Wisconsin Football: Four reasons the Badgers will beat Western Kentucky
By Joe Orlofski
2. Western Kentucky doesn’t rely on the run game
Western Kentucky rushed 391 times in 2017, gaining a total of 791 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Jonathan Taylor alone rushed 299 times for 1,977 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Now I know, Wisconsin is known for it’s run game. But when one player almost triples an entire team’s yardage, you know that team doesn’t run well.
D’Andre Ferby was the leading rusher for the Hilltoppers in 2017, rushing for 373 yards and three touchdowns on 117 attempts (that was good enough for 28th in rushing yards in the CUSA). He returns in 2018 as a senior and most likely will lead the backfield.
The next leading rusher is sophomore Jakairi Moses, who is out indefinitely with a knee injury. WKU also has a redshirt freshman Joshua Samuel who has gotten some hype this offseason, but we don’t know how he will do in an actual game.
The lack of rushing yards is both an indication of WKU’s pass-heavy game plan, and an iffy offensive line that doesn’t create space for the running back. If the Hilltoppers can’t move the ball on the ground, they will have to rely on their inexperienced quarterbacks to get the job done.
Add to all of that the fact that Wisconsin will have a solid run defense, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see a Hilltopper team held to less than 100 yards on the ground.