High Praise
November 19, 2018 | Football
Taylor’s performance sparks comparisons to Melvin Gordon
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BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — D'Cota Dixon, a venerable war horse, paid the ultimate compliment to Jonathan Taylor, a youthful thoroughbred. After watching Taylor race to 321 yards and three touchdowns in Wisconsin's dramatic 47-44 triple-overtime win at Purdue, Dixon connected the dots between JT23 and MG3.
Stepping outside of the cramped locker room, Dixon admitted, "I just told him I would have never thought I would say this … but I've never seen running backs do it the way they did it — Melvin and him — he's in that conversation as being one of the greatest backs I've ever seen personally."
Melvin is Melvin Gordon — MG3 — the third-leading rusher in school history, the 2014 Heisman Trophy runner-up, the Doak Walker Award winner and the owner of a 408-yard rushing game. Dixon was there for the latter, he saw it with his own eyes, making the comparison more real for Taylor.
"It humbles me a lot because he actually played with him (Gordon); he knows, he has seen the things that he has done," said Taylor. "To compare me to him, it's an honor. I thanked him and told him that I'm working for the seniors just to make sure we have the best season possible."
Taylor and Dixon hugged. There were plenty of hugs to go around after Taylor's 17-yard scoring run in the third overtime ended the 3 hour, 50-minute marathon, snapped a three-game road losing streak and extended Wisconsin's winning streak over Purdue to 13 straight, dating back to 2004.
"You never know when that play is, especially in overtime," said Taylor, who rushed for eight yards off left tackle before breaking the game-winner off right tackle. "Every single thing matters. Everything you've been coached all week about these guys (the Boilermakers), it matters.
"The only thing that was running through my mind was the next three feet … trying to get the next three feet … moving the chains … trying to get closer and closer to the end zone.
"It was emotional because I know these seniors have put in so much time and effort in this program. We've been through so much this season … I want to make sure they leave right."
321 yards and 3 TDs, including the game-winner in triple overtime Yep, that'll earn you Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week honors Congrats to our guy, @JayT23 #JT23 // #OnWisconsin
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) November 19, 2018
After moving within 131 yards of a 2,000-yard rushing season — only Gordon and Ron Dayne (twice) have reached that plateau among UW tailbacks — and after running for the third most yards in a single game behind Gordon (408 vs. Nebraska) and Dayne (339 vs. Hawaii), Taylor was visibly exhausted.
But he stressed that he got a second wind in the overtimes. Before the first one, he walked over to Garrett Groshek and exchanged a "Let's do it" with his fellow tailback. After that, Taylor said, "The energy was flowing … then it was about doing everything within our power to come out with the win."
The reaction to Taylor's career game was predictable.
"He keeps you in a lot of football games," said senior offensive guard Michael Deiter. "When you need him the most, he's there. At the end of the day, that dude is just a playmaker. That's all he is … and a great person."
After a 321-yard, 3-TD performance yesterday, @JayT23's ridiculous numbers got, well, even more ridiculous. JT's Bringing Running Back #JT23 // #OnWisconsin
— Brian Mason (@Brian_Mason) November 18, 2018
Wide receiver A.J. Taylor played along with Mike Heller of the Badger radio network when quizzed about the "other" Taylor. "He's a pretty cool guy, he's decent, he can do his thing," he teased before turning serious. "He's running with purpose, he's running with heart, he's running with grit."
In sum, A.J. Taylor had one word for Jonathan Taylor, who had 33 carries and didn't lose a single yard even though Purdue's defense was keying on him every snap. The word? Phenomenal. He was not the only one to use that word in describing the sophomore tailback from New Jersey.
"Obviously JT was phenomenal," echoed Wisconsin head coach Paul Chryst who was most pleased with his team's overall approach and mindset after rallying from a 27-13 deficit with 9:57 left in the fourth quarter. "It was a resilient win," he reiterated.
In outlasting a Purdue team that had won its last three home games over ranked opponents — No. 23 Boston College, No. 2 Ohio State and No. 19 Iowa — the Badgers had to overcome quarterback David Blough (31-of-48 for 386 yards) and freshman phenom Rondale Moore (9 catches for 114 yards).
At various times, UW had three true freshmen on the field: nose guard Bryson Williams and cornerbacks Donte Burton and Rachad Wildgoose. While the defense gave up 462 yards, it came up with a couple of goal line stands.
Late in the second quarter, the Boilermakers had a first-and-goal from the UW 2. But the Badgers forced them to settle for a field goal. Early in the fourth quarter, the Boilers had a second-and-goal from the UW 1. Again, the Badgers forced them to settle for a field goal.
Instead of 14 points, they came away from those two possessions with six.
"We did the best we could," said linebacker T.J. Edwards, "to keep points off the board."
Andrew Van Ginkel yesterday 😤 10 tackles (all of them solo) 1 forced fumble for a touchback 2 tackles for loss and 2 sacks AVG has been playing like an MVP @AndrewVanGinkel // #OnWisconsin
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) November 19, 2018
Nobody personified that attitude more than outside linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel, who had a team-high 10 tackles. In the first quarter, Van Ginkel stopped one Purdue drive with a sack of Blough and another with a forced fumble on wideout Isaac Zico that resulted in a touchback.
Van Ginkel had impactful plays both early and late. With 69 seconds remaining in regulation, the Badgers had to punt from their own 11, a tricky proposition with Moore returning. But Connor Allen got off a clutch 50-yard punt, and Van Ginkel tackled Moore in the open field for no gain.
That hustle play matched the one that Van Ginkel had on the second goal line stand when he tracked down tailback Markell Jones and knocked him out of bounds on the 1-yard line. That saved a TD. That type of second and third effort was contagious. "We just all showed resilience," said Zack Baun.
If anyone needed a bounce back game, it was quarterback Jack Coan who had struggled the week before at Penn State. Making his third career start, all on the road, Coan was far more efficient and accurate (16-of-24 for 160 yards and two TDs).
"What I sensed was that he was a lot more comfortable and he trusted being in the pocket a lot more," said A.J. Taylor, who caught five passes for 89 yards. "The biggest thing was his poise. He looked like he belonged today."
Added Deiter, "What's fun is that Coan has a little fierce in him. He gets to yelling and he gets all fired up. Here's a guy who hasn't gotten a ton of playing time, but he has completely bought in. He's not nervous and he's not tentative. He was just ready to play football."
The unassuming, soft-spoken Coan just tried to put the ball in the hands of his playmakers. Like Jonathan Taylor, of course ("I don't think there are any words to describe him," Coan said) and sophomore receiver Danny Davis, who combined with Coan for a couple of critical fourth-quarter scores.
"When you have players like him (Davis), you can just put the ball in his area and he's going to make a play," Coan said of Davis' one-handed, Beckham-esque, 'You got Mossed' stab of a five-yard pass. "It was an unbelievable play by an unbelievable player."
Danny Davis went @obj on 'em 😱 No. 1 play on #SCTop10 last night @DDIII_7 // #OnWisconsin
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) November 18, 2018
The game-tying score came on a perfectly-executed 18-yard back-shoulder throw to Davis with 2:51 left in the fourth quarter, culminating the comeback. Even when they were down by 14, Coan emphasized, "We all rallied around each other and said, 'We're going to win this game.'"
The Badgers not only played without quarterback Alex Hornibrook, but they were missing right tackle David Edwards (who was replaced by Logan Bruss) and backup tailback Taiwan Deal (whose spot in the rotation went to Chris James).
"It takes everyone," Chryst said, "and we needed everyone to contribute."
Chryst turned 53 on Saturday. Some of his players may have come of age, too.
