Baggot: Five things to know vs. BYU
September 16, 2017 | Football, Andy Baggot
Quick hits on the Badgers and Cougars
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BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — No. 10 Wisconsin travels for its first road game of the season to face BYU. Here are five things to know as the Badgers prepare for kickoff against the Cougars:
AT A LOSS
The Wisconsin defense is on an impressive statistical track when it comes to tackles for loss. The Badgers have 18 TFLs after two games, which is tied for 11th nationally with the likes of Michigan and Ohio State. Hawaii is first with 27 — having played three games — and Penn State is next with 23 in two outings. Most noteworthy is that UW is on pace for 108 during the regular season. Going back to 1990, the only other year that the Badgers had 100 or more tackles for loss was in 1998, when they had 101 and won the first of back-to-back Big Ten Conference titles.
Wisconsin and BYU meet for the third time on Saturday Last meeting was in 2013 when a guy by the name of James White scored 3 TDs. #TBT
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) September 14, 2017
MAP QUEST
This will be the first time the Badgers have played a college football game in the state of Utah. That leaves only 19 more to go to finish off all 50. Some are more doable than others. Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Mississippi, South Carolina and Virginia have Power Five conference entities within their borders. Meanwhile, the Big Ten Conference currently sponsors the Pinstripe Bowl, which is played at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. But the rest — Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, Maine, Montana, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Vermont — appear to be extreme longshots.
TAYLOR MADE
True freshman tailback Jonathan Taylor can join another small UW fraternity when he faces the Cougars. Fresh off a 223-yard rushing performance vs. Florida Atlantic, he can become the fifth ball-carrier in program history to top 200 in consecutive outings. Billy Marek did it once in 1973 and once again in '74; Ron Dayne did it four times, twice in 1996 and twice in '99; Michael Bennett did in once in 2000; and Melvin Gordon did it twice in '14.
Noise ?? Speed ???? Strategy ?&?? Varsity Magazine takes you into the heart of the action for a @BadgerFootball game.
— Wisconsin Badgers (@UWBadgers) September 13, 2017
SECOND ACT
The 10th-ranked Badgers have outscored Utah State and Florida Atlantic a combined 56-0 in second half. The only other Football Bowl Subdivision schools that haven't allowed a point after halftime and have played two games are Army, Clemson and Minnesota. All four are 2-0.
EXCLUSIVE COMPANY
Wisconsin has been ranked in the top 10 of the last 10 Associated Press polls dating back to Oct. 30, 2016. That's tied for the second-longest streak of its kind in program history, trailing the 15-poll run between Oct. 8, 1962 and Oct. 28, 1963. There were streaks of 10 straight polls from Oct. 30, 1999 to Sept. 17, 2000 as well as Nov. 19, 2006 to Sept. 30, 2007. The Badgers have been a top-10 entry in the AP poll for 13 of their last 16 games and are 10-3 in those contests. Overall, they are 78-31-1 (.714) as a top-10 entry in the AP ranking going back to 1942.
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