BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — No matter what decision Wisconsin junior running back Jonathan Taylor makes regarding his future, he will go down as one of the premier, consistent, prolific ball-carriers in Football Bowl Subdivision history.
The fact he's emerged as the only back in a 150-year span to top 6,000 rushing yards in his first three seasons of action is enough to put him on that list of greats.
Perhaps even top it.
Taylor can opt to declare for the NFL draft after he helps lead the eighth-ranked Badgers (10-3 overall) in their Rose Bowl encounter with sixth-rated Oregon (11-2) on Jan. 1 in Pasadena, California.
Whether or not he plays his final college game on New Year's Day, the soft-spoken kid from Salem, New Jersey, has left a lasting impression.
Taylor is thick and elusive. He's the only back in FBS history to top 1,900 rushing yards in three consecutive seasons.
Taylor is fast and durable. He's in position to make his 40th career start out of 41 games when he lines up to face the Ducks.
A lot of amazing details are woven into Taylor's career stat blanket — 6,080 rushing yards, 6,444 total yards, 55 touchdowns, 6.8 yards per touch — but some are really eye-catching.
Consider that he's finished in the top two nationally in rushing (first in 2018), scoring (currently first), all-purpose yards (currently second) and long plays from scrimmage (currently first) in his career.
Consider that his every fourth rushing attempt is the equivalent of a first down. He has 196 carries of 10-plus yards, which represents 21 percent of his 945 total runs.
Consider that Wisconsin is 26-6 when he tops 100 yards rushing, 12-0 when he goes for 200 or more and 15-0 when he scores multiple touchdowns.
Taylor needs 166 rushing yards to crack the top five all-time, totals that include bowl games and feature backs that played four seasons. His Heisman Trophy-winning Badgers predecessor, Ron Dayne, tops the list with 7,125, followed by Ricky Williams of Texas (6,592), Tony Dorsett of Pittsburgh (6,526), Donnel Pumphrey of San Diego State (6,405) and Charles White of USC (6,245).
Here are five more things to know:
Curious Company
Paul Chryst is the fourth head coach with Wisconsin ties to face Oregon this season. The Ducks beat Nevada and Jay Norvell, 77-6; California and Justin Wilcox 17-7; and Colorado and Mel Tucker, 45-3. Norvell was a defensive backfield assistant for the Badgers from 1992 to '94, Wilcox was the defensive coordinator in 2016 and Tucker played defensive back for Wisconsin from 1990 to '94.
Badgers in Pasadena by Wisconsin Badgers on Exposure
Strange Bedfellows
The final pre-bowl Amway Coaches Poll conducted Dec. 8 produced some curious — perhaps memorable — conclusions about the Rose Bowl matchup from the voting panel of 65 coaches. The overall majority of participants had Oregon ranked ahead of the Badgers in their ballots, hence the top 25 that had the Ducks sixth and Wisconsin No. 11. A closer look showed four Big Ten Conference coaches — Jeff Brohm of Purdue, Mark Dantino of Michigan State, Ryan Day of Ohio State and Scott Frost of Nebraska — had the Badgers rated higher. Two others — Pat Fitzgerald of Northwestern and James Franklin of Penn State — had Wisconsin situated lower. By the same token, two Pac-12 Conference coaches — Clay Helton of USC and Kyle Whittingham of Utah — had the Badgers ranked ahead of Oregon.
Keep Plugging Away
Sophomore tight end Jake Ferguson has caught at least one pass in every outing of his 26-game career. The last Wisconsin pass-catcher to have a streak like that over two seasons was Travis Beckum in 2006 and '07, earning him first-team All-America honors in 2007.
Many Tests, Many Answers
The Badgers have faced seven defenses ranked in the top 30 nationally against the rush and have averaged 219.9 yards in those contests. Overall, Wisconsin has topped 300 yards rushing five times this season, matching Kentucky for the FBS lead among non-triple option schools.
More Help Has Arrived
A year ago the Badgers got touchdowns from 12 different players. This season 17 have crossed the goal line, 12 multiple times.
