Wisconsin Football: Badgers’ struggles in Evanston continue

Wisconsin football drops another heartbreaker in Evanston. The #19 Wildcats defense stymied the #10 Badgers offense to continue their undefeated season.

It’s that time of the year once again. Wisconsin football went into a pivotal matchup against Northwestern with high hopes and dreams of another Big Ten Championship run, only to leave Ryan Field with another agonizing defeat.

Yesterday’s loss drops Wisconsin to 2-1 on the season and solidifies Northwestern as the team to beat in the Big Ten West with a 5-0 record. While one loss doesn’t mean Wisconsin football can’t reach the Big Ten Championship, they will certainly need help to get there.

Following suit with the last few matchups, most of yesterday’s game was a defensive battle. After a Badger three-and-out on their first possession. Northwestern took advantage of two questionable defensive pass interference calls and scored on a two yard pass from Petyon Ramsey to Charlie Mangieri. Both teams fumbled on their following possessions, before Graham Mertz and the Badgers got the offense rolling.

After converting a fourth and one, Mertz dropped a 49 yard time to Chimere Dike on a well-timed play-action. Unfortunately for Wisconsin football fans, that was the lone scoring play on the day. That being said, it was an exciting day for freshmen RB Jalen Berger. Berger took a majority of the carries after Nakia Watson struggled to get much going. The freshmen running back gained 93 yards on 15 carries while showing some burst through a stout Wildcat defense.

On the day, Northwestern’s defense forced five turnovers including three interceptions. The second of those three picks, set up the Wildcats’ second touchdown of the afternoon. With just under a minute left in the first half, Peyton Ramsey found Ramaud Chiaokhiao-Bowman for a 25 yard touchdown to put the Wildcats up 14-7 before half.

The second half was even tougher to watch for Badger fans. Mertz looked like a freshman quarterback. Until yesterday, Mertz looked poised and comfortable behind center, but it was clear that the Northwestern defense rattled him in the pocket. The Wildcat’s sacked Mertz three times and hurried him seven times. Mertz was 23-41 for 230 yards and one touchdown, but it is tough to lay all the blame on him. Before kickoff, it was announced that WR Danny Davis and WR Kendric Pryor were out for the game. To add insult to injury, Mertz’s favorite target, TE Jake Ferguson suffered an apparent shoulder injury late in the fourth quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Wisconsin football put together their best drive in the second half before facing a fourth and six at the Wildcat 26 yard line. It was clear Paul Chryst and Joe Rudolph knew their offense wouldn’t have many opportunities to put points on the board. Mertz dropped back to pass before being sacked by Cameron Ruiz for a ten yard loss. From there, the Wildcats drove 53 yards to add the final nail in Wisconsin’s coffin. K Charlie Kuhbander banged home a 32 yard field goal to effectively put the game out of reach.

While this is certainly a tough loss to swallow and more than likely puts Wisconsin football out of the Big Ten Championship race, the season is not lost. This Badger team has an opportunity to develop their most talented quarterback in recent memory and build their program’s momentum into (hopefully) a normal year in 2021.

Wisconsin football gets a shot at redemption when they take on the Minnesota Golden Gophers for Paul Bunyan’s Axe in Camp Randall next Saturday.

On Wisconsin.