Inside the Huddle: Baun’s fast play keeping Badgers on attack
November 17, 2018 | Football, Mike Lucas
UW’s linebackers focused on containing Purdue’s offense, known for its trick plays
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BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — After critiquing some old game films, especially targeting an early-season loss to BYU, Zack Baun recognized the jersey number — the No. 56 rushing off the edge at outside linebacker, long a playmaking position on the Wisconsin defense. But he didn't recognize the player in the jersey.
"Looking back on those earlier games, I was laughing at myself at just how I looked — my presence on the field," said Baun, who wore No. 7 as a prolific dual-threat quarterback at Brown Deer (Wis.) High School before shifting to defense and No. 56 upon joining the Badgers in 2015.
"I looked really tight and nervous in the beginning of the season — like I was always thinking about doing the right thing instead of just making a play," continued Baun, who made his first collegiate start in the Western Kentucky opener after missing the entire 2017 season with a foot injury.
"Right now, I'm a lot more comfortable with my movements and my attitude on the field."
In his own words, Baun is "playing faster" as reflected by his play at Penn State. Last Saturday, he had a career-high 9 tackles, including 3.0 for loss, 1.5 sacks and a fumble recovery. Baun's TFLs matched the single-game high this season set by senior linebacker T.J. Edwards against Michigan.
The consensus among UW's starting linebackers — Baun, Edwards, Ryan Connelly and Andrew Van Ginkel, all of whom were prep quarterbacks — is that Baun was the most accomplished QB in the group, supported by the fact that he had 94 touchdowns in 22 games at Brown Deer.
Baun was a converted wide receiver who wound up passing for 3,061 yards and rushing for 3,923. He was also a starter on the Brown Deer basketball team that won the Division 3 state championship his junior year. In track, he ran the 100- and 200-meter sprints and competed in the high jump.
Given his athletic background, maybe it was only a matter of time before that innate explosiveness would surface at outside linebacker. Earlier this week, UW defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard talked about how Baun has been "making a ton of plays and impacting the game."
Through his film study of the September games, in particular, Baun got a feel for how far he has come in certain areas. Like playing in space. "My tackling has improved a lot since the beginning of the season," he said. "I've made an effort to do so and I'm glad it's paying off."
In this context, Purdue's offense will force Wisconsin's defense to tackle in space, Baun stressed. "They've got skill guys and they use them," he said. "That's the best way that I can explain it. They do a really good job of putting their skill guys in positions to make plays."
The biggest challenge for the Badgers will be containing the mighty mites: 5-foot-7, 210-pound tailback D.J. Knox, who has 129 carries for 787 yards and eight touchdowns; and 5-9, 175-pound slot receiver Rondale Moore, who has 82 catches for 909 yards (11.1) and eight scores.
Combined, Knox and Moore have accounted for 41 percent of the Boilermakers' non-penalty first downs (89 of 194), 47 percent of their touchdowns (18 of 38), 64 percent of their rushing yards (950 of 1,488) and 33 percent of their receiving yards (1,043 of 3,118).
"Both are quick," Baun said. "And both are burrowers." Burrowers? "They burrow in behind their pads," he explained. "You have to get low and run your feet against them. They're never down until they're on the ground. You look at J.T. (Jonathan Taylor), he's a burrower. He'll sit behind his pads."
Baun cited another characteristic of burrowers.
"They'll drop their shoulder," he said, "and make you feel it."
Back on the road this Saturday 🏈 Wisconsin at Purdue 🕝 Saturday, 2:30pm on BTN 📍 Ross-Ade Stadium #OnWisconsin
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) November 14, 2018
So how do the Badgers hope to neutralize the electrifying Moore?
"You put as many of your guys in the right positions as you can," he said. "It's all about leverage and knowing where your help is. Whether that help is the sideline or other people on the field, you have to leverage the player to your help. You've got to stay under control and run your feet, too, because he (Moore) is going to break arm tackles."
Purdue coach Jeff Brohm is viewed as an offensive innovator. One of his staples is trick plays.
"We have to be locked in on our keys," Baun said. "They can hit you in a lot of different ways and you have to stick to your assignment and responsibilities."
Misdirection can be challenging for someone with his aggressiveness, he conceded.
"It takes just one guy out of position," he said, "and (the ball carrier) can be out the gate."
Meanwhile, some of Baun's old wide receiver/quarterback instincts have aided his growth in pass coverage. At Northwestern, he intercepted a Clayton Thorson throw for his first career pick. He almost had his second the following week against Rutgers, but it whistled through his hands.
"The first one felt really good," he said. "Especially in the moment of the game, because it gave our team some energy and I was glad that I could give us a boost. The other one was coming in hot. I was in good position and I should have caught it."
Baun has a good role model in Edwards, who has nine career picks, tying him with Craig Raddatz for the most by a UW linebacker. "I feel like the ball is always thrown to him but he's always in the right place making plays," he said. "He does a really good job; so does Connelly, getting in the right positions."
As expected, Van Ginkel's return to the starting lineup has bolstered Baun's effectiveness versus the run and pass. "It gives me confidence," said Baun, a 6-3, 230-pound redshirt junior. "It's good to have pressure coming from both sides to kind of keep the tackles and quarterbacks guessing."
Van Ginkel and Baun combined on a sack of Trace McSorley at Penn State. They even talked about their paths intersecting at McSorley, with Baun telling Van Ginkel, "If you weren't there, I was getting there anyway." They've now set their GPS for Blough.
Wisconsin Football's Ironman Some great players have come through this program. On Saturday, Michael Deiter is set to make his 52nd career start, which would break the school record.
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) November 14, 2018
First and 10: Purdue
1. Blough is a fifth-year senior with 34 starts. This season, he has thrown for over 300 yards five times, including a school-record 572 yards against Missouri. For his career, he ranks No. 3 in 300-yard games (11) behind Drew Brees (16) and Curtis Painter (12).
2. Although Elijah Sindelar, who started the opener against Northwestern, is more of a running quarterback, Blough is not afraid to pull it down and run when the opportunity arises. He has 12 career rushing touchdowns, three shy of the school recordholder, Mark Vitalli.
3. The multi-dimensional Moore, a true freshman, is averaging 13 yards on his 132 touches (82 catches, 11 rushes, 29 kickoff returns, 10 punt returns). He has produced 26 plays of 20 or more yards, highlighted by 76-yard touchdown run and a 70-yard scoring reception.
4. Since torching Ohio State's pass defense with 12 catches for 170 yards, Moore has been "held" to 25 receptions for 181 yards the last three games combined. On the season, he has five 100-yard receiving games. Isaac Zico has done it twice, and Terry Wright once.
5. The Boilermakers have been nearly unstoppable in short yardage on third down. They have converted 67 percent (29-of-43) on third downs of 3 yards or less. They're 18-of-20 on third-and-1. Knox and Markell Jones (2,435 career yards) are a potent tandem at tailback.
6. Junior linebacker Markus Bailey, who has started 33 straight games, has something in common with Connelly, UW's fifth-year senior. Both are semifinalists for the Butkus Award. Bailey leads Purdue in tackles with 86. He has 284 for his career (Connelly has 237).
7. Senior punter Joe Schopper has been a special teams weapon flipping the field with a 44.2 average on the strength of 10 punts over 50 yards. Whereas the Boilermakers rank No. 2 in the Big Ten in net punting average (41.4), the Badgers rank last (34.1).
8. Brycen Hopkins is the first Purdue tight end to go over 100 receiving yards twice in a season since Dustin Keller in 2007. Hopkins had five catches for 136 yards against Missouri and five catches for 103 yards against Nebraska. He complements fifth-year senior TE Cole Herdman.
9. Saturday will be a sendoff for 29 Purdue seniors who will be playing their final home game. There has been plenty of speculation on whether Brohm will be coaching his final game at Ross-Ade Stadium. His name has been linked to the opening at his alma mater, Louisville.
10. Brohm didn't address the rumors during his Monday press conference. But after Indy radio host Dan Dakich posted that it was a done deal, Brohm addressed the hot button topic after Thursday's practice with the media and his players. "Completely false," he insisted.
Note to Quote
Purdue has averaged 51,954 in attendance for its six home games, with back-to-back sellouts (60,716) for Ohio State and Iowa. It will mark the first time in nine years that the Boilers will finish above 50,000. The last time the Badgers played in West Lafayette, the listed attendance was 30,465 and there was about a third that many in the stands for the second half. In 2016, the season before Brohm's arrival, the Badgers scored 35 points in the second quarter (sparked by T.J. Watt's interception return for a touchdown) and routed the Boilermakers, 49-20.
Quote to Note
On the toughness that UW left tackle Jon Dietzen has shown in playing through injuries, his tag team partner, Cole Van Lanen, said, "What people don't understand is what he's going through. For someone to have double ankle surgery and double hip surgery, and for him to even give us 20 plays in a game that are really good plays, that's a lot. He's a really, really good player and he has been unfortunate with a lot of injuries. For everything that he has put out there for us, and the things that he's battling through, it just shows his character and how awesome of a person he is, and how much he cares about the man next to him. It's a privilege to share reps with him — to make him better and for him to make me better."
