Defining Moments: Remembering the big plays of Wisconsin’s undefeated 12-0 start
December 02, 2017 | Football, Andy Baggot, Varsity Magazine
Timely touchdowns. Breakaway runs. Energizing takeaways. How did Wisconsin achieve an undefeated 12-0 season? Let’s take a look at 12 unforgettable moments for the Badgers.
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BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — David Edwards, the affable sophomore right tackle for the Wisconsin football team, was asked for his most memorable moments from an unforgettable regular season.
The list of possibilities is pleasantly long.
The Badgers won all 12 regular season games for the first time in program history and will play Ohio State in the Big Ten Football Championship Game Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
A victory over the Buckeyes would give UW its 15th league title — the first since 2012 — and almost certainly secure a berth in the four-team College Football Playoff.
This isn't the biggest game in Wisconsin football history — that distinction belongs to the second-ranked '62 squad, which would have won the national championship with a Rose Bowl victory over No. 1 USC — but it's not far behind.
There's an old saying that says you should never stumble over something behind you, so it's understandable if UW coaches and players are focused on the moment and not the past.
But going 12-0 demands some reflection and appreciation, hence the question to the ever-thoughtful Edwards.
He hit a lot of the high notes, like senior tight end Troy Fumagalli's 100-yard receiving day vs. Utah State, senior outside linebacker Garret Dooley's three-sack outing vs. Northwestern, senior safety Joe Ferguson's three-takeaway extravaganza vs. Indiana, and senior outside linebacker Leon Jacobs' tide-turning fumble return vs. Iowa.
"Really, you could throw in just about any Jonathan Taylor game," Edwards said of the brilliant, record-setting true freshman tailback.
There are so many to choose from.
Funny, Edwards' initial list of memorable moments and significant plays didn't include what happened during a victory at Illinois. That's when junior left tackle Michael Deiter scored a touchdown.
"Oh, my God, how could I forget about that?" Edwards asked. "I'd throw that one on there for sure. That might be No. 1."
To commemorate 12-0, here is a chronological list of the biggest, most impactful moments turned in by the Badgers during their perfect regular season:
1. When the Badgers opened preseason training camp in August, Jonathan Taylor sat behind four proven tailbacks on the depth chart. Then came a live scrimmage and Taylor's unofficial coming out party on Aug. 18. Going up against the No. 1 defense, he peeled off a long touchdown run before making a one-handed grab of a screen pass and churning up field for another lengthy TD. At one point a veteran player turned and asked no one in particular, "He's our starter, right?"
2. Taylor soon became the talk of training camp, but it wasn't until the second game vs. Florida Atlantic on Sept. 9 that UW fans got to see what all the fuss was about. On the second play from scrimmage at Camp Randall Stadium, Taylor took a handoff from sophomore quarterback Alex Hornibrook and angled patiently to his left in search of a crease. Suddenly he found one in the middle of the field and shimmied through it, pulling away from a cluster of three defenders and zooming to the end zone 64 yards away. Taylor finished with 26 carries for 223 yards and three TDs and the Badgers prevailed 31-14. "He's got everything," Big Ten Network analyst Matt Millen said.
Big Ten Championship Game Week Each day, we'll break down what helped the #Badgers get to this point In 2017, fans met Jonathan Taylor
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) November 28, 2017
3. The Badgers are 19-2 when Hornibrook starts at quarterback and his finest statistical outing came in a 40-6 non-conference thrashing of BYU in Provo, Utah, on Sept. 16. He completed 18 of 19 passes — the lone miss was a well-thrown pass broken up by a big hit — while setting the program's single-game completion percentage record (94.7). Hornibrook also threw for a career-best 256 yards and four TDs. Amazingly, he finished 8-for-8 for 114 yards and three scores on third down at LaVell Edwards Stadium, giving fans a glimpse of how high his ceiling is.
4. Four different defensive players have returned interceptions for touchdowns this season — the most for UW since at least 1950 — but none more vital than the one by sophomore inside linebacker Chris Orr during a 38-17 Big Ten win at Nebraska on Oct. 7. The Cornhuskers had taken the opening kickoff at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln and used two big gainers — a 13-yard run and 37-yard pass play — to put Wisconsin on its heels. But instead of cashing in with a momentum-generating TD, a swing pass from Huskers quarterback Tanner Lee caromed off the helmet of running back Devine Ozigbo in the right flat and directly into Orr's arms. Orr raced 78 yards untouched for the TD.
Big Ten Championship Game Week Each day, we'll take a look at what helped the #Badgers get to this point. First up, the defense. This group's been fun to watch
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) November 27, 2017
5. There were several mood swings during the victory over Nebraska, but none bigger than the sequence to end the first half. The Huskers scored on an 80-yard catch-and-run play with 1 minute, 20 seconds left to pull within 10-7. But on the next play from scrimmage for UW, Taylor took a handoff, zoomed through a hole between right guard and right tackle, split two defenders and outraced a third to the end zone 75 yards away. Taylor finished with 25 carries for 249 yards and two TDs. "He's got the whole package," Millen told his BTN audience.
6. When you're whistled for eight penalties, turn the ball over three times and have a punt blocked like the Badgers did vs. Purdue on Oct. 14, you need some big plays to prevail. Taylor was one source, carrying a career-best 30 times for 219 yards, 67 coming on a game-opening TD run. But the exclamation mark at Camp Randall came in the fourth quarter courtesy of Jacobs, who intercepted an Elijah Sindelar pass on second-and-goal from the UW 7-yard line with 8:14 remaining. The Boilermakers never got the ball back and the Badgers hung on for a 17-9 triumph.
Big Ten Championship Game Week Each day, we'll break down what helped the #Badgers get to this point A staple of Wisconsin has long been a strong offensive line
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) November 29, 2017
7. The first major milestone of Taylor's rushing career at UW came during a 38-13 decision over Maryland on Oct. 21 at Camp Randall. His 22-carry, 126-yard, one-TD outing lacked a single neon moment, but Taylor tied the NCAA record for being the quickest freshman to reach 1,000 rushing yards in a season. The list is short and deluxe: Emmitt Smith of Florida, Marshall Faulk of San Diego State, Adrian Peterson of Oklahoma, Jamario Thomas of North Texas and P.J. Hill of Wisconsin. Smith, Faulk, Peterson and Thomas were true freshmen like Taylor.
8. UW has seen 19 different players score touchdowns this season — a program record for the modern era — none more out-of-the-box than the one that featured Deiter on Oct. 28 vs. Illinois at Memorial Stadium in Champaign. The Badgers were facing third-and-goal from the Illini 4-yard line when Hornibrook called for a "tackle screen left" in the huddle. Hornibrook rolled out to his right, spun and found Deiter open in the left flat with a wall of four blockers waiting to escort him. The intended screen became a run when the pass went behind the line of scrimmage, but no matter. Deiter, all 6-foot-6 and 328 pounds, made it to the end zone unscathed and was mobbed by his offensive teammates, closing out a 24-10 victory.
Voting is now underway for the 2017 @PiesmanTrophy We ask that you please consider Michael Deiter for this prestigious award. #OnWisconsin ?? http://bit.ly/2k2mV1j
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) November 27, 2017
9. Sophomore wide receiver Quintez Cephus wasn't in uniform when UW finished off a 45-17 triumph over Indiana on Nov. 4. He was in a wheelchair after sustaining an injury to his right leg that subsequently required season-ending surgery. But Cephus didn't go quietly. His team-leading sixth touchdown catch put the Badgers ahead for good at 14-10 in the second quarter. Cephus, known for his athleticism and tenacity, outdueled a single defender in the left corner of the end zone for the pass from Hornibrook. Cephus finished the season with 30 catches for 501 yards.
10. Like the timely interception he had vs. Purdue, Jacobs made a brilliant play vs. Iowa that helped set the stage for a 38-14 win on Nov. 11 at Camp Randall. The Badgers led 17-14 in the third quarter when an errant snap by the Hawkeyes led to a loose ball in the backfield. Jacobs alertly scooped up the ball and hustled 21 yards for a TD that put UW in control. It was one of two fumble recoveries on the day for Jacobs, who has an impressively busy stat line after 12 games: 50 tackles, 8.5 TFLs, 3.5 sacks, eight quarterback hurries, one interception and one forced fumble.
11. On the same day junior cornerback Nick Nelson set the UW single-season record for most pass breakups — he now has 20 — he brought a Senior Day crowd at Camp Randall to its feet during a 24-10 victory over Michigan on Nov. 18. He watched a first-quarter punt bounce twice before picking it up amid congestion at the 50-yard line in front of the visitor's bench. Nelson nimbly made his way down the right sideline, then spied a seam that drew him to the middle of the field and to the end zone, breaking a scoreless tie.
12. Facing powerful Michigan in Madison for the first time since 2009, the Badgers looked wobbly late in the third, trailing 10-7 and facing a third-and-13 from their own 31. That's when Hornibrook and sophomore wide receiver A.J. Taylor collaborated on two exquisite plays in the clutch. The first was a 51-yard strike down the left sideline that Hornibrook delivered perfectly. The second connection came three plays later on third-and-16 from the Michigan 24. Hornibrook stepped up in the pocket and burrowed a dart between two defenders to Taylor in the end zone that put UW ahead for good.
