Wisconsin vs. Illinois Recap
Photo Credit Jason Chan/The Badger Herald
11/12/16 -- Final: Wisconsin 48 Illinois 3
The Badgers put on an absolutely dominating performance on Saturday against a very over-matched Illinois team. It was the type of performance that allowed Wisconsin fans to "de-stress" by the time it was halftime. Wisconsin came out looking to show that they can run up the score, and the defense once again set the tone for the game by not allowing a single third-down conversion, and allowing just 200 yards of total offense.
Recap by quarter:
First Quarter: It was apparent after Illinois' first offensive series that the Badgers defense came to play. Illinois had four drives in the first quarter, one went three-and-out, and two ended in interceptions (Dixon and Musso). The Illini did put one good drive together where they drove 65 yards and ended up with a field goal. At that time, however, the Badgers had already put two touchdowns on the board and would be up 14-3 late in the quarter. The notable plays, or moments, of the quarter would be what fans of the Badgers have been waiting for all year -- be consistent in the redzone. Wisconsin would go three for three with three touchdowns (2 by Corey Clement, 1 Jazz Peavy from Alex Hornibrook) in the redzone, and lead 21-3 after the first.
Second Quarter: On the fifth play of the second quarter, Bart Houston would throw a seven yard touchdown to Kyle Penniston, that would extend the Badgers lead to 28-3. Wisconsin would continue their dominant performance throughout the rest of the first half. Illinois would put together another nice drive as they did in the first quarter, but this one would end in a missed field goal. The Badgers recorded two more interceptions (Musso, and Connelly) off of Jeff George Jr. He would end the half with five completions and four interceptions. Being that Wisconsin was up 28-3 it doesn't seem as important, however, aside from an early second quarter touchdown, the Badgers would only manage three more points in the second quarter. The issue here being that even in a blow-out, the offense still struggled to find consistency against a lesser foe. Maybe it's nothing, maybe it's something, but the in-game defensive adjustments by the Illini seemed to stall the Badgers offense in the second quarter. The half, however, would still end with a 31-3 Wisconsin lead.
Third Quarter: Illinois would replace Jeff George Jr. and start the second half with Wes Lunt who was the starter at the beginning of the year, but had battled injuries all year long. Luckily for Illinois he didn't throw any interceptions, however, they would still fail to score for the rest of the game. The Illini also only racked up 17 yards in the quarter as well. The Badgers would score on a field goal on their first drive of the quarter. However, the most notable plays would be on the 11 play drive that ended in a Corey Clement touchdown run on the second play of the fourth quarter. Wisconsin ran the ball on every single play during that drive, and that type of rushing performance, and consistency is what the Badgers fans have been waiting for, and have been starting to see over these past five weeks.
Fourth Quarter: With most of the starters out, and the game out of hand Badgers fans could breathe easy for the first time in a long time at the start of the final quarter. As stated above they scored on the second play of the fourth quarter. Illinois would punt on each of their drives in the fourth quarter, and the Badgers would add one more touchdown on a three yard Bradrick Shaw run ending the game with a score of 48-3.
Wisconsin did exactly what they needed to against this Illinois team. It was clear from the beginning that the Illini would be overmatched, and the Badgers continued to exploit those match-ups all game long. In the past, it seemed as if the Badgers would let a lesser team hang around too long, and not put them away early in the game. That wasn't the case today as Wisconsin put up 21 points in the first quarter, and would continue to roll from there. One important note from this game is that the Badgers scored on all EIGHT trips in the redzone (6 tds, 2 fgs). Though the competition was not as great as it had been in recent weeks, it is hard to argue with 100% inside the 20.
The Badgers continue to control their own destiny, and with two more wins, they will represent the Big Ten West in the conference championship game and have a chance to redeem themselves after the last time they played there. No need to talk about that game as Badgers fans surely have not forgotten that.
Up next is a game in West Lafayette where the Badgers will take on Purdue. Just like this week, the Badgers will need to jump on them right away, and not let them hang around. Wisconsin is currently favored by 28 points in their next game, and if they play how they played this week, expect another blow out against a Purdue team that has an interim head coach, and only one conference win.
Kickoff is at 11:00 am on ABC
