You can blame the SEC refs or Luke Fickell or undisciplined play or a variety of things, but the biggest problem for Wisconsin in the first half against Alabama was penalties. There's an argument that it was injuries, but nothing stalled the drives or even gave new life to Alabama's drives quite like Wisconsin committing a frustrating penalty.
The Badgers had a good drive going in the very first drive of the game, and an offensive pass-interference put them backwards, and the drive swung from a potential first down (if there was no penalty) to a 3rd and 19.
Wisconsin shot themselves in the foot over and over again
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The Badgers also had a roughing the passer and defensive holding, etc. There are so many instances that can be mentioned of how the Badgers killed their own drive or helped kickstart the Alabama drive. There were also penalties that just tacked on extra yards for the Crimson Tide.
They ended the half with four penalties for a whopping 55 yards. And this is concerning for Luke Fickell's coaching. Did he not get them ready? What happened this week that they went from committing no penalties to having it be the biggest problem in the first half of the Alabama game?
There was hope that this game would be an improvement for Wisconsin compared to last season's Alabama game, but it's shaping up to be much, much worse. The half has Alabama up 21-0. In 2024, the Badgers were down 21-3. I mean, at least there were three points, right?
The Badgers ultimately ended up losing that game 42-10 in an utter embarrassment for Luke Fickell and Wisconsin. It is shaping up to be a similar game for the Badgers. If there is any hope, it's that so far this season, the Badgers have been a second-half team. They will need something special for the Badgers in the second half to make it even respectable.