BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
PASADENA, Calif. — Jonathan Taylor was one of the last Wisconsin football players to enter the postgame locker room at the Rose Bowl late Wednesday afternoon. He did so in tears.
He arrived with his helmet still on his head, chin strap buckled tight as if he planned to re-enter the fray or, just maybe, he didn't want the journey to end.
Taylor was the only one in full uniform when he and his teammates quietly gathered around coach Paul Chryst and listened as he tried to put the first dabs of salve on their wounded spirit.
The Badgers had just endured an excruciating 28-27 loss to Oregon in the Rose Bowl. Seven lead changes made the season-ending duel mesmerizing. Four giveaways, which led to 21 points, and nine penalties, which tied a season high, were among the blood-boiling details for those listening to Chryst.
"I refuse to not love this team," he told them.
Eighth-ranked Wisconsin came into its 10th Rose Bowl led by Taylor, their peerless junior running back whose brilliant college career is at a crossroads. He's eligible to declare for the NFL draft, but his future was a secondary issue on a day when the Badgers let another great opportunity slip through their fingers.
Last month, Wisconsin led top-ranked Ohio State 21-7 at halftime of the Big Ten Championship Game, only to see it evaporate into a 34-21 setback.
This time around, the Badgers (10-4 overall) led after the first quarter, halftime and the third quarter in pursuit of their sixth consecutive bowl victory, but couldn't hold on.
"Huge opportunities don't usually come twice in a row," Taylor said.
There's an awful aftertaste when you don't capitalize on them.
"You start thinking about all the little things," he said. "One step this way or one step that way. Your head is kind of everywhere. You can't wait to look at the film, but don't want to look at the film because it's so close."
Taylor didn't have one of his signature days against an elite defense geared up to neutralize him. He carried the ball 21 times for 94 yards, producing a milestone in the process. He finished the season with 2,003 rushing yards, making him one of three backs in Football Bowl Subdivision history to top 2,000 twice in a career. He hit 2,194 as a sophomore.
Taylor also caught two passes for 43 yards, including a 34-yard reception on beautifully designed wheel route on fourth-and-1 from the Oregon 45. That helped set up a 2-yard touchdown run by junior fullback Mason Stokke that gave Wisconsin a 24-21 lead late in the third.
Taylor also dropped a pass and lost a fumble at his own 38, though it turned out to be painless because the Badgers defense got the ball back by denying a fourth-down try by the Ducks (12-2).
Just when it looked like Taylor found a groove, disaster struck. He churned for an 18-yard gain midway through the fourth quarter, carrying three defenders for much of the journey. But the idea that Oregon was starting to wear down never got tested because junior wide receiver Danny Davis fumbled at the end of a jet sweep two plays later.
Not only did the Ducks recover, they capitalized immediately. Quarterback Justin Herbert scored on a designed run the very next play, resulting in the winning TD.
"It hurts and it sucks," Taylor said.
Regardless of his pending decision, Taylor, from Salem, New Jersey, ranks as one of the all-time great ball-carriers in college football history.
He finished his junior season with 6,174 career rushing yards. A two-time consensus first-team All-American and two-time winner of the Doak Walker Award, he's the only back to top 6,000 in three seasons and just missed cracking the sport's top five all-time.
Taylor also has 55 touchdowns and 6,581 career all-purpose yards, which ranks second in school history behind 1999 Heisman Trophy winner Ron Dayne, who amassed 7,429 over four years.
No matter what Taylor decides, he will be revered by those who walked, trained and played alongside of him.
"I'll put him in the 'best running back in college football' category," Stokke said. "I think he's the greatest. That's what his legacy is."
Junior running back Garrett Groshek, who rooms with Taylor on road trips, took it a step further.
"Not only was he the best college running back in the history of the game, but he was also the greatest person that's played college football," Groshek said.
"Talk to anybody about him and they'll give you the same answer: That everything that JT does is at a different level than everybody else and it's just obvious that you should aspire to be more like JT.
"You're just happy that you got to know him as a person. For everything he's accomplished, he's still the most humble person in any given room."
Junior quarterback Jack Coan said if Taylor leaves for the NFL there are understudies primed to step up, but there's still void in performance and character to consider.
"He's one of the best players in the history of college football," Coan said of Taylor. "I don't think you can argue with that. He's a Wisconsin legend and he will be forever. He's always going to be a legend to me and someone I look up to.
"He's such a humble kid, truly a genuine person. Very nice to everybody; it doesn't matter who you are. Throughout all the success he's had and the attention he's gotten, he's always remained the same person. That's a special kid."
One by one, teammates from all walks of the roster — offense, defense, special teams, support staffers — stopped by Taylor's cubicle to share a hug and words of comfort.
"He's really taking it hard, which is sad to see," Stokke said. "You want to send him off the right way."
If this was Taylor's finale, what will Stokke miss most?
"How he goes about his business," he said of Taylor. "He always shows up with a smile on his face. His work ethic and how he approaches the game. It's truly an honor to play with him and be around him. I'm really going to miss the guy, but he's definitely got some good things ahead of him."
After Chryst spoke to the team, Taylor was among the captains who were asked to share their thoughts.
"We started the season as a family and we end as a family," he said. "I love all you guys."
