to 1:53), ran more plays (25 to 6) and had more first downs (7 to 0).
Leonard Fournette had two rushes for 7 yards. For perspective, Houston had one more carry than the leading rusher in college football last season. Who knew Houston could even run?
"Me neither," Houston said. "I might play fullback next week."
Even though the game was still scoreless deep into the second quarter, Deiter said, "It was just kind of what we had to do. That was the game plan: ground and pound and control the clock."
SEC teams like to flex their muscles. But the Badgers were more physical on the line of scrimmage (offensively) and at the point of attack (defensively).
"I can't say enough about how they played on defense," Fumagalli said, "and how they responded to 'Leonard Fournette is this and he's that …
"They just went out there and stuck him in the mouth."
It wasn't always pretty or artistic, which is often characteristic of a heavyweight fight.
Did the Badgers prove that they could take a punch after they lost the lead?
"I thought so," said Deiter. "But I thought you saw that we could deliver one. We came out and we played well. It was not like we were just taking punches. We were delivering them, too."
Less than one hour after the stunning win, Houston was still piecing it together.
"Reflecting on it now," he said, carefully choosing his words, "Oh, God, I did have two picks."
Houston shook his head and admitted, "It just goes to show that I have room for improvement, me personally, in order to be a better quarterback. I can be way better to help this team."
Besides the designated season-long captains Vince Biegel and Dare Ogunbowale, Houston and Sojourn Shelton represented Wisconsin during the coin toss.
"While we were waiting to go out there for the flip, I kind of soaked it all in," Houston said of the Lambeau Field environment. "I know our fans are great. I know their fans are great.
"I've got a buddy who I went to high school with and he plays rugby for LSU. He's always talking about how 'We're better than you.'"
Not on this glorious day in Green Bay.
"It was special just looking around and seeing everybody," said Fumagalli, a native of Aurora, Illinois. "Even as a Bears fan, I think that was the coolest place I've ever been in. I really mean that.
"And after a hard-fought win, it was really special."
Echoed Wheelwright, "Memorable. Legendary. Stuff that you will never forget."
And, oh, by the way …
"This," Wheelwright said, "is a great way to start the season."
