Box Score
BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MINNEAPOLIS — A long list of obstacles stood in the way of the Wisconsin football team in its pursuit of history, but one stood out.
It wasn't the coaching changes or the injuries.
It wasn't the position switches or youth movements.
It wasn't the skeptics or the second-guessers.
For the Badgers to be 12-0 overall, to be the first team in Big Ten Conference history to finish a regular season 9-0, they needed to confront the people they know best.
Themselves.
Fifth-ranked UW continued a landmark project Saturday when it walloped Minnesota 31-0 at TCF Bank Stadium and retained Paul Bunyan's Axe for the 14th consecutive year.
The most-played rivalry in Football Bowl Subdivision history — 127 games and counting — provided a memorable backdrop for many things, but mostly it was perfection.
"Thinking about it now, it's such a crazy thing to be able to do, especially at this level," junior left tackle Michael Deiter said after the Badgers shut out their archrival in the Twin Cities for the first time since 1922. "To have an undefeated regular season, it's unexplainable. It's not an easy thing to go out and do."
Wisconsin will be one of two unbeaten FBS teams when it faces Ohio State (10-3) in the Big Ten Championship Game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Dec. 2.
To be 13-0 would mean UW would be Big Ten titlists for the first time since 2012 and be all but guaranteed a spot in the College Football Playoff semifinals for the first time.
Wisconsin is the eighth team in the modern era of the Big Ten (since 1946) to start a season 12-0, joining Penn State in 1994, Michigan in '97, Ohio State in 2002, '06, '12 and '13 and Iowa in 2015.
"I've never been 12-0 in my life," junior safety D'Cota Dixon said. "It's definitely a surreal feeling."
Months ago, it was possible for optimistic Wisconsin followers to make out a faint path to 12-0. The schedule was doable. The talent and personnel was evident. A break or two here and there would be nice.
But for every one of those 12 victories there was a perceived barrier, starting from within.
"Each week there's an obstacle," UW coach Paul Chryst said. "It's staying in the moment."
Every game presented a different challenge that went beyond logistics and tactical preparation.
"Just the mindset that you can't let one win, one game, get too big or too small," junior inside linebacker Ryan Connelly said.
"The toughest thing to do is stay focused on a week-to-week basis," Deiter said. "There's a ton of stuff to distract you and we just did a really good job of staying focused, not getting distracted.
"In the end, that's how you make a 12-0 season go."
Twelve prominent question marks began coming to life in the offseason:
1: Two underclassmen, junior outside linebacker T.J. Watt and offensive tackle Ryan Ramczyk, declared for the NFL draft and were taken in the first round by Pittsburgh and New Orleans, respectively. But the units they left behind in Madison haven't missed a beat based on production.
2: Chryst promoting Jim Leonhard to defensive coordinator, this a season after Leonhard made his coaching debut at any level, was seen by some as a risk. But the Badgers finished the final weekend of the regular season ranked first nationally in total defense and second in scoring defense even though they're on their third coordinator in three years.
3: Bringing in Bob Bostad, a renowned offensive line coach, to oversee the inside linebackers was seen by some as an outside-the-box stretch by Chryst. But that unit has grown in unique ways and flourished under Bostad while overcoming a spate of key injuries.
4: Three veterans were projected to be the go-to guys at tailback when preseason camp began, a committee to replace departed Corey Clement and his 1,375 rushing yards. But injuries to junior Chris James, junior Taiwan Deal and sophomore Bradrick Shaw have created an opening for breathtaking true freshman Jonathan Taylor to exploit on the way to becoming a Doak Walker Award finalist.
5: Losing senior inside linebacker Jack Cichy to a season-ending knee injury in training camp robbed the Badgers of a gifted playmaker, leader and character. But his current replacement, Connelly, is one of the club leaders in tackles and tackles for loss.
6: It was seen as a risk when Deiter was moved from center to left tackle, a position he'd never played before. But not only did it allow gifted redshirt freshman Tyler Biadasz to take over at center, it made the offensive line a better overall unit.
7: Having senior wide receiver Jazz Peavy sidelined by injury and personal issues, this a season after he led the team in receiving yardage and big plays, left a large void in the passing game. But his replacement, sophomore Quintez Cephus, has more receiving yards and TDs than anyone else on the team.
8: Watching Cephus go down to a season-ending leg injury with three games left was seen as a major blow to the throw game. But since that game at Indiana, sophomore A.J. Taylor, redshirt freshman Kendric Pryor and true freshman Danny Davis have been brilliantly clutch.
9: For the better part of the regular season, the Badgers were slow starters on offense, their momentum typically derailed by penalties, turnovers or poor execution. But whatever issues came to life, they were always addressed at halftime because UW outscored opponents 226-58 in the second half.
10: In his first season as the unquestioned No. 1 quarterback, sophomore Alex Hornibrook has been criticized for throwing 13 interceptions, including at least one in eight straight games. But he's 19-2 as a starter and few peers have his knack for making big plays in the red zone.
11: When a veteran team makes way for an abundance of youth — 27 underclassmen are in the current two-deep — it's fair to wonder about chemistry. But some of the most experienced players maintain that this is an exceptionally close team.
12: Finally, critics have taken almost weekly issue with Wisconsin's schedule and the perception it lacks top-end muscle. But there's something to be said for winning every game, something UW hadn't done since going 7-0 in 1912.
"It's not easy no matter who you're playing to go 12-0," Dixon said.
The blowout victory over the Gophers (5-7, 2-7) touched off a familiar postgame celebration for UW players.
While the seniors carried the oversized Axe to each goal post and pantomimed chopping it down, Wisconsin fans roared their approval; Chryst shared a hug with his boss, Barry Alvarez; Hornibrook handed game-worn souvenirs to fans as he exited the field; and senior defensive ends Alec James carried a white board that advertised the amazing fact that the Badgers have taken over the all-time lead in the series that dates back to 1890 (60-59-8).
"This is way more special than being 12-0 right now," said James, adding that being unbeaten "is real nice, but you never want to be that class that breaks the streak."
As the Badgers have kept winning, the questions have kept coming.
"Toward the end of the year it turned into a big talking point — 'How do you stay undefeated?'" Deiter noted.
The answer is obvious.
"Just taking it week by week," he said.
Being consistently good at anything is very difficult. Dixon said the Badgers have been very good about living in the present.
"That's what got us to 12-0," he said. "Being focused on each individual game each week. It's helped us get where we want to be."
But the journey is not done. The Badgers will find out what the CFP committee thinks of their playoff resume come Tuesday.
"It's been a heck of a ride," Dixon said. "We've got a lot more ahead of us."
