MADISON, Wis. — Jonathan Taylor ran for 119 yards and his 11th touchdown of the season, Wisconsin got two scores from its defense, and the eighth-ranked Badgers remained unbeaten with a 24-15 win over Northwestern on Saturday.
"I'm proud of the way the guys battled and fought against a really good football team, a team that we've always had tough games with," said Wisconsin football head coach Paul Chryst. "Ton of respect for Pat (Fitzgerald) and that program. Really well-coached team that has good players and they stress you.
"Obviously our defense was big today, and in so many different ways made plays, changed the game and gave us a chance."
Taylor carried 26 times to help Wisconsin (4-0, 2-0 Big Ten) avenge its 31-17 loss to the Wildcats last season. The junior reached 100 yards rushing for the 26th time in 31 career games and moved into fourth place on the Badgers' career rushing list (4,730).
The Badgers' defense sacked backup quarterback Aidan Smith once and starter Hunter Johnson three times, including one by safety Eric Burrell that caused a fumble by Johnson in the end zone.
Matt Henningsen recovered to make it 14-3 in the third quarter for Wisconsin. Noah Burks added the other after intercepting Smith and returning it 68 yards down the Wisconsin sideline.
Johnson went 10-for-21 and Smith completed 8 of 19 passes and had a late 15-yard touchdown to JJ Jefferson.
Drake Anderson had 16 carries for 69 yards and a 4-yard score for the defending Big Ten West champion Wildcats, who dropped their second straight game conference game. Charlie Kuhbander added a 29-yard field goal for Northwestern.
Chris Orr had two sacks and Collin Wilder added another for a Badgers' defense that is allowing just 7.3 points per game through the first four contests.
Henningsen added a sack and finished with three tackles. Jack Sanborn led Wisconsin with a career-high 13 tackles, including one tackle for loss.
Jack Coan won his sixth straight start and finished 15-for-21 with 113 yards. He threw one interception picked off by Northwestern defensive back JR Pace.
Gallery: (9/28/2019) Wisconsin Football vs. Northwestern
Wisconsin now has won five straight against Northwestern when ranked in the top 10 of The Associated Press Top 25 poll.
Looking ahead, Wisconsin hosts Kent State on Saturday, Oct. 5 at Camp Randall Stadium. The non-conference matchup will kickoff at 11 a.m. on an ESPN channel to be announced (ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU).
The AP contributed to this article.
