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Mertz, Badgers dominate opener over Illini

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Graham Mertz (Photo by David Stluka/Wisconsin Athletic Communications)

The Wisconsin Badgers kicked off the 2020 college football season with a 45-7 thumping of the Illinois Fighting Illini without fans at Camp Randall Stadium.

Redshirt freshman quarterback Graham Mertz, in his first collegiate start, completed his first 17 passes and ended up completing 20 of 21 passes for 248 yards and five touchdowns.

Mertz five touchdown passes tied the highest single-game total in UW history, matching the school record set by Darrell Bevell vs. Nevada in 1993 and Jim Sorgi vs. Michigan State in 2003.

The 14th ranked Badgers won their 25th straight home opener and their eighth straight game over the Illini in Madison.  They avenged a one-point loss to the Illini in Champaign last season.

Illinois scored their only points after forcing a fumble by Badger tight end Jake Ferguson and linebacker Tarique Barnes [Read more…]

Badger football opener set for Friday, Oct. 23rd

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Camp Randall Stadium (Photo by David Stluka)

The Big Ten’s first football game of the 2020 season will be in Madison.  The Wisconsin Badgers will kick off their campaign against Illinois on Friday night, October 23rd at 7 p.m. on BTN.

The game will be played without any fans at Camp Randall Stadium because COVID-19 numbers continue to rise in the state.  Only personnel deemed essential to play a game will be allowed inside the stadium.

UW officials are also asking fans to avoid gathering and to avoid tailgating outside or near the stadium.

UW was off to a 6-0 start last season, including a 3-0 mark in the Big Ten when the Badgers faced Illinois in Champaign.  The Illini forced three Wisconsin turnovers, overcoming a 13-point deficit in the second half to upset the Badgers 24-23.

 

Illinois ends long stretch of Badger dominance

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Kobe King (Photo by David Stluka)

The Wisconsin Badgers saw their four-game winning streak come to an end, falling to Illinois 71-70 on Wednesday night at the Kohl Center.  The Badgers 15-game winning streak against the Illini also came to an end.

Illinois (11-5, 3-2 Big Ten) defeated Wisconsin for the first time since Jan. 2, 2011.  The Illini won for the first time in Madison since Feb. 9, 2010.

The Illini became just the fourth Big Ten team to win a league game on the road this season, joining the Badgers, Michigan State and Rutgers.  Overall, Big Ten teams are 4-25 on the road in league play.

Sophomore guard Ayo Dosunmu hit a three-pointer that put Illinois up 71-67 with 45.6 seconds left.  Dosunmu led the Illini with 18 points and six assists.

Wisconsin’s Kobe King answered with a three-pointer with 22.6 seconds left to climb to within one point.  Giorgi Bezhanishvili missed the front of the bonus which gave the Badgers a chance.  But guard D’Mitrik [Read more…]

Reuvers to the rescue for the Badgers

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It was another sloppy night of basketball for the Wisconsin Badgers on Wednesday night in Champaign, Ill., but in the end, Bucky found a way to persevere, 72-60 over Illinois.

The Badgers (13-6, 5-3 Big Ten) extended their winning streak against the Illini (5-14, 1-7) to 14 games, including seven straight in Champaign.  The last Illinois victory over the Badgers came in the 2010-’11 season, a 69-61 win in Champaign.

With senior forward Ethan Happ in foul trouble most of the night, sophomore Nate Reuvers came to the rescue with a collegiate high 22 points.  He added 10 rebounds as well, as the Badgers broke open a close game in the final minutes. [Read more…]

Badgers knock off Illinois, but far from perfect

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The Wisconsin Badger football team moved a step closer to the Big Ten West Division title, knocking off Illinois 24-10 on Saturday.  While the Badgers improved to 8-0 on the season and remain the only unbeaten team in the Big Ten, they once again gave no impression that they are ready to compete against other top teams in the conference (Ohio State & Penn State), or nationally for that matter either.

Wisconsin freshman tailback Jonathan Taylor  left in the first half with a left leg injury.  He had carried 12 times for 73 yards before heading to the sidelines for the rest of the game.

Without Taylor, the Badgers finished with 168 rushing yards on 45 carries, their second lowest total of the season.  Taylor himself, averages 168.5 yards a game.

Without Taylor, walk-on Garrett Groshek rushed 12 times for 51 yards and a touchdown and Bradrick Shaw added 40 yards on 12 carries.

One of the Badgers scores came on left tackle Michael Deiter’s four-yard touchdown reception. [Read more…]