BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — The winningest senior class in Wisconsin football history has two enduring headliners.
Outside linebacker Leon Jacobs, from San Pedro, California, has played 58 career games dating back to 2013, which is more than anyone in major college football history.
Jacobs surpassed the previous mark of 57 — set by Rodney Paulk of South Carolina and Chad Diehl of Clemson — during the Big Ten Championship Game vs. Ohio State on Dec. 2.
Safety Joe Ferguson, from Madison, is in line to also surpass the previous record when the Badgers face Miami in the Orange Bowl on Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.
Ferguson, the grandson of UW Director of Athletics Barry Alvarez, has appeared in 57 games dating back to 2013.
Jacobs and Ferguson are part of a Wisconsin senior class that is looking to extend its school record for most wins in a four-year period. The group has 44 — the previous standard was 41 by the Class of 2016 — heading into its meeting with the Hurricanes.
For perspective, the Badgers have the fourth-most wins in the country over that span, sitting behind Alabama with 51, Clemson with 49 and Ohio State with 47.
Here are five more things to know:
Senior Moments
What's the most eye-catching achievement of the UW senior class? Time will tell, but how about four straight seasons with double-digit wins, the first time that's happened in program history? How about a 17-2 record in true road games? How about the fact that 10 of the current seniors earned some type of postseason honor during their careers? How about the fact that seven have already earned their diplomas?
What It All Means
A victory by the Badgers in the Orange Bowl would give them 13, which would be the most in a single season in school history. It would give them bowl wins in four straight seasons for the first time since the school began appearing in the postseason in 1953. It would give UW a winning record in bowl games for the first time since 2009 when a 20-14 victory over Miami in the Champ Sports Bowl put the Badgers at 11-10. They're currently 14-14. It would also extend the longest current bowl winning streak in the Big Ten Conference.
Cut To The Chase
Miami is 10-0 this season when it holds opponents under 300 yards of total offense and 0-2 when failing to do so. The Badgers are 12-0 when topping 300 yards of total offense and 0-1 when failing to do so.
Domino Effect
The Hurricanes have 17 interceptions among their 30 takeaways which can be traced to the pressure they put on opposing quarterbacks. Miami leads the nation with 3.58 sacks per game and limits ground games by averaging 8.8 tackles for loss, which ranks second in the country. No doubt the 'Canes have noticed that UW sophomore quarterback Alex Hornibrook has thrown at least one interception in 9 of the last 10 outings. No doubt, too, Miami defenders are eager to measure themselves against the Wisconsin offensive line, which has four members who have earned some type of All-America recognition this season.
Seeking Atonement
UW true freshman tailback Jonathan Taylor has not had back-to-back outings with less than 100 yards rushing this season. He's coming off a career-low 41 yards on 15 attempts in the loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten title game and will face another formidable defense in the Hurricanes. They yield 4.5 yards per play from scrimmage — UW, the top-rated defense in the land, is at 4.2 — and have allowed a 100-yard rusher in two outings this season. Taylor needs 79 rushing yards to set the single-season Football Bowl Subdivision record for first-year players. The Big Ten Freshman of the Year and Doak Walker finalist has 1,847 yards. Adrian Peterson amassed 1,925 as a true freshman at Oklahoma in 2004.
