BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
DALLAS, Texas — The journey ended where it began for members of the Wisconsin football team.
In a legendary NFL stadium.
In a taut, riveting duel against a highly-ranked, unbeaten opponent.
In a situation with high stakes and vulnerable reputations.
The Badgers handled both moments the same way, which is why they were seen laughing, joking and making confetti angels on the floor of AT&T Stadium on Monday afternoon.
Eighth-ranked UW carved out a 24-16 victory over 12th-rated and unbeaten Western Michigan to win the fabled Cotton Bowl Classic before 59,615 onlookers.
Just like that, the curtain went down on Wisconsin's season just as it went up 121 days earlier.
The opener was at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, the iconic home of the Packers, where the unranked Badgers stunned fifth-rated and presumed national title contender LSU 16-14 on Sept. 3.
The finish came here, in the ostentatious home of the Cowboys, where UW used a series of big plays on offense and defense to take out one of the last two unbeaten clubs in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
Wisconsin (11-3 overall) prevailed over the Broncos (13-1) because its core values remained consistent and its expectations never wavered.
"We knew what was at stake every time we had the ball or just came out to practice each day," senior tailback Corey Clement said.
There were doubters galore when UW began the season because its schedule was deemed overbearingly toxic. In all, there were six opponents ranked in the top 10 and all three losses came out of those matchups.
There were doubters aplenty when Wisconsin ended the season because the bowl assignment came 31 days after a demoralizing loss to Penn State in the Big Ten Conference championship game and required matching up with a non-Power Five league foe.
As was their habit all season, the Badgers made the most of a challenging moment, generated momentum for next season and created a series of important milestones.
"You're Cotton Bowl champs," UW coach Paul Chryst told his players in the locker room after the trophy celebration, "but you're a lot more than that."
Chryst paused.
"That's a lot of grit, determination and class," he said.
Most notably, the triumph produced the Wisconsin senior class with the most wins over a four-year period (41).
"There's a lot of great teams, a lot of great players to come through here," senior free safety Leo Musso said, his voice quivering with emotion. "Growing up here (in Waunakee, Wisconsin) I admired a lot of these teams, so it's pretty special that we get to put our mark on it."
The class of 13 seniors had fingerprints all over the statistics sheet in the finale.
Tailback Corey Clement accounted for 99 yards of total offense (71 rushing, 28 receiving) and a touchdown.
Tailback and co-captain Dare Ogunbowale added 50 yards in total offense (28 receiving, 22 rushing) and a TD.
Quarterback Bart Houston was nearly flawless throwing the ball (11-for-12, 159 yards) on the way to tying the legendary Bobby Layne for the best completion percentage in Cotton Bowl history (.917).
Musso was second on the team with nine tackles, while outside linebacker and co-captain Vince Biegel had five tackles, a quarterback sack and a forced fumble in his school-record-tying 54th career appearance.
Cornerback Sojourn Shelton also made his 54th career appearance, but augmented it with a program-record 51st career start.
Chryst opened his postgame presentation thanking the seniors, who won 41 of 54 games (.759) and were 10-1 in rivalry trophy games (.909) while working under three different head coaches.
"That was a tough road you all had and you came out of it," he said. "That's a hell of a deal."
The seniors finished with a flourish, winning 11 games in 2014, 10 in '15 and 11 in '16. They also won three straight bowl games.
"It's pretty cool, but it has to do with all the classes around us, too," long snapper Connor Udelhoven said. "They did an awesome job to allow this. I hope it's a record that's quickly broken.
"It's cool that we're the class to have done it, but I hope there's many classes that can beat it."
Biegel thought about jumping to the NFL after his junior season, but stuck around and is glad he did.
"It's a special group and I'm very proud of it," he said of the senior win record.
In a way, Houston was a microcosm for the UW season. He started the first three games before giving way to redshirt freshman Alex Hornibrook, who started the next nine before suffering a head injury. Undaunted, Houston started the last two and saved his most efficient outing for his last.
When Chryst entered the postgame locker room, the first player he embraced was Houston, who joined Joel Stave (2015), John Stocco ('06), Brooks Bollinger ('02) and Mike Samuel (1998) as the only Wisconsin quarterbacks to end their careers with a bowl win.
"The best satisfaction is going out here and finishing with this team," Houston said. "It's the last time we'll be together and I'm so proud of them, so proud of them for the way we fought through every game and every situation."
The Badgers jumped out to a 14-0 lead and did enough to keep their distance facing the eighth-best scoring offense in the FBS (43.5 points per game). Western Michigan, the Mid-American Conference champion, came in averaging 496.7 yards per game, but was limited to 280 by the seventh-best defense in the FBS.
The future for the Badgers unfolded in a variety of tantalizing ways.
Junior tight end Troy Fumagalli was named offensive player of the game after he caught six passes for 83 yards. His effort included an outrageous one-handed grab, the clinching TD reception and a 26-yard catch on third down that ended any hopes the Broncos had of a comeback.
Sophomore inside linebacker T.J. Edwards was named defensive player of the game thanks to a team-best 10 tackles and a fourth-quarter interception that shifted the momentum and set up the TD catch by Fumagalli.
Hornibrook, meanwhile, made the most of an abbreviated work day by completing both passes and delivering a deft touch throw to Fumagalli in the back of the end zone that made it 24-10.
When it was over, the Badgers celebrated the end of a long, fruitful season. Redshirt freshman tailback Bradrick Shaw was seen doing confetti angels with a broad smile, while Chryst not only photo-bombed an on-camera interview with Edwards, he cheerfully sprinkled confetti on Clement while he spoke to ESPN's Allison Williams during the trophy presentation.
"It's been one heck of a ride," Fumagalli said. "There's no other way to say it."
UW endured through losing three starters for the season and dropping consecutive Big Ten heartbreakers to fourth-ranked Michigan (14-7) and second-rated Ohio State (30-23 in overtime) in October.
Clement, who finished with a career-best 1,375 rushing yards and 15 TDs, said he took comfort in seeing how his teammates embraced practices, regardless of length or intensity.
"Everybody wanted to get better at something whether it was pass blocking or getting the play called or just being more decisive," he said. "The guys laid it out there for a great reason, a great cause."
Senior wide receiver Rob Wheelwright contributed one reception for 12 yards, but it went for a first down.
"Coach Chryst always talks about grit and that's what it's been like throughout the season," he said. "Being in tight battles. Being able to overcome adversity and make plays at the end of the day. That's what we live on."
Fumagalli said the seniors set the tone every day.
"Bouncing back and finding a way to get it done,' he said. "That speaks volumes for them."
Two other UW senior classes won 40 games: 2007 (40-11, .784) and 2012 (40-14, .741).
"A special memory," Wheelwright said.
"The best in Wisconsin history," Biegel said. "The record speaks for itself."
Twenty years from now, what will the UW seniors tell their friends about their classmates?
Said Houston: "We fought. We persevered through adversity and we handled it and we handled it well."
Said Ogunbowale: "We were a great group of guys, a really close group and we did a lot of special things as a team."
Said Udelhoven: "Shoot, the biggest thing is we had a lot of fun playing with each other. That's been the calling card of our whole team all season. It's been a blast."
Clement said being the winningest senior class at Wisconsin is a shared honor.
"That starts with everybody," he said. "There's no individuals.
"That definitely goes to the coaching staff, the training room people, the academic services people. It wouldn't be possible without those guys. I've got to say thank you to the people who deserve it."
The Badgers finished the season with memorable, look-alike, bookend performances.
"It's great to go out on a win like that and be able to celebrate with the guys," Ogunbowale said. "It's been exciting to do this, playing in the places we played at the games we played."
Musso had a hard time keeping his postgame emotions in check.
"It's bittersweet," he said. "Man, I love these guys so much. I wish I could play with them forever."
