Riding on the legs of sophomore running back Dwayne Smith and senior quarterback Jim Sorgi, the Badgers (1-0 Big Ten, 4-1 overall) came out of Illinois (0-1, 1-4 overall) with a 38-20 victory.
The game centered around UW's running attack. Smith, filling in for injured junior running back Anthony Davis, who is still out with a sprained left ankle, had 34 carries for 193 yards and three touchdowns. Sorgi ran for 17 yards on four carries and had two running touchdowns.
\The past two games I struggled a little bit in my mind, and so I felt as though I needed to come out and have a great game,"" Smith said.
Smith was not the only one who was pleased with his play. UW Offensive Coordinator Brian White was very impressed with the play of Smith, who has 411 yards, only 14 behind Davis, and four touchdowns this season.
""He played a fantastic game,"" White said. ""From the beginning of the game, you could see a confidence in him and a recklessness. It's what I envisioned from him.""
Wisconsin started the game establishing the run. On the first drive, Smith had three carries for 34 yards and a touchdown. The 19-yard touchdown run that capped the drive was preceded by Sorgi hitting senior wide out Lee Evans on an 11-yard out pattern.
""It was a good time out there for us O-linemen,"" junior left tackle Morgan Davis said. ""We just kept rolling from last week and just kept pounding the ball.""
On the ensuing Fighting Illini drive, junior safety Jim Leonhard recorded his third interception of the season, giving Wisconsin the ball back. On a balanced offensive attack capped off by another Smith touchdown run, Wisconsin went up on Illinois 14-0 and went up as high as 21-0 before Illinois got on the scoreboard.
However, the game was not finished. Shortly after halftime Illinois fought back and got the score down to 21-13 before Wisconsin answered back. The third quarter ended up being a true Big Ten bruiser as both squads refused to give up.
""There were a lot of momentum swings in the game,"" Head Coach Barry Alvarez said. ""I was just proud of my guys out there, how they were able to answer down the stretch.""
The Badgers were on the positive ends of those momentum swings due in large part to the work of the secondary. Junior corner back Scott Starks and sophomore cornerback Levonne Rowan made big plays, including many pass deflections on key times in the game.
The special teams aspect of the game was still questionable for UW as it gave up 179 yards on seven kickoff returns, including a 66-yard return to Illini's E.B. Halsey. According to Rowan, the kickoff squad needs to work on fundamentals.
""A lot of times people are getting caught in the wedge,"" said Rowan, who serves as a safety on the unit. ""We've just got to make tackles. We have to hit them and wrap up; we have to finish the play. Simple fixes.""
Last season, after going 5-0 in non-conference play, the Badgers lost their Big Ten opener to Penn State which in tail led to a disappointing year overall. This year, though, UW began conference play on the right foot and hopes to build on it with a possible victory next week at Happy Valley in Penn State.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and the Wisconsin State Journal contributed to this report.
