BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin senior left guard Michael Deiter is about to join a club so exclusive that you need one hand to count the members. His expected start Saturday vs. Rutgers in a Big Ten Conference game at Camp Randall Stadium will be the 50th of his career. The only other Badgers currently on the list are cornerback Sojourn Shelton, who had 51 starts from 2013 to '16; guard Bill Ferrario, who had 50 from 1997 to 2000; and left tackle Chris McIntosh, who had 50 starts from 1996 to '99. Deiter, from Curtice, Ohio, has made 19 starts at left guard, 16 starts at center and 14 starts at left tackle. He's looking for his 40th career win when Wisconsin (5-3 overall, 3-2 in the Big Ten) hosts the Scarlet Knights (1-7, 0-5).
Here are five more things to know:
Jersey Boys
The Badgers have lured a lot of distinguished tailback talent out of New Jersey over the years. The latest, of course, is sophomore Jonathan Taylor, who leads the nation in rushing eight games into the season. This after setting the NCAA record for most yards by a freshman in 2017. How do the Jersey Boys compare after 22 career games? Taylor, from Salem, has 480 carries for 3,132 yards, 21 touchdowns, 17 100-yard outings and a record of 18-4. He was preceded by Corey Clement, from Glassboro, who had 186 carries for 1,289 yards, 15 TDs, six 100-yard games and a 16-6 record starting in 2013-14. He followed Anthony Davis, from Plainfield, who had 521 carries for 2,621 yards, 18 TDs, 16 100-yard outings and an 11-11 record starting in 2001-02. Then there's Ron Dayne, the 1999 Heisman Trophy winner from Pine Hill, who had 544 carries for 3,404 yards, 36 TDs, 13 100-yard showings and a 15-7 record after 22 games starting in 1996-97. In all, the foursome has combined for nine 1,000-yard seasons, 24 200-yard outings, 90 100-yard games, 170 touchdowns and 18,025 yards. Dayne is the all-time leading rusher in program history at 7,125 yards, Davis is fourth at 4,676, Taylor is 12th at 3,132 and Clement is 13th at 3,092.
Run For It
The Badgers are averaging 6.15 yards per rush this season — sixth-best in the nation — and have four backs averaging at least 6.4 yards per attempt. That group includes Taylor (181 carries, 1,155 yards, 6.4 per carry), sophomore tailback Garrett Groshek (43-298-6.9), fullback Alec Ingold (19-129-6.8) and senior tailback Taiwan Deal (56-362-6.4). Rutgers comes to town allowing an average of 5.46 yards per rush, ranking 120th in the nation.
East Coast Bias
Until Rutgers and Maryland joined the Big Ten in 2014, Wisconsin didn't have a lot of experience with East Coast schools — defined as those from states with a shoreline on the Atlantic Ocean — coming to Camp Randall. Too bad because the Badgers have had great success with those opponents, going 17-2 overall. The first East Coast football program to come to Madison was Cornell (Ithaca, New York) in 1926. Colgate (Hamilton, New York) was next in 1929. Navy (Annapolis, Maryland) came in 1949 before Syracuse (Syracuse, New York) made trips in 1969 and '72. Richmond (Richmond, Virginia) came in 1978 before Miami (Miami, Florida) showed up on the non-conference schedule in 1989. The Badgers endured a 51-3 loss to the eventual national champion Hurricanes, but have won 10 straight home games vs. East Coast schools since then. That includes two wins each against Rutgers (Piscataway, New Jersey) and Maryland (College Park, Maryland).
Next Man Up, Indeed
So far the Badgers have had 11 starters from this season — seven on defense, four on offense — lose a combined 24 man-games to injuries. All those categories are sure to grow against Rutgers with senior nose tackle Olive Sagapolu (arm) ruled out for the game and left tackle Cole Van Lanen (leg) listed as questionable.
Month-to-Month
Wisconsin is 15-1 in games played in November going back to 2014. That includes a 6-1 mark at home. The lone loss, to Northwestern, came in 2015.
